LONG time lurker, first time poster. I am 26 and have been on finasteride for the past 3 years. Going bald is perfectly normal, but it sure does look funny when a 20 year old has a combover.
It has been well documented that better looking individuals earn more than their "uglier" counter parts. Take a look around your office. Does it appear that many executives are above average height and have an above average amount of hair for someone their age? I think of finasteride as an investment on my financial future.
For those who are hesitant to start because of side effects, speak to a doctor/dermatologist. I was very skeptical until I went and saw pretty much every dermatologist in my area. They all reassured me that they had been prescribing finasteride for years and that they were unaware of any of their patients suffering from any persisting side effects.
I tried the clippers/shaving route. What a hassle. Every other day I have to spend 10-15 minutes cutting my hair and cleaning it up. It was a daily reminder that I was going bald. I found it to be way more convenient to have hair than to cut it three times a week.
For anyone under age 35 obsessing over hair loss I HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend going to a doctor and talking about hair loss treatments. Finasteride had really helped me maximize my youth. Nothing is worse than being the old looking ugly friend at the bar. Don't be that guy!
I appreciate your perspective and also those who feel their head shape is not conducive to baldness, although I bet many of you may look better that way than you think. I too began noticeably thinning in my mid 20s, so I can relate to your thoughts, but I can also promise you are worrying too much. Also, I find it strange that you think spending 10 minutes buzzing your hair a couple times a week is somehow more work than styling your hair every day.
Let's talk about looks versus dating success, earning potential, etc. First, of course there is such a thing as objective beauty, and objectively beautiful people generally have an advantage in many areas. It's also overrated. As any average to ugly guy who has found dating success can attest, confidence matters at least as much as facial symmetry and hair count. Get/stay in shape (guys can be butter faces too!), buzz that wispy shit off your head (for god's sake do NOT comb it over), and rock it like you can't believe anyone wouldn't want to look that way.
Men have an advantage here in that an in-shape bald guy is generally viewed as pretty alpha, which ups your attractiveness/workplace dominance factor by a lot. I can attest to this as a relatively wimpy, confrontation-averse man. Ever since I shaved my head and started lifting, it's weird how much more often I notice people breaking eye contact from me before I do so (and I am far from staring people down) and act deferential despite me remaining pretty mild mannered. Attractive girls also smile at me more than they used to. That's just one guy's experience, but for me, I feel far better about myself than I ever did with all my hair (granted, I was skinny fat and in terrible shape back then). If you are not already in shape, consider that working out will probably make you more attractive to others than when you were chubby/super skinny with a full head of hair, plus you'll feel better and most likely get all of those opportunities you think are reserved for the more genetically blessed.
To reiterate, I have no judgement for guys who use medication, hair product (I really liked Toppik), or even who get transplants. At the end of the day, doing what you need to do to be more self-confident is what's going to pay the largest dividends.
