You might want to brush up on terminology fade , low , dark , brushlength , waves , lineupshapeup , taper , etc . If you want to grow it out and keep it short on the sides , your best bet is just telling whoever happens to service you that day exactly that . If you have a picture in mind , it ' ll give your barber a better idea of what you ' re going for . There ' s typically a general barbershop culture , but it changes from place to place . Many are chill spots where people talk about sports , blackness especially masculinity , women , and popular culture . Most you can just walkin and get a haircut after a wait . Some barbershops cater to more elite clientele , like black celebs , and in my experience , you often have to make appointments with them . Plus they prices be stupid high too and they the barbers don ' t really be talking to each other like I prefer in other shops . Worst times to go get a haircut are FridaySaturday afternoonevening and the day of or before a holiday unless you go very early . Also , when you start to frequent a particular shop often , you tend to have a certain barber that you ' ll go to all the time . Some days you won ' t get your haircut cause your barber ain ' t there that day , though if y ' all cool you should have his number . Traditionally , it is a social faux pas to go to another barber in the same shop . Probably the most important part of your haircut is your hairline . If your line is fucked up , it can make you feel like you paid for nothing . A bad line is usually either noticeably crooked or unnatural , like if your line was pushed back much further than where it normally grows . A good line got a certain crispness to it , the kind that make somebody ask if you got a haircut recently . You ' ll know the differences over time . Lastly , most barbershops operate on a cashpreference basis , in my experience . A decent haircut is like $ 12 $ 20 , not including tip . You might get less if you real cool with your barber .