How about a guy who has worn a hat and jacket since his bar mitzva, has been in yeshiva three years post high school and has never performed the mitzva of tefillin? (He didn’t learn properly and both batim were far off enough to preven him fromm being yotze)
Or the guy who suddenly starts keeping the laws of lashon hara?
Or the guy (me) who has an epiphany and starts keeping lo sisna et achicha bilvavecha?
Why must every male baal teshuva cut off a ponytail to qualify?