Do tattoos affect your career or future?

[Joozeboi]

Is there anyone who has any visible tattoos that cost them a job or cost them something they wanted?

The reason i ask is bc i'm really thinking about getting my sleeves done but before I do I would like to know who would recommend against it vs who doesn't think it matters.

I mean, people here only know how to judge a book by its cover, even if they say they shouldn't. I think if they see someone covered in tattoos they are automatically some kind of hoodlum or some stupid shit.

On the other hand, does anyone know someone that has a steady job, owns something and is actually thriving and successful even if they look like thugs?
(Lil wayne doesn’t count.)

I know one guy in my A.A who's 30 and has his own t-shirt company that's roughly 1 year old and who im actually going to start working with as a designer. He has a sleeve on his right arm, but again, he's 1 in a million and I consider him lucky. And i'm glad because designing is my favorite thing to do. Hopefully it goes well and im pretty fucking stoked that this opportunity has crossed my path!! After 4 months of unemployment and a dry spell, something is finally happening. Just don't want to fuck it up ya know...

so what do you guys think?

 

[wooger]

I think it is your body and you should be able to do with it as you wish.

Having said that some people can be terribly judgemental but it all depends on what kind of job you are applying for. My sister is a solicitor and had a clause in her contract that she would not have any tattoos or facial piercings while she works at the firm.

You say that the guy you are going to work for has a tattoo himself? it would be pretty hypocritical for him to get mad at you for having one..

 

[theartofwar]

I've got ink done - my rule was never put something that a dress shirt wouldn't cover up.

 

[Joozeboi]

I think it is your body and you should be able to do with it as you wish.

Having said that some people can be terribly judgemental but it all depends on what kind of job you are applying for. My sister is a solicitor and had a clause in her contract that she would not have any tattoos or facial piercings while she works at the firm.

You say that the guy you are going to work for has a tattoo himself? it would be pretty hypocritical for him to get mad at you for having one..

I would imagine your sister is pretty well off financially as a solicitor. Which is kinda my point. Is that the price to pay to not really own your own body and choices? And with what gain to the firm and company? It's like the only way to get something secure and legit you have to be 'impeccable', as a business term people love to swing around to impress. On the other hand, companies are usually about non-discrimination towards gays, gender, or any race. What the difference?

What troubles me is, if things don't work out for whatever reason in this shirt company, and I jump back to the corporate world and I keep working for other people who want me to cover my self like I’m ashamed of it, when am I really going to ever own myself? Or my time for that matter?

idk.

 

[barnstable84]

I think it depends on the job or industry you are going to be a part of. I think if you're working in a creative type industry, they seem to be alot more open to body mods and more accepting than working in law or customer service where you are dealing with customers in person daily.

I'm tatted up myself, have a half sleeve, lower arm job, leg job, back, partial chest and hips and have a lip ring, but it isn't too much of a problem because I don't really work with customers face to face at my main job. I'm in I.T as a network admin/technical consultant and provide support over the phone.. My boss knows of my mods and even when I used to be in contact with people face to face, he would still let me keep my lip ring in and having some of the smaller tattoos covered.

My other job is more accepting of my body mods because i'm a part time tattooist and body piercer, so it's almost a given that i'm inked and that part time job will become full time at the start on 2012.

I wish you luck with the designing though, is it more of an alternative clothing label? I'm quite interested in seeing some designs if you were willing?

 

[theartofwar]

@ barnstable84 - what do you use for a setup for ink ? I'm looking to go halfs w my friend.

 

[2manyopiates]

Some jobs, yeah it matters.

But if you plan on working as a designer, I don't believe the creative industry cares as much.
Tats are gnarly ;D

 

[Joozeboi]

I think it depends on the job or industry you are going to be a part of. I think if you're working in a creative type industry, they seem to be alot more open to body mods and more accepting than working in law or customer service where you are dealing with customers in person daily.

I'm tatted up myself, have a half sleeve, lower arm job, leg job, back, partial chest and hips and have a lip ring, but it isn't too much of a problem because I don't really work with customers face to face at my main job. I'm in I.T as a network admin/technical consultant and provide support over the phone.. My boss knows of my mods and even when I used to be in contact with people face to face, he would still let me keep my lip ring in and having some of the smaller tattoos covered.

My other job is more accepting of my body mods because i'm a part time tattooist and body piercer, so it's almost a given that i'm inked and that part time job will become full time at the start on 2012.

I wish you luck with the designing though, is it more of an alternative clothing label? I'm quite interested in seeing some designs if you were willing?

The designs are cartoon-ish, with more of adult themed concepts. Kinda perverted TBH...I'm still working on a website and trying to get a drawing tablet to fill in shadows and details....But when I post them up you'll be the first to know.

I've been rocking The Misfits: Dead Walk Among Us patch on my jacket and I always get people telling me about concerts they went to and some other guy was like "Aren't you a little too young for The Misfits?" I said "Aren't you a little too old to give a shit?"

 

[barnstable84]

The designs are cartoon-ish, with more of adult themed concepts. Kinda perverted TBH...I'm still working on a website and trying to get a drawing tablet to fill in shadows and details....But when I post them up you'll be the first to know.

I've been rocking The Misfits: Dead Walk Among Us patch on my jacket and I always get people telling me about concerts they went to and some other guy was like "Aren't you a little too young for The Misfits?" I said "Aren't you a little too old to give a shit?"

I get a similar thing because i'm a girl and only 26, picked on because they are really old and that Danzig left the band a year before I was born.. I also have people who really aren't onto the band trying to tell me that Graves is better than Danzig, etc..

I met someone who got to see them in their original lineup and I was so jealous. He said he had some old vinyl of theirs but he won't sell them. The closest i've ever gotten to that is going to a Danzig concert and Doyle came out shredding like fuck, I lost my mind!!

Anyway, if you do get a website set up or even just want to talk crap, feel free to PM me if you can.

 

[molly897]

yaaah, as a fitness instructor I gotta cover my tattoo which is 5inches by 5 inches. but as a visual merchandiser for american eagle i work 9pm-7am and they don't really give a fuck what i wear so i like to show it off. I worked at H&M and they encouraged tattoos and piercings, it was awesome

i wouldn't get a sleeve if you plan on working business administration/marketing/teaching/ or really any career tbh. if you're working at hot topic that's a different story but you'll definitely have to wear long sleeves in a workplace

my husband is a computer programmer/game developer but he doesn't have any tattoos. however i wouldn't necessarily call him a 'thug' look at all, but he is a drug dealer. he owns his own car, we have our own things, support ourselves etc

 

[piebald]

I have a full sleeve (had it since i was 19, im in my 30's) and I have always purposefully covered it when meeting people/potential employers/co-workers etc for the first time because i dont want people to make assumptions/judgements before they get to know me-My ink has sort of become some sort of weird social experiment in some ways.
Because people dont see my tattoo all the time it has actually become a way for ME to judge other people-by the way THEY react when they see it- I dont look like the stereotypical "tatoo-ee" im sort of bookish, boring, white collar-ish chick and I think its so funny when people react strongly to it...it doesnt MEAN anything..its just ink on my skin(i dont mean to say tattoos dont hold meaning, i just mean they shouldnt imply to anything about my character)
Whats the big deal?? Chicks get bags of silicone implanted in their bodies and have fat sucked out of their thighs with tubes and THATS ok?? To me thats way more disturbing!!
As far as employment goes there are certainly some places where a tattoo wont fly but they are becoming so common these days-tons of people have them so hopefully everyone can just chill out about it.
Obviously there are always going to be certain situations/settings where its frowned upon, but hopefully the stigma is lessening.
its just ink..thats all and it blows my mind that people can walk around with plastic body parts and shaved down noses and pulled back faces but tattoos are bad? give me a break

 

[barnstable84]

Because people dont see my tattoo all the time it has actually become a way for ME to judge other people-by the way THEY react when they see it- I dont look like the stereotypical "tatoo-ee" im sort of bookish, boring, white collar-ish chick and I think its so funny when people react strongly to it...it doesnt MEAN anything..its just ink on my skin(i dont mean to say tattoos dont hold meaning, i just mean they shouldnt imply to anything about my character)
Whats the big deal?? Chicks get bags of silicone implanted in their bodies and have fat sucked out of their thighs with tubes and THATS ok?? To me thats way more disturbing!!
As far as employment goes there are certainly some places where a tattoo wont fly but they are becoming so common these days-tons of people have them so hopefully everyone can just chill out about it.
Obviously there are always going to be certain situations/settings where its frowned upon, but hopefully the stigma is lessening.
its just ink..thats all and it blows my mind that people can walk around with plastic body parts and shaved down noses and pulled back faces but tattoos are bad? give me a break

I have to agree with you, you see famous people in the media getting plastic surgery to further and better themselves, same with 'normal' people for that matter, yet people with tattoos still get frowned upon. The general public are becoming more accepting of the practice, but there are still alot of people out there that judge you based on your looks only and it's really frustrating.

I think that if someone is willing to permanently wear a design as a tribute, as a rite of passage or just for love of the art itself, they should be given respect for their belief and not made to feel like a second class citizen. I just think the way you've worded it is exactly how I feel about it but i'm not the best at taking my thoughts and transforming them into something that gets straight to the point without dilly dallying around.

Tattooing is an art form that has been around for such a long time that, although it's more accepted than it used to be, its just stigmatised and it needs to change.

 

[Joozeboi]

yaaah, as a fitness instructor I gotta cover my tattoo which is 5inches by 5 inches. but as a visual merchandiser for american eagle i work 9pm-7am and they don't really give a fuck what i wear so i like to show it off. I worked at H&M and they encouraged tattoos and piercings, it was awesome

i wouldn't get a sleeve if you plan on working business administration/marketing/teaching/ or really any career tbh. if you're working at hot topic that's a different story but you'll definitely have to wear long sleeves in a workplace

my husband is a computer programmer/game developer but he doesn't have any tattoos. however i wouldn't necessarily call him a 'thug' look at all, but he is a drug dealer. he owns his own car, we have our own things, support ourselves etc

I know what you mean. I was talking to one of my cousins who’s a pretty big time dealer a while ago. He’s been doing this for about 10 years and never had to get a job anywhere else. He’s always had the newest cars and a huge house and his kids are awesome. He recently finished a 5 year sentence and we were just catching up. I told him how I’ve been fucked over with a felony and how hard it was to find a job now and that I pretty much have a degree gone to complete shit coz of one teeny tiny incident. I mean, maybe later down the road the felony will be insignificant when I check the "yes" to a felony, but I can’t really wait with student loans piled up. I told him how they don’t really get that I’ve tried to be a productive member to society for more than half my life. He said “That’s why you gotta be your own boss…It’s Uncle Sam against us but they have the money and power.” And I totally agreed with him.

Oh yeah, he’s also not a ‘thug’ lol

 

[Joozeboi]

I have a full sleeve (had it since i was 19, im in my 30's) and I have always purposefully covered it when meeting people/potential employers/co-workers etc for the first time because i dont want people to make assumptions/judgements before they get to know me-My ink has sort of become some sort of weird social experiment in some ways.
Because people dont see my tattoo all the time it has actually become a way for ME to judge other people-by the way THEY react when they see it- I dont look like the stereotypical "tatoo-ee" im sort of bookish, boring, white collar-ish chick and I think its so funny when people react strongly to it...it doesnt MEAN anything..its just ink on my skin(i dont mean to say tattoos dont hold meaning, i just mean they shouldnt imply to anything about my character)
Whats the big deal?? Chicks get bags of silicone implanted in their bodies and have fat sucked out of their thighs with tubes and THATS ok?? To me thats way more disturbing!!
As far as employment goes there are certainly some places where a tattoo wont fly but they are becoming so common these days-tons of people have them so hopefully everyone can just chill out about it.
Obviously there are always going to be certain situations/settings where its frowned upon, but hopefully the stigma is lessening.
its just ink..thats all and it blows my mind that people can walk around with plastic body parts and shaved down noses and pulled back faces but tattoos are bad? give me a break

What I think is that people who scrape their noses and get the lipo and plastics are doing something rooted out of insecurity. They get all that surgery and pain and they haven’t fixed anything when the problem is inside. In some ways I think they're always going to be more insecure. People who are getting tats are doing it because it is exactly what barnstable84 said: a sort of rite of passage and the LOVE for art. It's like fucking celebrating life!! My first tat was when I turned 21 because I wanted to do something I’d never forget and never done.

When you turn someone down with tats it’s just creating more friction between people and potentially more fucking awesome people. Wtf? Not cool.

As far as what you said about people who judge you when they see you have ink, I say If I ever saw a librarian looking girl suddenly take her cloths off and she had tattoos, i'd proly react very strongly too lol. I'd think she's trying to fuck with my mind by transforming in a sec. And i'd like it.

 

[Joozeboi]

Anyway, if you do get a website set up or even just want to talk crap, feel free to PM me if you can.

I'm still a greenlighter. You're gonna have to wait a 'lil bit.

 

[Mariposa]

I wouldn't have a problem in my industry unless the tattooed person had anything offensive as a visible tattoo. I would be unlikely to hire a person with, say, a swastika tattoo (or "fuck you" on their fingers - yes I have seen this) by way of example.

A sleeve tattoo, tastefully done, wouldn't be a big deal to me. I am in a semi-professional field.

I have one very small tattoo on my shoulder which I cover up daily. I like the idea of ink; it's a form of self-expression. I would rather have a qualified employee that expresses him or herself in the form of tattooes than an unqualified employee.

Facial piercings beyond a nose stud, lip ring, etc., would be a no-no.

Yes, body modifications are a matter of personal choice except to the point where it gets offensive by content. I would expect a dress code that would cover a sleeve, and though I do not have other than my small tattoo, I would hold the tattooed employee to the same standards as to modesty as to anyone. Covered up is essential in my industry. If I had a sleeve tat, I would wear a sweater - I do anyways.

My $.02.

 

[barnstable84]

As far as what you said about people who judge you when they see you have ink, I say If I ever saw a librarian looking girl suddenly take her cloths off and she had tattoos, i'd proly react very strongly too lol. I'd think she's trying to fuck with my mind by transforming in a sec. And i'd like it.

I get the same reaction alot, because I work a full time job in I.T, I have to dress really professionally and take out my piercings, but if I run into people I know through work on weekends or in my other job as a tattooist and body piercer, they are a little stunned.. I try and keep as much of that life as seperate from my real life doing what i'm passionate about, but sometimes the worlds collide!

Mariposa, would you be up for posting a link of your tattoo?

 

[belarki]

^ Yeh I have an office job too and foresee myself having to be relatively covert with body mods up until I retire, or score some kick-arse job where no one cares. I have a nose piercing which I wear regardless; that only ever caused any issues when I was doing a dip. education and on prac (not with the other teachers mind you, but with the students... I guess I really shouldn't have worn it seeing students weren't allowed piercings). I have my whole lower back inked and intend to get a lot more done one day but am pretty sure it'll only be on skin that can be covered with a shirt

 

[Mariposa]

I get the same reaction alot, because I work a full time job in I.T, I have to dress really professionally and take out my piercings, but if I run into people I know through work on weekends or in my other job as a tattooist and body piercer, they are a little stunned.. I try and keep as much of that life as seperate from my real life doing what i'm passionate about, but sometimes the worlds collide!

Mariposa, would you be up for posting a link of your tattoo?

Sure. It's small on my right shoulder. I don't have my good camera but I can do it in the morning. In the meantime, it is this symbol (work safe):

Second one down. Should be work-safe.

Tranquility

 

[kytnism]

i have 8 tattoos in semi-concealed areas (i cant wear short skirts without dark tights, low riding pants or strappy heels to work as my feet are tattooed) and have never had it be an issue. im sure that if i got something highly visible it would be a potential problem and effect my position within my field.

i got a nasal piercing late last year that was removed after christmas vacation due to work circumstances; and like belarki would never go too outlandish in the peak of my professional life in fear of that becoming a hindrance.

id hate to think that my hard work and experience was overlooked or undermined due to something so personal; so dont go there.

...kytnism...