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Tattoos: Professionalism?
Hey guys!
So, this isn't exactly pole-related, though I suppose if I get some tattoos, I won't be able to pole for a bit while they heal 😛 But, I wanted your opinions, as we have a lot of diversity here on the site, and I thought it would be good to ask!
My intention is to become a Psychologist. More specifically, a counselor, though I'm not sure what my specialty would be (possibly a sex therapist?!). I will be meeting clients, as well as others in my field, and all that kind of thing. I suppose that's the problem I'm having. I have to appear "professional."
However, I want some tattoos! And, yes, I suppose I could get some on my back, or my legs, or whatever, and they would be realitively discreet. I suppose I could get some on my hips, and no one would ever see them…but for me, that's not the point!
I want to get two tattoos, specifically, on the insides of my forearms. Not too close to the wrist, but from elbow to about halfway down. On the left, I'd like a cactus flower, and maybe some fun designs, though I know the tribal thing has been done to death (though I like it anyways!). On the right, I'd like something that signifies my main interests, such as pole, and writing. I might even get a word or something.
I want them there, in particular, because I feel that I express myself best through writing, and I love doing things with my hands; that's how I connect, that's what I focus on, so I feel that the tattoos would be best on my arms, near my hands, in order to flow out with their energy. I cannot put tattoos on my upper arms, due to the keratosis pilaris, which reacts very badly to tattoing.
So, I ask you: Do you think I could still be taken seriously if I have those tattoos, as a professional counsellor? Does it matter? Do you think I could simply cover them up every day (such as with a light sweater or jacket) and show them off in my daily life?
My husband says that I should screw the norm, and just get 'em.
Tattoos are one of the biggest things of my life. I'm terrified of needles, I have no idea what the pain will be like, and I know, it's permanent. But, I feel right about it…and I want to make very sure I won't screw myself in my career choice by getting them!
Thanks!
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25 Replies
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I LOVE tattoos…BUT working in a professional environment it's best to hide it/them. I work in a very strict professional/uptight environment and I'm the only female engineer, in order to look professional and be taken seriously, I don't even wear skirt or dresses. All my suits are pants and I don't wear any open toe shoes to work either.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not old fashion, but the people I'm work with are (VERY!!). And if you want to climb the ladder of success, you have to sacrifice some of your freedom of expression. I often have to work with clients/lawyers/other business people, if you have a tattoo (I have one!!), it better be a place where you can hide it.
Sorry if I burst your bubble….but that's just my 2 cents.
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Wow, I'm finishing my BA in Psychology this year…I thought about sex therapy too! LOL Okay, with the tattoos it may be a matter of which specialty you choose! But I agree with your husband, you could go against the norm which probably can make you seem more personable & "real" with patients putting them at ease. Psychology is a study of the mind, expression, and discovery of oneself. It's great to show that you, "the professional Psychologist" is capable of expressing yourself too! If anything, you could always cover them…offices are usually cold anyway. =)
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Mechie – You make a perfectly fine point, so I have another question for you: If I was not to put it somewhere in which it would be easily seen, then how would you suggest I show it off? To me, a tattoo IS something for me, but it's like…getting a painting of the Mona Lisa that cost you thousands of dollars, then putting it in a closet…you should be showing it off! So, I'm curious if you have any other ideas 😉
Lola – Good to know there's another psychologist around! Sometimes I feel…well, crazy 😛 I figured I wouldn't have much trouble with keeping a light jacket or something on, since I'm cold most of the time (especially in air conditioning!) but, well, I dunno! If other people know I have them, and they need to hire me, then their opinion would already have been tainted. I dunno…
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@Runemist34 – you can get a tattoo on your back or shoulder, just somewhere you can hide it with work clothes. Most professional office environment don’t allow sleeveless, as long as it is a place you can hide comfortably with your work clothes it should be doable.
My tattoo is at my lower hip where you can’t see it unless I’m wearing a bikinis. I’m actually thinking about getting a tattoo at my lower back..lol
Again, I must emphasis, if you want to climb the ladder of success, you have to sacrifice some of your freedom of expression.
Unless you work in Google, 99.99% of the professional places have a lot of unspoken rule…tattoo is one of them. No one will tell you “We won’t hire you or give you a promotion because of your tattoo”…but believe me, it’s in their mind.
But if you REALLY want to get a tattoo somewhere obvious on your body, there are makeup kit out there that are use specifically to cover up tattoo. (I tried them, they are a pain in the butt to put on and remove…think VERY heavy concealer)
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Oh- I forgot to add emphasis on WORK CLOTHES….
On non-work days I do keep my hair down…wear mini skirts…halter tops…3-4″ heels…and ofcourse pole dancing 🙂
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Mechie makes some great points. If you're going to work in a more "corporate" environment, I would advise against it too. That's why it really depends on what type of work environment you value and your specialty. There are many places to put an emphasis on creating a professional atmosphere as well as those that want to create an inviting relaxed atmosphere.
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I know plenty of professional people with large tattoos, including a female friend with a huge chestpiece all the way up to her neck who works in engineering … My boyfriend has a sleeve in Arabic script and works in consulting. Both of them wear conservative clothing every day that covers their tattoos (the girl wears blouses no lower than her neck, my boyfriend wears long sleeves and suits). The way I see it, neither one of them gets to discuss their love of music, their sex life, their hobbies in art, whatever … at work. And they don't need to show their tattoos either. It doesn't mean they are diminishing themselves. When they get off work both of them change their clothes and get on with their personal lives. 🙂
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I work in a Dr's office and I have 3 tattoos one on mylower back, another on my rib cage and one on my foot. I have patients always comment about the one on my foot always in a positive way but others do give me "the look" like eww. But everyone is intitled to there own opinion and i personaly feel that it was my desision to get them and it expresses who i am and if any one has a problem with that, that is there issue. 🙂
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Mechie – You make a good point 😉 I had thought about makeup, but concealer always bothers the heck out of me! I never, ever wear it. Like, ever. Even on stage doing burlesque!
Part of my fear with hips, or lower back, is the having babies thing. I like the idea of a hip tattoo, but I don't want it to get all crazy when I have babies!
I would imagine that, for me, work clothes are pretty close to my normal attire! Apparently I normally dress relatively business-casual. You know, trousers and junk like that. I can rarely wear button-up shirts, though, since I've got giant boobs!
I think, perhaps, the tattoo is going to be something I think about for a while…I thought of something that makes a lot of sense for me, and it goes on the back 😛
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I work in a business casual office. I have one tat on my left shoulder blade. It only comes out if im wearing a sheer overlay with my shirt or im wearing a light colored shirt and it pokes through. A co-worker on the other hand has a huge piece of baby blocks of his sons name on rib cage/side (that was his first tat!!), hes got a AK on his forearm. My boss has a portriat of one of her dogs on her forearm. Both of them have them clearly visible, but we dont interact with customers that much to begin with. Another good friend of mine works for the Dept of Defense, she has alot of tats! The only one that gets noticed is the hibicus flower on the top of her foot.
I vote for just wearing a light jacket/sweater when working with your clients. Working in that kind of enviroment really stressed the professionalism alot. I also think with the kind of tats your wanting arent that big of deal. Its not like your getting 'Thug Life' across your stomach and wearing a midriff top to the office!
My tat is a side of who I am. I mean its only my zodiac sign but its a piece of me. Im also thinking of getting a hip one as well but I wanted to wait until I got to a weight I wanted to be at and maintain it. I also want my grandmothers rosary but im not sure where.
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Yeah…it sucks that the world we live in are still preeeetty conservative….especially working on corporate office. https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_confused.gif
Some people are more "acceptable" then others, some people have "zero-tolerance", and some people are just plain MEAN.
Example: One of the lady in my yoga class from work asked me if I work out on the side other then yoga (we work in different department but our work place offers yoga classes during lunch hours several times a week) I told her I also do pole fitness on the side…she immediately made some MEAN comments like "Oh, you plan on working in name-of-a-nearby-strip-club after work??" Then other women starts to chime in "Yeah, you can earn some dollar bills!!" (I swear, those women are just jealous that I have a much better body and much better flexibility…I kick their butts in yoga!!) https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_rambo.gif
However, when I told one of my other coworker about my pole-fitness, he was like "Oh, I've seen those. Pole aerobics, I saw some men that can lift their whole body at a 90 degree angle! Those are great workout where you can really build your strength." https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_cheers.gif(The only reason why I told this coworker is because he said he has a large mirror that he wants to get ride off and I said I WANT IT….then he asked what for?)
Back to Runemist34 – Like what other people mentioned, it really depends on what you want to do in your career. But in a corporate office, the higher you go, the more conservative the people are going to be. Don't do something that you will regret or inconvenient for yourself later.
I know I know…people shouldn't judge you by what you look like or how you dress…and that we all have the freedom to express ourselves….blah blah blah. But in reality, people DO judge…people WILL judge you in their mind and they won't even say a thing.
Don't let your personal life affect your work career and vice versa. It's hard to achieve a balance, but it's doable. https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_wink.gif
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Ok – the font was WAAY too small…I'm re-posting!!
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Yeah…it sucks that the world we live in are still preeeetty conservative….especially working on corporate office. https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_confused.gif
Some people are more "acceptable" then others, some people have "zero-tolerance", and some people are just plain MEAN.
Example: One of the lady in my yoga class from work asked me if I work out on the side other then yoga (we work in different department but our work place offers yoga classes during lunch hours several times a week) I told her I also do pole fitness on the side…she immediately made some MEAN comments like "Oh, you plan on working in name-of-a-nearby-strip-club after work??" Then other women starts to chime in "Yeah, you can earn some dollar bills!!" (I swear, those women are just jealous that I have a much better body and much better flexibility…I kick their butts in yoga!!) https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_rambo.gif
However, when I told one of my other coworker about my pole-fitness, he was like "Oh, I've seen those. Pole aerobics, I saw some men that can lift their whole body at a 90 degree angle! Those are great workout where you can really build your strength." https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_cheers.gif(The only reason why I told this coworker is because he said he has a large mirror that he wants to get ride off and I said I WANT IT….then he asked what for?)
Back to Runemist34 – Like what other people mentioned, it really depends on what you want to do in your career. But in a corporate office, the higher you go, the more conservative the people are going to be. Don't do something that you will regret or inconvenient for yourself later.
I know I know…people shouldn't judge you by what you look like or how you dress…and that we all have the freedom to express ourselves….blah blah blah. But in reality, people DO judge…people WILL judge you in their mind and they won't even say a thing.
Don't let your personal life affect your work career and vice versa. It's hard to achieve a balance, but it's doable. https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_wink.gif
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Hey RuneMist,
I have a unique perspective.. I have a tattoo on my right inner wrist, it is about 2 inches wide, 1 inch tall. It is a latin phrase that has a special meaning to me. I work as a massage therapist, as a pole instructor, and I help out with front desk duties. I work with the public all day long basically, and very few people even NOTICE my tattoo!
I too, wanted something visible, but discrete. The lettering is easily covered with a watch or bracelet band if I feel the need, and generally when I shake hands my wrist is pointing downward and no one sees it. Heck, one of my boss's asked me when I got it (I've worked at this spa for a year!), and I was like.. uh 5 years ago? LOL. They hadn't ever noticed.
I also have a tiny tattoo of a heart on my left foot on my toe, and no one ever comments on it except when I get a pedicure, or am wearing super cute heels to show off said pedicure =)
So, there is a way to place tattoos visibly and yet subtle.
Now, I am considering doing a bigger forearm piece.. but I think I will wait a while. I plan to open my own business someday, and once I'm the boss, it's ON! 🙂
Corporate america does kinda suck, but I think as long as your tattoo isn't anything innappropriate (ie: naked people, violence, blood or gore, etc! lol) most employers are a lot more lax now. And of course, if worse comes to worse, you will have to invest in many cardigans for work!
Here's my best suggestion to you… Have what you want tatttooed drawn up, and then have a temporary copy (they use tracing paper with dye) put on you wherever you are thinking of getting tattooed. Wear it for a few days and see how you feel about it. Remember, bad tattoos are EXPENSIVE to laser off! lol. good luck!
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Aaah thank you ladies! See? I told you…lots of opinions!
JBStarryEyedGirl…I dunno if you can call it "corporate america," since I'm in canada and all…but really, it's all business, and it's all stupid!
Also, a tattoo on your TOE? That must have HURT!
I really appreciate the feedback, guys! I was talking to a friend of mine on MSN about it, and she asked "Well, why not get it on your back?" and we tossed it back and forth a bit, so I think it's going to take a little bit more thought, just to see what kinds of options I want, what kinds of things I can do with it. Sometimes when there's so many options, I get a little muddled 😉
However, I think that if I do decide to go for the tattoos I want, right now, I'll go for the light jacket or long sleeved option. As I said, I'm cold all the time anyways! And, I suppose a nice suit-jacket looks professional anyways, doesn't it?
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I loooove my long sleeves..as a matter of fact….it's 77 degree outside…and I'm wearing a jacket in my office…LOL https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_viking.gif
Good luck with your tattoo!! In the meantime…I think I'll try a Henna on my lower back to see if I want something more permanent there https://www.studioveena.com/img/smilies/icon_e_wink.gif
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