I’ve been thinking about getting a tattoo. To be fair, I’ve been thinking about getting a tattoo since college. I’ve yet to pull the trigger.
I used to be scared of the pain, then I reasoned out I couldn’t commit to one design for all my years, but lately my hesitancy has less to do with my fears and everything to do with my job.
Hidden tattoos are one thing, but what about visible ink in the workplace – does the traditional notion that tattoos and jobs don’t mix still exist in 2016?
According to an October 2015 Harris Poll, roughly 29 percent of Americans have at least one tattoo – so about three in 10 people and double the rate in 2008.
Breaking it down further, nearly half of all millennials, 47 percent, have at least one tattoo, and Generation X comes in at 36 percent. Compare that with only 13 percent of baby boomers.
Baby boomers may run the workplace now, but as we all know, they’re retiring at record speed, and with them go old ideals. There is a changing of the guard in progress.
Businesses are becoming more progressive, and so are their leaders. In 2014, employees were thrilled when coffee giant Starbucks notably reversed its policy on visible ink.
An informal Springfield Business Journal office poll revealed a handful of co-workers with tattoos, but most are hidden away. A quick check of the SBJ handbook makes no mention of visible ink. The dress policy section simply states, “Each employee is to dress professionally both inside and outside the office when representing SBJ.” It goes on to say unprofessional attire is simply not acceptable, and “Like it or not, new or potential customers will judge all of us based by the attire and appearance of just one person.”
And there is the crux of my hesitancy: public perception.
Appearance is not as important as professional skills, but show up to a business meeting, sales pitch or interview with visible ink and assumptions are made. Are they always correct? Probably not, but they are there.
Shouldn’t we be more accepting of people and how they choose to express themselves?
In a world where police officers are being shot in the streets, who are we to judge someone for finding something good and beautiful through art? Just because that art doesn’t hang on a museum canvas or isn’t in a sculpture park doesn’t make it any less beautiful.
Gone are the days of only green ink, tribal bands and your girlfriend’s name. Today’s tattoos are as vibrant and colorful as their owners. Take for example the ladies behind $1.5 million lifestyle blog A Beautiful Mess. Both have visible tattoos on their forearms. Emma Chapman has a handheld mixer and Elsie Larson a pincushion – truly representative of their work and their passions.
Would it make a difference if the business partners were bankers, not bloggers? It shouldn’t. Chances are your banker already has a tattoo and it hasn’t affected his job performance yet. It’s time to drop the preconceived notions of what a tattoo means in society. They’re not just for sailors, inmates and gang members anymore.
Are there ugly tattoos out there? Sure, but just because you don’t understand someone else’s art doesn’t make it any less beautiful to them.
If one thing is constant in this world, it’s change. While some current company policies may prohibit visible tats, give it a few years – and a few retirements – and things will change.
In the meantime, I say if it makes you happy, do it, just maybe in a less visible spot. Life is too short to spend worrying about what other people think or what other people ink.
Springfield Business Journal Features Editor Emily Letterman can be reached at eletterman@sbj.net.
