A
FATHER’S TWO MOST DREADED WORDS…”Hey Dad…”
By Bob
“Sully” Sullivan, Host of
“THE COALITION” on NEWSRADIO 600 KOGO.
My
daughter, Delaney’s text to me tonight as I was prepping the
show:
“Hey Dad –
Makenna and I wanna get a tattoo on my birthday and moms onboard, how so we do
this?”
I got nothing…needless to say, I switched gears
on tonights topic…QUICKLY.
I have two
tattoos. It took me 5 times to get them right.
From the arms
of A-list
celebrities like
Angelina Jolie on the red carpet to star athletes like David Beckham on the
soccer field, it seems as if tattoos are everywhere.
Body
art has become increasingly common in the hallways of high schools
throughout the country. In the last 10 years, we've seen more and more teenagers
getting tattoos and getting larger tattoos.
In
fact, a 2010 Pew Research study found that nearly 40 percent of young people
between the ages of 18 and 29 have tattoos, and of those, half have two to five
tattoos.
The
study also found that parents increasingly support their kids' decisions to get
tattoos.
WOULD
YOU ALLOW YOUR TEEN TO GET A TATTOO? SHOULD I?
According
to a ballot on Cafemom.com, 15 percent of
moms say they'd allow their teens to get a tattoo while 30 percent say they're
either uncertain or are open to the idea, depending on a teenager's
age.
TATTOO’S…
DO YOU THINK THAT THEY ARE ACCEPTABLE?
DO
YOU HAVE ONE?
Human beings
have been drawing on themselves for as long as history can recount. The art of
tattooing has been practiced in cultures all over the world for
centuries.
Whether it was
out of ritual or tradition for distinct tribes or gangs, or as a trophy for
sailors servicemen and rebels everywhere, tattoos have seen widespread adoption
by people from all walks of life. And, since the 1980s, it seems they’ve
exploded into the mainstream.
These days,
young people especially are flocking to tattoo parlors all over the U.S. to get
their ink. Each year, more and more people begin to adorn themselves with the
art they believe best expresses who they are.
I
think we all certainly value individuality, self-expression and going against
the grain and let’s face it… tattoos have become less of a taboo.
BUT,
WOULD
YOU ALLOW YOUR TEEN TO GET A TATTOO? SHOULD I?
Part
of the reason for their recent explosion in popularity is due to the fact that
today, tattoos have become representations of much more than just one’s cultural
or religious background.
WOULD
YOU BE HESITANT TO HIRE SOMEONE IF THEY HAD VISIBLE TATTOO’S OR IS THIS A
DIFFERENT WORLD NOW…EVEN IN BUSINESS?
They’re
an accessory, a creative commodity. As tattoos have become more common,
customers have much more freedom in how they want their piece to look or why
they want to get it in the first place.
You
can get a tattoo to remember loved ones, express a personal philosophy or simply
to share a piece of art with the world around them.
But
it isn’t just tattoos that are experiencing a boom, it’s all types of body
modification.
While
visible tattoos and body piercings have become more acceptable in mainstream
society, they can still carry a stigma in the white-collar
workplace.
•
When
you present yourself in the workplace, you need to recognize that people will
naturally make a judgment about how you look.
You
need to look like you mean business.
Or
do you?
There
was a time when tattoos were strictly out of bounds — unless you happened to be
a sailor. Today they have evolved into a fashion statement routinely seen on
professional athletes, rock stars, models, movie stars and other high-profile
figures who set the cultural agenda.
But when it comes to corporate America — especially in certain industries where more conservative standards of appearance rule the day such as banking, law, accounting and insurance — tattoos and body piercings can hurt your chances of landing a job or advancing in your career.
Whether
you got one during wilder years as a badge of badness, or simply as a mere
decorative design, tattoos do not go over well in the interview
room
In
this day and age, employers might have a difficult time finding candidates
without some type of body embellishment.
WOULD
YOU BE HESITANT TO HIRE SOMEONE IF THEY HAD VISIBLE TATTOO’S OR IS THIS A
DIFFERENT WORLD NOW…EVEN IN BUSINESS?
The
Food and Drug Administration estimates as many as 45 million Americans have at
least one tattoo. A 2010 Pew Research Center report revealed tattoos on 38
percent of Americans ages 18 to 29 and 32 percent of people ages 30 to
45.
CBS
News reported,
“23 percent of college students have one to three tattoos, 51 percent are
pierced beyond women’s ears and 36 percent of 18 to 29-year-olds have tattoos.”
The up-and-coming generation is much more likely to have a few tattoos and
piercings than previous generations by the time they strap in for adulthood and
enter the workforce. Half a century ago, it would have been a career killer had
one’s “higher-ups” discovered anything more than a conservative pair of earrings
as a form of body modification. And that acceptance was only extended to women.
Men generally didn’t get their ears pierced.
Imagine
how a half-sleeve tattoo or any tattoo at all would have been
received.
TATTOO’S…
DO YOU THINK THAT THEY ARE ACCEPTABLE?
DO
YOU HAVE ONE?
In
an interview with a small business owner, CBS News also reported, “It has to
change, otherwise [employers are] going to be out of a workforce … [If] you
don’t like it or it offends you or you’re conservative in the workplace, I think
you’ll miss a whole talent pool of people who are very bright, well-educated …
and free-thinking.” Giddy up.
