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I have some on my back already and I am planning to get another one that extends down my arm to my forearm. I am enrolled to start at a highly ranked school in the fall. I feel lame for even asking this but could this visible tattoo on my forearm have negative impacts on my career down the road? obviously i could wear long sleeves to job interviews, and working as a lawyer I will probably be wearing long sleeves all the time anyway, right? By the time my employers notice it i will already be in the door. Any thoughts?

anotherperson wrote:I have some on my back already and I am planning to get another one that extends down my arm to my forearm. I am enrolled to start at a highly ranked school in the fall. I feel lame for even asking this but could this visible tattoo on my forearm have negative impacts on my career down the road? obviously i could wear long sleeves to job interviews, and working as a lawyer I will probably be wearing long sleeves all the time anyway, right? By the time my employers notice it i will already be in the door. Any thoughts?

if you were long sleeve you be find. but it is best to avoid tattoo.

Joan Manuel Serrat wrote:

anotherperson wrote:I have some on my back already and I am planning to get another one that extends down my arm to my forearm. I am enrolled to start at a highly ranked school in the fall. I feel lame for even asking this but could this visible tattoo on my forearm have negative impacts on my career down the road? obviously i could wear long sleeves to job interviews, and working as a lawyer I will probably be wearing long sleeves all the time anyway, right? By the time my employers notice it i will already be in the door. Any thoughts?

if you were long sleeve you be find. but it is best to avoid tattoo.

+1

I'm going to assume that this is not flame.

Not a good idea. Law is a conservative field. Tattoos are not conservative. They are not professional. If anyone ever sees your tattoos, I guarantee that they would have a skewed perception of you from that day forward, whether that is fair, right, or not. If a client ever sees your tattoos, they will not like it. You will have plenty of non-long sleeve contact with your coworkers and clients (at games, golfing, BBQs, whatever). Why get something that you would, essentially, have to hide your entire working life? Plus you'll look ridiculous golfing in 100+ degree weather in a long-sleeve shirt.

spinsta wrote: Law is a conservative field.

Please go to BYU.

I have a couple of tattoos too from my time in the military. I usually try to avoid showing them off because many people will judge you immediately for having them. You never know how people will react to them, best to cover em up.

My suggestion is to stay away from getting anything that you can't cover with just a T-Shirt. I doubt you'll be going to many pool parties with your boss so you should be fine otherwise.

Cal4future wrote:I have a couple of tattoos too from my time in the military. I usually try to avoid showing them off because many people will judge you immediately for having them. You never know how people will react to them, best to cover em up.

My suggestion is to stay away from getting anything that you can't cover with just a T-Shirt. I doubt you'll be going to many pool parties with your boss so you should be fine otherwise.

I agree that a tattoo on your lower arm is going to look very unprofessional. If you really want another one, why don't you get it on your upper arm/shoulder area where it can always be covered with a T-shirt? Then you won't look ridiculous at casual business functions...

Cal4future wrote:
My suggestion is to stay away from getting anything that you can't cover with just a T-Shirt. I doubt you'll be going to many pool parties with your boss so you should be fine otherwise.

+1. Anything above the elbow on your arm can be hidden pretty easily in casual situations, like company picnics/summer outings, but if you go lower than that, you have to worry about stupid little things like rolling your sleeves up after a long day during the summer and having someone see your tattoo. Being hired is not the only concern; you also will want to be promoted, or potentially recommended to another employer if you switch jobs. Visible tattoos will definitely prejudice people against you in such a conservative field.

My friend Cecil was accepted to 6 T-14's and found employment in a NY BigLaw firm w/in a week.....I scanned a pic from his business card

GATORTIM wrote:My friend Cecil was accepted to 6 T-14's and found employment in a NY BigLaw firm w/in a week.....I scanned a pic from his business card

lol

a tattoo on your lower arm does not look unprofessional.. it simply IS unprofessional.

anotherperson wrote:I have some on my back already and I am planning to get another one that extends down my arm to my forearm. I am enrolled to start at a highly ranked school in the fall. I feel lame for even asking this but could this visible tattoo on my forearm have negative impacts on my career down the road? obviously i could wear long sleeves to job interviews, and working as a lawyer I will probably be wearing long sleeves all the time anyway, right? By the time my employers notice it i will already be in the door. Any thoughts?

Listen man, as a person with 3 tattoos and the desire to get more, I think I can speak from a perspective other than one that looks down on you. That being said, my tattoos are on my upper arm, my back, and my ribs. Here's some advice...don't get a forearm tattoo. Have you ever seen a person with a forearm tattoo that is a lawyer or any other kind of professional? I didn't think so. Stick to spots you can cover up.

I second what biv0ns said. I have a tattoo on my back shoulder and want/probably will eventually get a bigger one that goes from my other back shoulder and over my shoulder onto my chest. I'll make absolutely positive that it's not noticeable with a t-shirt on though...because visible tattoos are unprofessional in the corporate/law world imo.

Trust me though...if I was in a line of work where there weren't any stigmas about tattoos I would have at least one full sleeve.

anotherperson wrote:I have some on my back already and I am planning to get another one that extends down my arm to my forearm. I am enrolled to start at a highly ranked school in the fall. I feel lame for even asking this but could this visible tattoo on my forearm have negative impacts on my career down the road? obviously i could wear long sleeves to job interviews, and working as a lawyer I will probably be wearing long sleeves all the time anyway, right? By the time my employers notice it i will already be in the door. Any thoughts?

The fact of the matter is that lots of people in the corporate world have tattoos, so you wouldn't be one of the few with a tattoo. So, having a tattoo in and of itself won't necessarily be a big deal.

However, it would be wise to get tattoos that can easily be covered up when you’re in the office or professional outings, because showing a tattoo in certain social situations could make people (even those with tattoos themselves) assume negative things about you. So, one that extends to your forearm probably wouldn't be wise.

SoxyPirate wrote:

spinsta wrote: Law is a conservative field.

Please go to BYU.

Doesn't change the fact that it's a conservative field. Conservative suits, conservative hair cuts, conservative everything.

You may already be "in the door" by the time your employer sees it, but what about when you're up for partner and you've got very conservative 70 yr old men and women deciding between you and the conservative person sitting next to you? You don't want it to distract anyone from the quality of your work product, and people have preconceived notions about tattoos. Don't get a forearm tat.

For clarity, I have a tattoo. It just doesn't see the light of day.

EDIT: Basically I'll just echo was madison12991 said below in a much nicer tone than I could muster.

Tattoos aren't going to HELP you but they don't need to hurt you.

Lots of people, even lawyers, have tattoos in all kinds of places.

A forearm tattoo is almost certainly never going to work to your advantage in a professional setting, and it definitely might work against you. There's also the chance that you could fully sleeve both arms and never have it effect you at work.

You just have to weigh the risks and the benefits. If all that you care about in your time on earth is making partner at a prestigious law firm, having a tattoo is not going to help get you there and may be an impediment. If you think that having a forearm tattoo is an important form of self-expression or you otherwise just really want to get it, it's not going to prevent you from being a lawyer.

I have like 6 tattoos... two of which (one on my foot and and one above my ankle) can be hidden when i wear pants, but in a skirt, they are pretty obvious. as much as i love tattoos, i would agree that getting a tattoo on your lower arm is prob not professional, and will be difficult to hide. i've worked in the "corporate world" for the last three years, and though i don't think having a tattoo is as a huge deal as people make it out to be, i do think it's important to look professional, especially when dealing with clients.

madison12991 wrote:Lots of people, even lawyers, have tattoos in all kinds of places.

A forearm tattoo is almost certainly never going to work to your advantage in a professional setting, and it definitely might work against you. There's also the chance that you could fully sleeve both arms and never have it effect you at work.

You just have to weigh the risks and the benefits. If all that you care about in your time on earth is making partner at a prestigious law firm, having a tattoo is not going to help get you there and may be an impediment. If you think that having a forearm tattoo is an important form of self-expression or you otherwise just really want to get it, it's not going to prevent you from being a lawyer.

Full sleeves might help as a public defender. You'll identify more with your clients













[kidding]

absolutely positively do not get any more tattoos. trust me dude.

spinsta wrote:

SoxyPirate wrote:

spinsta wrote: Law is a conservative field.

Please go to BYU.

Doesn't change the fact that it's a conservative field. Conservative suits, conservative hair cuts, conservative everything.

Oh, you meant that practicioners of law generally maintain a conservative appearance. I thought you meant "law is a conservative field"...since you said "law is a conservative field."

SoxyPirate wrote:

spinsta wrote:

SoxyPirate wrote:

spinsta wrote: Law is a conservative field.

Please go to BYU.

Doesn't change the fact that it's a conservative field. Conservative suits, conservative hair cuts, conservative everything.

Oh, you meant that practicioners of law generally maintain a conservative appearance. I thought you meant "law is a conservative field"...since you said "law is a conservative field."

Through context you should have figured out he meant conservative as in resistant to change, not politically conservative. Especially in a thread about appearances.

Worked at a firm as a secretary with another secretary. She had more experience than me. She also had visible tattoos on her ankles and one small one on her forearm.

Guess who the firm put at the front as the main receptionist/greeter for clients.

Just assume that people are snarky morons that think tattoos are a sign of devil-worship, heathen orgies, and binge drinking. Ink accordingly.

Gaius wrote: Through context you should have figured out he meant conservative as in resistant to change, not politically conservative. Especially in a thread about appearances.

spinsta wrote: conservative everything

and what, through context, led you to believe that I was talking about political conservatism?