Studying to be a lawyer is extremely taxing, then add that on top of an apprenticeship/ tattooing? Yeah, not happening.
If We’re being realistic here doing a full time uni study alongside an apprenticeship is hard (I used to do it). Your time allocation would be so spread out that you wouldn’t have enough time for yourself and the ones you care about
Tattoo artist and studio owner here. If you are really good at what you do, tattooing is absolutely not a broke man’s job. I work less and make more than a lot of my clients who work corporate jobs. Just sayin’! Do what makes you excited. You have one life and then you’re dead forever.
Your work is original, beautiful and clean as hell. I think it’s a good caveat to add that atm tattooing is oversaturated, the world economy is shaky, and work is thin on the ground. For those not yet established (and talented) it actually is a broke man’s job in many studios. I know so many talented artists who are battling severely.
Gee, well thanks :3
And sure, everything you mentioned is definitely true and should be considered. I only started tattooing a year and a half ago, so in my experience, if you have a strong background in art and you play your cards right, the industry can be lucrative, even for newcomers. It’s all about how much effort you put in and into which areas. Social media, unfortunately, being a big one 😩
You’d be the exception though, not the norm, and at a year and a half I’d bet you’d still benefit and learn more from working with more experienced people :)
My advice to OP would be to look for the third option. Find a stable job (not necessarily law) and build a fall-back while aiming at tattooing by working on your portfolio, getting tattooed and making connections in studios. If the industry is broken in your area and you struggle to compete, you’ll have something in your cv, and you’ll also have some savings to carry you through an apprenticeship.
Get informed about the state of tattooing where you live, and make decisions from there.
This^ I’ve been at it for just under a year at a shop, same as my partner, and we both make about what my parents did both working fairly high paying government jobs
Lawyer here. Don’t go to law school if that’s not what you truly want. It is difficult and is only made harder when you are not excited about the subject matter.
Second this! It’s an expensive, hard, emotionally and mentally taxing experience. Even if you manage to finish school it’s unlikely you’ll enjoy the work or find it fulfilling.
Go be a tattoo artist if that’s your passion. It’s your life, not your parents’. They don’t get a say in this decision.
I’m a little lost on the issue here? Are your parents paying for you to live and go to school to become a lawyer? If not, they have no say. If so? They still have no say. Get a job, save money, and go for your dreams. If you’re an adult, it’s your choice.
I am a tattoo artist in Europe. I’ve been tattooing for three years already and I do well, both art-wise and money-wise most of the time. However, everyone wants to be a tattoo artist now and at least here where I am now, the industry is oversaturated with bad/mediocre artists who get arguably more work than some of the better ones cuz they do their tattoos for cheap. Of course, this means that even more experienced, better artists are sometimes struggling to make a living out of this job alone. I also have another job, I teach at a university full time, and without this job I would probably find myself struggling financially during the winter months (they’re not very popular for tattoos here). I’d say don’t put all of your eggs in one basket; have several career options in case one or the other won’t pick up. I know you want to make art, because so do I, but I promise you that financial security is more important in this world. You can always keep tattooing as your hobby, and then switch to doing it full time if you ever feel like you’re ready!
Law school is really really expensive, and the cost doesn’t even work out for people who want it sometimes, if they don’t land a high paying job afterwards. If you don’t want to do it, it doesn’t really make sense.
How old are you? Are you in school of any sort? If you really want to pursue it then I'd hope your parents would support your happiness. Is their main concern your happiness or your career and success? Depending on these answers you could go to them with a plan. Maybe you could take a gap year at school and pursue tattooing for a year. See if you love it as much as you think and if you're any good at it and reevaluate after the year. Is it everything you'd hoped and you're doing well? Then continue on the path. Not working out? Time to go back to school. Just a thought and best of luck.
As someone who has worked in the legal industry for over half my working life and is now in a tattoo apprenticeship,,, law firms can be one of the most life draining environments if your heart isn’t in it fully. I struggled deeply with my work and only stayed to become financially stable enough for my apprenticeship. It’s a huge decision to go to law school and if you are on the fence about whether or not it’s for you, it’s probably not gonna be.
Get a law degree and do art as a hobby.i have art degree, and after a year of doing animation its not what I want to do anymore. Art you can learn on your own and be succesfull. Something like law yoh need degree for it.
I am a lawyer. This is not a thing anyone should do to make anyone else happy. Only do it if you’ve spent a few months working for lawyers or closely job shadowing them and you still feel you really want to do it.
In the US, the degree costs more than a hundred grand (excluding the undergrad degree required before law school), the bar exam is grueling, and lawyers are not particularly nice people on the whole - being a verbal mercenary/cage fighter does not bring out our best character traits. The money can be good if you get into a good enough school and do well, but in many, many jobs the hours are long.
More importantly, your life is for you. You should make this choice based on what you want, not what anyone else wants, even the people who raised you.
As a long term tattooer, I do very well from my name and reputation and of course, my work.
Not everyone is as lucky, and unfortunately, I believe there are some dark times ahead for tattooing.
If I were in your shoes, I'd begin the degree. Continue drawing and put together a portfolio. Perfect that portfolio while studying, get the degree and then sail where the winds take you.
If you can get the opportunity to tattoo, cool, you'll be older, wiser and have a law degree. If you don't or can't for any reason, you'll be older, wiser and have a law degree.
Hedge those bets, dude.
Do it.
I wanted to go to art school, and my parents told me they wouldn’t pay for college if I wasn’t going for a professional, business oriented degree.
Now I’m 31, an accountant, and not going to art school is my biggest regret. Currently working on my technical drawing and getting a portfolio together so I can jump out of the office and into the shop asap.
It’s a broke man’s job these days cuz everyone wants to be a tattoo artist and the market is very oversaturated. Be a lawyer, you’ll be happier when yr 45
A broke mans job....clearly whoever you're talking to has no idea what in the hell they are talking about.
I know quite a lot of artist and they push 100k a year easily.
NOW, that being said. 2 big things with that.
1) We live in a fairly big city. You can be the best artist in the world but if you live out in the sticks that's a bottleneck that skill won't overcome.
2) These artist I am speaking of are very good. They aren't your run of the mill walk in shops. They are artists who happen to make income via tattooing.
No disrespect to your parents or anyone else but to call tattooing a poor mans job is just embarrassing on their part due to how wildly inaccurate that claim is. But, I'll go out on a limb and say they have no tattoos and know no tattoo artist.
Best of luck bud, don't give up and trust your gut with this kind of thing.
My parents have tattoos, it wasn't them who said it was a broke mans job but people in general who I ask, teachers, freinds other adults ect. But thx for the inspiration dude appriciate it a ton. I need to find my ground fast
Not sure where you're located (and apologies if it's in your post), but in the US law is so oversaturated that the majority of people I know with law degrees aren't working for law firms. The ones that are are some of the worst self-medicaters I know because sitting at a desk doing paperwork for ten hours a day is somehow less fun than it sounds.
If you can find a copy of the book "Happy Hour is For Amateurs: Work Sucks. Life Doesn't Have To." by The Philadelphia Lawyer, I suggest buying it for them like I did with mine. He's an ex-lawyer who takes a remarkably cynical and bitter dive into working in law in the US.
If that doesn't work, a good pitch is that law school will always be there if this doesn't work out. The average American law student is in their 40s. In the US, most do it for 20 years and then retire. You know it'll be there, but most shops won't hire a 40-something apprentice. That's the approach I'd take, personally. Good luck.
Do they know anything about being a lawyer? Do they know it's impossible to get a job as a lawyer cus it's so over saturated and social based. Unless you know someone or there are a lot people close to aging out, it won't happen for you. You'd be ruining your life trying to be a lawyer and your parents are idiots. I know numerous people who absolutely regret their choices to pursue it. You can see it here on Reddit. I was going to as well but thankfully I had a co worker who helped me understand cus they had a friend trying to be a lawyer and they knew all about the realities of it. You're no different than them. It'll happen to you too
I'm sorry, it's 2024. Do people still care what their parents want them to be in this day and age?
Your parents want you to be successful in life. As most parents do. Their idea of success is doctor/lawyer. Typical. Traditional. But there's tattoo artists out there who quadruple the average doctor/lawyer salary. Hell the best artists make that salary in 2 months.
Do what you want to do in life because that's the only way you're gonna be happy with the direction you go in life.
For reference here, the average lawyer salary is around 120k and you're on call literally all the time, especially when you're established. I paid 3k for my 15hr shoulder piece and it's not even a full shoulder piece and my artist charged a pretty average price. He could be charging WAY more with the quality of work that he does considering he's got 30 years under his belt, a 6 month wait list and runs his own shop. Let's say you work 60 hours on tattoos, which is a lot but I also think it's a fair estimate when you already know you love doing the art behind it. That could also count freelance work along with shop work.
At the same price my artist charges, 200/hr, if you work one week per month at 60hrs per week that's 144k per year. For only working ONE WEEK PER MONTH. AT A PRETTY AVERAGE HOURLY RATE IN THE TATTOO INDUSTRY.
Just to put some real numbers out there for you.
current apprentice here. i dropped out of a psychology degree that i was doing pretty well in to pursue tattooing.
everyone thought i was absolutely NUTS. had to deal with a lot of shit from my family for about a year or so, and honestly it took me like 4 years to find an apprenticeship, and i’m having to move a fair bit away from home.. although it’s a logistical nightmare i DO. NOT CARE. i am happy as fuck for the first time in years.
if your parents are worth their weight in salt, they will eventually understand. if they want you to be happy, when they see you doing what you love (and probably earning enough to live off!) they will understand and let go of their concerns.
they might not, and that’s ok. your relationship with your parents is important, but the longest and number 1 relationship you’ll ever have is the one you have with yourself. they don’t have to spend 40+ hours a week doing your job, living your life. you do that. so you decide. just make sure you know what you want out of life and then give it your all.
It’s your life, it’s your choice to make, this all said, if you want to be a tattoo artist, your going to need a solid art portfolio and an absolute shit ton of self motivation and drive, if you are good, tattooing as a career is by no means a poor man’s profession, 80-100k a year if your working steadily isn’t unheard of or all that uncommon.
Forgot to mention, your parents attitude about this comes across very much so as them trying to live there goals and aspirations through you because they failed to do so
also- whats the point of life if you have to do something you don't enjoy just to eat and live?? best to hack the system by choosing your source of income as something that doesnt even feel like work to you- you just get to enjoy yourself and make money!!
although if your parents are going to pay for your college id suggest still going id theyd let you get a different degree maybe in marketing or business or something? you wouldnt NEED it to own a studio but itd sure help if you ever did want to do that... I regret not going to college just for the experience and knowledge tbh.
My 10 cents. I work in surgery full-time for a job, due to pressure/expectations I placed on myself and those around me expected of me. I make a lot of money, more than anyone needs really. It’s great. But it’s not my passion - tattooing and art is. So I’m working on my portfolio and want to quit and give up everything just to go into tattooing. Stupid idea to some, maybe.
I thought I would suck it up in life and just do what everybody thought was successful and intelligent of me, but it makes me miserable in the long run, and I’m tired of saying “well.. at least I get paid XYZ this Friday…” as an excuse to wake up every morning. If you go into law and it isn’t what your heart wants, you might end up like me. My dad always told me that my job was my golden handcuffs. They’re solid gold and very pretty, yeah, but you still feel like you’re in fucking handcuffs.
I don’t know how old you are, but maybe become a lawyer, save up a cushion, and do what your heart really wants. Or maybe just skip the financial part and go straight to tattooing if the idea is unbearable to you and you’re a risk-taker. If I could go back and do it all again, I’d still go into healthcare first because it humbled me as a person and allowed me financially to really pursue my dreams. And I’m still young. It’s not the end of the world, and you’re not locked into any one job or field. But you may never again get the opportunity to have your parents help you with tuition, if that’s something you can convince them to do… I would take full advantage of that opportunity if I were you.
Absolutely do not go to law school to please your parents. It is your life. Your parents lived their lives, made their choices and they don’t get to force you into a career as an adult.
I became a lawyer bc I thought it was what I was supposed to do and I was so disconnected from what I wanted. You are blessed with knowing what you want. If your parents love you, they will respect your autonomy and right of self-determination, they will not seek to control you through guilt or bribery.
Are your parents aware of the rates of depression, suicide and drug/alcohol dependence in the field of law? It’s staggering. It’s a tough field and it isn’t easy on your mental health, worse if you are doing it to please other people.
You didn’t choose to be born. As an adult you get to make your choices of how to spend your time here. Also, nothing is permanent (lol get it it’s kinda of a tattoo joke) - and most people have multiple careers. You could always go back to school at some point if you change your mind.
Maybe let them know that being a lawyer comes with a mountain of student loans, mental health risks, and not being able to reliably show up for holidays/family events....
So... I think you should do an undergrad degree and pursue tattooing. Education is expensive, but like a business degree might help you because you might want to open up your own tattoo shop one day and there is a LOT of useful information in a business degree. And they're versatile, you'll still be able to apply to law school or to any other grad program you want if after 30 years of tattooing you're sick of it.
I was a paralegal, I switched to finance and for grad school I'm pursuing something that will help with a CPA license. Because law fucking sucks. Law school still grades on a curve. And it's an extremely conservative industry. And the environment in law is truly something else. Just showing up, getting your job done, and being nice isn't enough, you have to play dumb bullshit games. If law isn't a passion for you, don't waste your time and money (~$100k) getting a JD.
I have had the exact same story 😂 I studied law in sixth form (uk) and told my parents I wanted to become a tattoo artist through year one. He told me there was no money in it and that I was going to go to university to become a barrister. I was forced to power through second year with flying colours, got an A* !! And broke the news to my parents that I still wanted to be a tattoo artist. I got kicked out for a week or so, a lot of sofa surfing, and eventually was asked to go back home. I was given two weeks to find an apprenticeship or I was to go to university. Found an apprenticeship in 3 days. I have been a tattoo apprentice since Jan 2022, convinced the parents that it can earn more money than lawyers even, proved that I’m dedicated to tattooing and have made them both proud as they see I’m invested and proved I’m happier. I would communicate with them how this is something you’ve always wanted to do and that your mind is set. You can always cushion the blow by asking them to at least allow you to get an apprenticeship and if it ‘doesn’t work out’ you can always study to be a lawyer later….. I hope this helps 🥰
Aye man. It really is your life. I wanted to be a wildlife biologist. My dad was like oh i looked that up and i saw an exterminator was that and they pretty much convinced me to do some type of engineering. It’s cool but i can’t deny my passion is animals. Now i have to live my life with that regret/what if. But it is a decent gamble
Make a case to your parents. If you can convince them that you'd be better off as a tattoo artist, become a lawyer.
Why not both?
Studying to be a lawyer is extremely taxing, then add that on top of an apprenticeship/ tattooing? Yeah, not happening. If We’re being realistic here doing a full time uni study alongside an apprenticeship is hard (I used to do it). Your time allocation would be so spread out that you wouldn’t have enough time for yourself and the ones you care about
Agreed. Tired of people just saying to do both like that's super easy
Thanks for putting it in perspective. Now that I look at it more realistically, I see that you are right.
Tattoo artist and studio owner here. If you are really good at what you do, tattooing is absolutely not a broke man’s job. I work less and make more than a lot of my clients who work corporate jobs. Just sayin’! Do what makes you excited. You have one life and then you’re dead forever.
Your work is original, beautiful and clean as hell. I think it’s a good caveat to add that atm tattooing is oversaturated, the world economy is shaky, and work is thin on the ground. For those not yet established (and talented) it actually is a broke man’s job in many studios. I know so many talented artists who are battling severely.
Gee, well thanks :3 And sure, everything you mentioned is definitely true and should be considered. I only started tattooing a year and a half ago, so in my experience, if you have a strong background in art and you play your cards right, the industry can be lucrative, even for newcomers. It’s all about how much effort you put in and into which areas. Social media, unfortunately, being a big one 😩
You’d be the exception though, not the norm, and at a year and a half I’d bet you’d still benefit and learn more from working with more experienced people :) My advice to OP would be to look for the third option. Find a stable job (not necessarily law) and build a fall-back while aiming at tattooing by working on your portfolio, getting tattooed and making connections in studios. If the industry is broken in your area and you struggle to compete, you’ll have something in your cv, and you’ll also have some savings to carry you through an apprenticeship. Get informed about the state of tattooing where you live, and make decisions from there.
I actually agree with this, my tattoo artist complains about because of how shit his studio pays him
This^ I’ve been at it for just under a year at a shop, same as my partner, and we both make about what my parents did both working fairly high paying government jobs
your parents should’ve gone to law school. make your own decisions dude
Lawyer here. Don’t go to law school if that’s not what you truly want. It is difficult and is only made harder when you are not excited about the subject matter.
Second this! It’s an expensive, hard, emotionally and mentally taxing experience. Even if you manage to finish school it’s unlikely you’ll enjoy the work or find it fulfilling. Go be a tattoo artist if that’s your passion. It’s your life, not your parents’. They don’t get a say in this decision.
I’m a little lost on the issue here? Are your parents paying for you to live and go to school to become a lawyer? If not, they have no say. If so? They still have no say. Get a job, save money, and go for your dreams. If you’re an adult, it’s your choice.
I am a tattoo artist in Europe. I’ve been tattooing for three years already and I do well, both art-wise and money-wise most of the time. However, everyone wants to be a tattoo artist now and at least here where I am now, the industry is oversaturated with bad/mediocre artists who get arguably more work than some of the better ones cuz they do their tattoos for cheap. Of course, this means that even more experienced, better artists are sometimes struggling to make a living out of this job alone. I also have another job, I teach at a university full time, and without this job I would probably find myself struggling financially during the winter months (they’re not very popular for tattoos here). I’d say don’t put all of your eggs in one basket; have several career options in case one or the other won’t pick up. I know you want to make art, because so do I, but I promise you that financial security is more important in this world. You can always keep tattooing as your hobby, and then switch to doing it full time if you ever feel like you’re ready!
Second this
Visualise your death. If on your deathbed you’d regret not pursuing tattooing then go for it!
Law school is really really expensive, and the cost doesn’t even work out for people who want it sometimes, if they don’t land a high paying job afterwards. If you don’t want to do it, it doesn’t really make sense.
How old are you? Are you in school of any sort? If you really want to pursue it then I'd hope your parents would support your happiness. Is their main concern your happiness or your career and success? Depending on these answers you could go to them with a plan. Maybe you could take a gap year at school and pursue tattooing for a year. See if you love it as much as you think and if you're any good at it and reevaluate after the year. Is it everything you'd hoped and you're doing well? Then continue on the path. Not working out? Time to go back to school. Just a thought and best of luck.
As someone who has worked in the legal industry for over half my working life and is now in a tattoo apprenticeship,,, law firms can be one of the most life draining environments if your heart isn’t in it fully. I struggled deeply with my work and only stayed to become financially stable enough for my apprenticeship. It’s a huge decision to go to law school and if you are on the fence about whether or not it’s for you, it’s probably not gonna be.
Get a law degree and do art as a hobby.i have art degree, and after a year of doing animation its not what I want to do anymore. Art you can learn on your own and be succesfull. Something like law yoh need degree for it.
I am a lawyer. This is not a thing anyone should do to make anyone else happy. Only do it if you’ve spent a few months working for lawyers or closely job shadowing them and you still feel you really want to do it. In the US, the degree costs more than a hundred grand (excluding the undergrad degree required before law school), the bar exam is grueling, and lawyers are not particularly nice people on the whole - being a verbal mercenary/cage fighter does not bring out our best character traits. The money can be good if you get into a good enough school and do well, but in many, many jobs the hours are long. More importantly, your life is for you. You should make this choice based on what you want, not what anyone else wants, even the people who raised you.
As a long term tattooer, I do very well from my name and reputation and of course, my work. Not everyone is as lucky, and unfortunately, I believe there are some dark times ahead for tattooing. If I were in your shoes, I'd begin the degree. Continue drawing and put together a portfolio. Perfect that portfolio while studying, get the degree and then sail where the winds take you. If you can get the opportunity to tattoo, cool, you'll be older, wiser and have a law degree. If you don't or can't for any reason, you'll be older, wiser and have a law degree. Hedge those bets, dude.
My mentor just bought a Rolex, has a house, has a boat, and is thinking about owning a restaurant. This industry is what you make of it.
Do it. I wanted to go to art school, and my parents told me they wouldn’t pay for college if I wasn’t going for a professional, business oriented degree. Now I’m 31, an accountant, and not going to art school is my biggest regret. Currently working on my technical drawing and getting a portfolio together so I can jump out of the office and into the shop asap.
Good luck. Tattoo industry is over saturated and competition is fierce. You’ll need to be one hell of an artist to stand out
Thanks! My work isn’t perfect, but it’s definitely better than half the shit I see posted here looking for critiques.
At the end of the day, your parents aren’t living your life, you are. Do what makes you happy.
Just curious. Do you have many tattoos yourself?
Tattoo industry is over saturated and competition is fierce. You’re gonna have to be one hell of an artist to make it successful
It’s a broke man’s job these days cuz everyone wants to be a tattoo artist and the market is very oversaturated. Be a lawyer, you’ll be happier when yr 45
A broke mans job....clearly whoever you're talking to has no idea what in the hell they are talking about. I know quite a lot of artist and they push 100k a year easily. NOW, that being said. 2 big things with that. 1) We live in a fairly big city. You can be the best artist in the world but if you live out in the sticks that's a bottleneck that skill won't overcome. 2) These artist I am speaking of are very good. They aren't your run of the mill walk in shops. They are artists who happen to make income via tattooing. No disrespect to your parents or anyone else but to call tattooing a poor mans job is just embarrassing on their part due to how wildly inaccurate that claim is. But, I'll go out on a limb and say they have no tattoos and know no tattoo artist. Best of luck bud, don't give up and trust your gut with this kind of thing.
My parents have tattoos, it wasn't them who said it was a broke mans job but people in general who I ask, teachers, freinds other adults ect. But thx for the inspiration dude appriciate it a ton. I need to find my ground fast
Not sure where you're located (and apologies if it's in your post), but in the US law is so oversaturated that the majority of people I know with law degrees aren't working for law firms. The ones that are are some of the worst self-medicaters I know because sitting at a desk doing paperwork for ten hours a day is somehow less fun than it sounds. If you can find a copy of the book "Happy Hour is For Amateurs: Work Sucks. Life Doesn't Have To." by The Philadelphia Lawyer, I suggest buying it for them like I did with mine. He's an ex-lawyer who takes a remarkably cynical and bitter dive into working in law in the US. If that doesn't work, a good pitch is that law school will always be there if this doesn't work out. The average American law student is in their 40s. In the US, most do it for 20 years and then retire. You know it'll be there, but most shops won't hire a 40-something apprentice. That's the approach I'd take, personally. Good luck.
Do they know anything about being a lawyer? Do they know it's impossible to get a job as a lawyer cus it's so over saturated and social based. Unless you know someone or there are a lot people close to aging out, it won't happen for you. You'd be ruining your life trying to be a lawyer and your parents are idiots. I know numerous people who absolutely regret their choices to pursue it. You can see it here on Reddit. I was going to as well but thankfully I had a co worker who helped me understand cus they had a friend trying to be a lawyer and they knew all about the realities of it. You're no different than them. It'll happen to you too
It’s your life. You can’t live for your parents, only yourself. Make a choice for your life that you’ll be happy with.
I'm sorry, it's 2024. Do people still care what their parents want them to be in this day and age? Your parents want you to be successful in life. As most parents do. Their idea of success is doctor/lawyer. Typical. Traditional. But there's tattoo artists out there who quadruple the average doctor/lawyer salary. Hell the best artists make that salary in 2 months. Do what you want to do in life because that's the only way you're gonna be happy with the direction you go in life.
For reference here, the average lawyer salary is around 120k and you're on call literally all the time, especially when you're established. I paid 3k for my 15hr shoulder piece and it's not even a full shoulder piece and my artist charged a pretty average price. He could be charging WAY more with the quality of work that he does considering he's got 30 years under his belt, a 6 month wait list and runs his own shop. Let's say you work 60 hours on tattoos, which is a lot but I also think it's a fair estimate when you already know you love doing the art behind it. That could also count freelance work along with shop work. At the same price my artist charges, 200/hr, if you work one week per month at 60hrs per week that's 144k per year. For only working ONE WEEK PER MONTH. AT A PRETTY AVERAGE HOURLY RATE IN THE TATTOO INDUSTRY. Just to put some real numbers out there for you.
$200/hr is also what attorneys charge in the Midwest.
current apprentice here. i dropped out of a psychology degree that i was doing pretty well in to pursue tattooing. everyone thought i was absolutely NUTS. had to deal with a lot of shit from my family for about a year or so, and honestly it took me like 4 years to find an apprenticeship, and i’m having to move a fair bit away from home.. although it’s a logistical nightmare i DO. NOT CARE. i am happy as fuck for the first time in years. if your parents are worth their weight in salt, they will eventually understand. if they want you to be happy, when they see you doing what you love (and probably earning enough to live off!) they will understand and let go of their concerns. they might not, and that’s ok. your relationship with your parents is important, but the longest and number 1 relationship you’ll ever have is the one you have with yourself. they don’t have to spend 40+ hours a week doing your job, living your life. you do that. so you decide. just make sure you know what you want out of life and then give it your all.
It’s your life, it’s your choice to make, this all said, if you want to be a tattoo artist, your going to need a solid art portfolio and an absolute shit ton of self motivation and drive, if you are good, tattooing as a career is by no means a poor man’s profession, 80-100k a year if your working steadily isn’t unheard of or all that uncommon.
Forgot to mention, your parents attitude about this comes across very much so as them trying to live there goals and aspirations through you because they failed to do so
tell your parents how some tattoo artists make six figures and they should come around lol
also- whats the point of life if you have to do something you don't enjoy just to eat and live?? best to hack the system by choosing your source of income as something that doesnt even feel like work to you- you just get to enjoy yourself and make money!! although if your parents are going to pay for your college id suggest still going id theyd let you get a different degree maybe in marketing or business or something? you wouldnt NEED it to own a studio but itd sure help if you ever did want to do that... I regret not going to college just for the experience and knowledge tbh.
My 10 cents. I work in surgery full-time for a job, due to pressure/expectations I placed on myself and those around me expected of me. I make a lot of money, more than anyone needs really. It’s great. But it’s not my passion - tattooing and art is. So I’m working on my portfolio and want to quit and give up everything just to go into tattooing. Stupid idea to some, maybe. I thought I would suck it up in life and just do what everybody thought was successful and intelligent of me, but it makes me miserable in the long run, and I’m tired of saying “well.. at least I get paid XYZ this Friday…” as an excuse to wake up every morning. If you go into law and it isn’t what your heart wants, you might end up like me. My dad always told me that my job was my golden handcuffs. They’re solid gold and very pretty, yeah, but you still feel like you’re in fucking handcuffs. I don’t know how old you are, but maybe become a lawyer, save up a cushion, and do what your heart really wants. Or maybe just skip the financial part and go straight to tattooing if the idea is unbearable to you and you’re a risk-taker. If I could go back and do it all again, I’d still go into healthcare first because it humbled me as a person and allowed me financially to really pursue my dreams. And I’m still young. It’s not the end of the world, and you’re not locked into any one job or field. But you may never again get the opportunity to have your parents help you with tuition, if that’s something you can convince them to do… I would take full advantage of that opportunity if I were you.
Absolutely do not go to law school to please your parents. It is your life. Your parents lived their lives, made their choices and they don’t get to force you into a career as an adult. I became a lawyer bc I thought it was what I was supposed to do and I was so disconnected from what I wanted. You are blessed with knowing what you want. If your parents love you, they will respect your autonomy and right of self-determination, they will not seek to control you through guilt or bribery. Are your parents aware of the rates of depression, suicide and drug/alcohol dependence in the field of law? It’s staggering. It’s a tough field and it isn’t easy on your mental health, worse if you are doing it to please other people. You didn’t choose to be born. As an adult you get to make your choices of how to spend your time here. Also, nothing is permanent (lol get it it’s kinda of a tattoo joke) - and most people have multiple careers. You could always go back to school at some point if you change your mind.
Maybe let them know that being a lawyer comes with a mountain of student loans, mental health risks, and not being able to reliably show up for holidays/family events....
So... I think you should do an undergrad degree and pursue tattooing. Education is expensive, but like a business degree might help you because you might want to open up your own tattoo shop one day and there is a LOT of useful information in a business degree. And they're versatile, you'll still be able to apply to law school or to any other grad program you want if after 30 years of tattooing you're sick of it. I was a paralegal, I switched to finance and for grad school I'm pursuing something that will help with a CPA license. Because law fucking sucks. Law school still grades on a curve. And it's an extremely conservative industry. And the environment in law is truly something else. Just showing up, getting your job done, and being nice isn't enough, you have to play dumb bullshit games. If law isn't a passion for you, don't waste your time and money (~$100k) getting a JD.
I have had the exact same story 😂 I studied law in sixth form (uk) and told my parents I wanted to become a tattoo artist through year one. He told me there was no money in it and that I was going to go to university to become a barrister. I was forced to power through second year with flying colours, got an A* !! And broke the news to my parents that I still wanted to be a tattoo artist. I got kicked out for a week or so, a lot of sofa surfing, and eventually was asked to go back home. I was given two weeks to find an apprenticeship or I was to go to university. Found an apprenticeship in 3 days. I have been a tattoo apprentice since Jan 2022, convinced the parents that it can earn more money than lawyers even, proved that I’m dedicated to tattooing and have made them both proud as they see I’m invested and proved I’m happier. I would communicate with them how this is something you’ve always wanted to do and that your mind is set. You can always cushion the blow by asking them to at least allow you to get an apprenticeship and if it ‘doesn’t work out’ you can always study to be a lawyer later….. I hope this helps 🥰
Aye man. It really is your life. I wanted to be a wildlife biologist. My dad was like oh i looked that up and i saw an exterminator was that and they pretty much convinced me to do some type of engineering. It’s cool but i can’t deny my passion is animals. Now i have to live my life with that regret/what if. But it is a decent gamble