Since I’m in Europe for a few months, I decided to get some tattoos from artists I follow on Instagram who live here. Already this week I’ve added 5 new tattoos to my arms this week. And I have another 4 scheduled in the upcoming month.
Something I didn’t understand before I got my first tattoo almost 2 years ago was how it changes you.
Obviously, they change your skin. But that’s not what I mean.
They change your mind and how you feel about your own body.
For the first time in my life, I felt like I had direct control over my own body. I was able to say “This is who I am, and I did it to myself.”
All of my tattoos so far are on my arms. I wanted them to be visible when I meet you (and I just like how arm tattoos look). The tattoos are for me, but they’re also a litmus test for finding people who care about dumb shit.
I can see where your eyes go when I shake your hand. It’s easy to see how people react, who loves them, who’s uncomfortable, and who just doesn’t care.
And let’s be honest, no reaction is usually the best reaction.
Similarly, people love to ask me if I’ll ever finish my college degree. I left to join Twilio with just one semester of classes to finish.
But I realized there are things in each of our lives which make us distinct. Nobody can say I followed the usual path. And if you expect me to follow your path, then we’re not meant to work together anyway.
I’ve got tattoos, no degree, no job, no home, and a list of failures a mile long. Now let’s do something great together.
