Anyone who has a tattoo, or even considered getting a tattoo, has heard all of the reasons NOT to get one. Almost everyone you meet will try to talk you out of making the biggest mistake of your life. They will warn you about things that may or may not be backed by actual science. Sometimes they will succeed and you will cancel your appointment and lose your deposit. At the end of the day, it is what makes you happy and what you want to do with your body. Here are just a few of the things people will thrust down your throats when you decide to get a tattoo.

1. Body modification is unprofessional.

If ink in my skin impacts my ability to professional, then I should probably look at another line of work. The socks on my feet or the professional heels required for many workplaces impact my productivity more than ink in my skin.

2. You will never land a good job if you have tattoos.

Surprise! I can be a perfectly capable mother despite my tattoos. I have held a job for two years and during those years, I had a tattoo. Believe it or not, my performance at work has been satisfactory. To be frank, if a job is more concerned with my skin, it has a lot more problems than it seems.

3. You will regret your tattoos when you are older.

I think it would make for some pretty cool stories. I've always hoped that I'd be a cool grandma. I want to be an example to embrace your individuality. I want to be seen as a human being with individuality and personality, not just as an elderly person.

4. You are going to grow out of it.

I try to think through my tattoos before getting them. If it means something to me at some point in my life and I document it, then that's my choice. Everyone goes through phases in their lifetime and we just document it in different ways.

5. Tattoos are so common now. They do not show individuality anymore!

Tattoos are seen as sparks of individuality. Does that go away when everyone starts showing their individuality? ABSOLUTELY NOT. Tattoos are art. Each piece is unique to the artist and to the canvas. A bird on someone might mean something completely different than someone else with a bird. If the prevalence of tattoos takes away from its individuality, then art should have gone out of style a long time ago.

6. Only already hot people can pull them off!

That's body shaming! Anybody can have tattoos! My tattoo is not for your enjoyment. It is not a spectacle. My tattoo is for me. Whether or not someone thinks it looks right on my body type, or any body type for that matter, is irrelevant. Tattoos are not meant to please everyone else. Just one person, the person who gets the tattoo.

7. What if they misspell your tattoo? You can't just erase it!

Yes, tattoos are a commitment! That's frightening, isn't it? I'm just practicing for marriage! That's a joke. Anyway, thanks for looking out for me but it is my job to make sure I find a literate tattoo artist! Finding a good artist that you trust is a crucial part of the tattoo process. As long as I find a trustworthy artist, I have nothing to worry about.

Tattoos are beautiful commitments. They have risks just like piercings. You usually do not dissuade people from getting ear piercings, so why should we dissuade from piercings? Also, I rarely hear tattooed people trying to convert "pure" people. So maybe we should try to return the favor and let people live their lives, inked or not.