At A Glance
Author	Asurfael
Contact	[email protected]
IAM	Asurfael
When	N/A

First off, I'd like to state that the text you're about to read is very straight forward, opinionated and possibly even insulting to some. So because of that I'd like to note that it is not meant to be a personal insult against anyone. I fully know and acknowledge that everybody is different and there are plenty of reasons modified people can not get a job that are unrelated to their modifications.

And that is exactly what I want to write about. I'm sure everybody following the articles on BME has noticed that there's a pretty active discussion going on about modifications and discrimination at work. Some people go as far as to suggest that discrimination because of modifications is akin to discrimination based upon religion. Again, some people go even further and state it as a fact that discrimination based on modifications is no different than racism. Others on the other hand put strong emphasis on modifications actually being an advantage, seeing as people will remember you better and as such you might even have an advantage compared to the unmodified.

I'm here to point out a somewhat different approach on the subject. Guess what? It has nothing to do with modifications.

What do you mean nothing to do with them, you ask. Surely there are active dress codes in companies that state no visible modifications? Also surely enough there are plenty of other excuses to deny modifications. Usually they seem to have something to do with hygiene (and anybody in their right mind can tell they are just pitiful excuses right away). There are lots and lots of jobs you just won't be able to get if you have visible modifications no matter how competent you might be.

Now here comes the shock. You don't have to work for them. But what if you really really want to work at an industry that doesn't allow your modifications? You remove them. Now don't go crying oppression and discrimination just yet. Nobody's telling you to remove your modifications. Nobody's forcing you to remove them.

The cold fact is, there are still plenty of industries where you just won't be able to get a job if you have visible modifications. It's sad but it's true. What you need to do is sort out your priorities. You basically have three options on you. You can take out or hide your modifications and get a job anywhere you want. That's option number one. Option number two would be to keep your modifications but work ten times as hard as everyone else to get to the same point as others. And option number three is saying "Fuck it all," keeping your piercings but giving up on the job.

In my opinion, anybody saying they can't get a job because of their modifications is full of bull. It is not nicely said but it is my honest opinion. They have options. There's always an option. If you don't want to mix in with the gray mainstream or you're too lazy to work ten times as hard as others it still doesn't mean you're out of options.

Now of course I base my opinions on personal experience. If I've made it, so can you. I graduated Finnish high school aged twenty with no prior working experience. I moved to another country and soon enough found myself both jobless and homeless because I wouldn't take my piercings out for a job I didn't really want anyway. Speaking the local language very little I managed to find myself another job. Eventually customers complained about my piercings, and I was offered a choice between taking some out or getting fired. I chose to take two piercings out in favour of keeping my job. I chose that. I didn't sell out, I wasn't forced to, it was my choice.

Since then I've moved here and there. I've gotten more piercings, I've gotten less piercings, I've gotten more tattoos... Well, I haven't gotten less tattoos. I've been a good employee and I've gotten fired because of being a poor one. I've been doped up and drunk and fanatically sober. I've been homeless and finally found my safe harbour. If anything my life has taught me that I'll always manage. I'll always survive no matter what. And I've always done it by working rather than giving up and living on welfare. I've put myself out there and I'm starting to see results.

So less than two years ago I had barely graduated high school and had never had a job in my entire life. I was homeless in a strange country with no working experience and minimal language skills. I had piercings on my face and I blamed them.

Up until a few months ago I had the same amount of piercings on my face as I had when I was fired because of them. These days I've taken them out, but I've gotten tattoos on my fingers and face. I'm not rich but I'm not doing too poorly either - on average, I work two weeks a month and then have two weeks off to heal some new tattoos. Working that much I make about what's average in Finland for a full month.

Now I'm not saying this to boast about it. I'm saying this because if I can do it, you can do it. You're not any worse off than I am now are you? All it takes is a reality check and a proper look at your options rather than woe on me and blaming your modifications. Your modifications have nothing to do with it, it's all about your attitude. It's about your choices. Being different doesn't mean being worse than others. Me, I've chosen to work for myself and start my own company. Others I know have tattooed fingers and they're working in a hardware store. And yet others have no modifications at all and nobody will employ them anyway because they're not trying hard enough.

If your mods really do make you happy then why are you complaining about them? I for one would love to to sell chocolate chip cookies for hugs in the happy happy rainbow wonderland next to a river made of honey and milk, but life isn't like that. If you can not make viable choices in your life there's really nobody else left to blame.

If you feel offended and defensive, I recommend you take a long walk and then consider what I've said properly. If on the other hand you feel like you're full of energy and it's the time to make decisions then great. Make them.

Only dead fish go with the flow.