Brian Moeller
Boston Tattoo Company

How does one really define themselves? What creates their legacy, their influence on others, or determines the impact of their actions, negative or positive? I typed this from my hotel room while sluggishly packing and trying to undo the damage from the last night’s post Conference celebrations. (Thanks for the Gatorade, Dianna!)

I find myself curious as to the direction we, as an industry, are going. To be honest, this is something that I question often but rarely have a definitive answer for, but what I can tell you is that actions will always speak louder than words.

I am in my early thirties and, as of July, have been piercing for 10 years. I feel that myself and my peers in this same category find ourselves in a weird grey area. We are too old to be considered new to the industry, yet too young to be considered a third or fourth generation piercer. We are the “Generation Y”, so to speak. Most of us have shared the struggle of our older colleagues while building our shops up from nothing. We also share the same issues that challenge younger generations, such as the drama in online forums. We are the misfit children who realize that we will never be celebrities and rockstars, yet still dream of achieving bigger things.

I am a very passionate and opinionated individual about many things, and I usually prefer to observe from a distance. However, that stance has changed for me recently. I feel that over the last few years, people in our industry—not everyone—are losing touch with what making a difference really means. In fact, this statement could more than likely be broadened to North American society as a whole. A current example would be industry related forums found online such as the Body Modification Learning Forum, Ear Stretching Network, and many others. We’ve all seen it; comment after comment of “help” and the responses providing advice and guidance. Even if the information presented is extremely useful, it is overshadowed by negativity in the end. I feel that this constant reminder sets a bad example for younger generations of piercers. One quote that often comes to mind is from the Necromancer character from The Venture Brothers. When asked if he was a great magician like Merlin, he rolls his eyes and says, “Merlin wasn’t a great magician, just a more popular one.”

That being said, I’m sure many people are reading this and wondering who I am or making assumptions of who I’m referring to. I’ll be the first to tell you that I’m not here to point fingers. Shining spotlights only encourages problems and does not fix anything. Instead, I propose that everyone looks inward at themselves and really consider what you can offer. What drives you and makes you the person that you are? What can you provide that will help push our industry to the next level?

Some people complain about what needs to be changed. I can say that I work as hard as I possibly can. I get involved. I volunteer my time and contribute to this shared passion called body piercing. Although in reality it is not just me, but all of my fellow volunteers, Conference Committee peers, and Conference sub speaker Committee peers. We have all come together and with our combined efforts and skill sets, made this week happen for everyone. It was hard physically and mentally, but we made it count. We made it work, and we offered our best for all of you.

Now if you’re reading this and it creates a spark in you, then let me challenge you. When you are home, back at your studio, with all of your Conference knowledge improving your studio, look at your other skill sets. We are all involved at different levels with many different positions within the piercing industry, but what is it that REALLY makes you stand out and makes you an individual? Ask yourself how can you apply these skills to this beloved shared passion and help to make it even better than what has already evolved into. I chose to put down the keyboard and step away from the internet soapbox to start getting involved. What will you choose to do?