Personal Trainers with Facial Piercings??
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What an interesting question! I'm 50 and find piercings mostly kind of silly, although I would never say anything to someone about them unless they asked for my opinion. Lip and tongue piercings don't bother me unless they interfere with the ability to talk, which happens more often than the owner of the piercing seems aware. If you talk like a kid with a retainer it's going to be difficult for me to take you seriously. On the other hand, eyebrow piercings sort of ick me out.
You might get fewer clients of a certain type but more clients of another type. Since you feel strongly enough about this to change your body over it, it seems to me you should do what seems right to you and ignore the opinions of others.1 -
Some people will be put off, some people will find you more relatable. Take some personal marketing courses, some social media courses, soft skills courses, etc. That way you can draw enough clients that accept you and you don't have to turn yourself vanilla and appeal to the masses. You are striving to become a business person, after all, not just someone who transfers knowledge.0
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To me it's not what a person looks like if they are awesome at their industry. I've had a 110 pound girl give me killer workouts due to her knowledge and study of kinesiology. I've also had garbage workouts from muscled up fools that believe what works for them will universally work for everyone.
Even yesterday this concept held true: I went to a Yoga class and the guy was older and not exactly in the best shape. However, by far he explained the movements the best and I am way more sore this morning from a great class.2 -
Or they qualified? Are they a good fit for me? If yes, I don't care if you had a unicorn horn implated to your skull. I work with a trainer to better myself, not to look at them.3
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61 yrs old here and wouldn't care about piercings, tattoos etc. As long as you treated me with respect and came up with a good programme for me. But then I have just had a large tattoo done on my lower back so I may not be the typical 61 year old.
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I don’t like them and find them to be annoying and distracting on others. That doesn’t mean I think someone who wears them is a bad person. However, some people will judge me because of my opinion.4
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cmriverside wrote: »I'm an old lady and I wouldn't judge you by your appearance/piercings...but I would judge you if you judged me for being old and inexperienced.
Example: I had a young male at the gym who I hired to teach me some things. He was condescending and acted bored all the way through the sessions. He lasted three sessions. If you are in it to help people, then help them. If you don't want to help overweight older ladies, well. Maybe work at different type of gym.
He was the reason I quit that gym. That's about $1500 per year that gym is out, between membership and classes/training sessions.
Hope you told the gym!!2 -
As others have said, it depends on the type, whether they hinder your speech, or if you are obsessed with playing with them. However, what I do find gross however are those ear things that stretch the hole out to the size of a half dollar. I personally could not stomach that.
With that being said, I am "bothered" by lots of bling and clutter, whether on someone, in an environment, etc. My workplace regulates tattoos, piercings, and jewelry. Even women aren't supposed to wear those dangly charm bracelets, but when one does, I am annoyed by the constant sound of them clattering. I am overly sensitive to things like that. Same with clutter on a table or at a desk- even someone else's.
So probably in all honesty, I wouldn't judge YOU for the piercings, however I would find it irritatingly distracting for myself. Just like if you had 10 fingernails painted in different colors/patterns. But again, more my issue than yours.
PS- This is finding faults of my own, not in you.
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I am 61yo and couldnt care less! I see it as a rebellious state of youth.
I know many in my generation who feel the same.
Every generation has its "thing". It is typically outgrown. No biggie!1 -
Now I should add that as a representative of a profession....I probably would not hire an overly tatooed or obvious pierced individual.
Some jobs it would be fitting. But it would limit opportunity and college/university opportunities.1 -
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I have no clue what facial piercings have to do with personal training. Like... none. But I understand what you're saying, there's different kinds of people and some might be put off. Frankly, if you're good at your job, the ones who don't care will keep you plenty busy.0
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I'm good with tattoos but I would get way too distracted by facial piercings to be able to pay attention to my workout. Not in a judgey way. Just in a "how does that not hurt??" kind of way. So that would be on me and not on the trainer.2
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Doesn't bother me a bit when people have tattoos, facial piercings, etc. If you know what you are doing, can explain it clearly, answer questions and don't have poor hygiene then it's all good.
Except for those large gauged earlobe thingies - I find them fascinating in a horrible kind of way and they would be really distracting for me.1 -
I'm 49 female, the tattoos wouldn't bother me, the piercing? it would depend, if they are something that was small and inconspicuous, I'd have no problem with, if it was something so big that it caused your lip to droop, then yea, I'd have an issue with it. Would I not hire you because of the piercings? probably not, not unless I saw how you were with other clients and I didn't like what I saw.0
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This is your job, a source of income, so let's be realistic here. Let me frame what I said earlier another way... I doubt anyone will say "he has no piercings, nope, can't have him as a PT" but I fully believe there are some people out there who might say "I don't like his piercings, I'd rather not taking him on as a PT".4
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Wouldn’t me cause I love piercings. There’s PTs at the gym I go to that have lots of tattoos. I haven’t come across any judgement
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This is your job, a source of income, so let's be realistic here. Let me frame what I said earlier another way... I doubt anyone will say "he has no piercings, nope, can't have him as a PT" but I fully believe there are some people out there who might say "I don't like his piercings, I'd rather not taking him on as a PT".
I agree. Especially as someone starting out. He has no credibility established for people to think, "he has facial piercings, I don't like them but he has a kick *kitten* reputation as a trainer so I'll look past them.".
You can say all you want about individuality and personal expression, but that doesn't pay the bills. I live in a mid size city in the midwest. Even thought there are 2 universities here you very seldom see people with facial piercings. My sons, niece and nephew are all in their 20's and none of their friends have facial piercings (I know because I saw this question and asked them). I work for a multinational corporation, facial piercings, unless for religious reasons, are against the US dress code.
If I knew the person was a good trainer, I'd have no problem with the piercings (assuming they didn't mess with speech). but to be honest, if I was picking at random, I wouldn't pick the person. Facial piercings in my area are a bit unusual.4 -
I don't like tattoos and piercings and I don't feel comfortable around visibly pierced/tattooed people.
Consequently I would not hire a trainer, a housekeeper, a dog walker or enter into any potential business relationship with a visibly tattooed/pierced person.
People without such markings are still available to perform business or healthcare services, so that's who I'd go with.0 -
what are we talking about here? What kind of piercings does the OP have? A small nose stud? A lip ring? His tongue pierced (lol).... or is he:
Just like with anything - you can take piercings way to far.
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I don't like tattoos and piercings and I don't feel comfortable around visibly pierced/tattooed people.
Consequently I would not hire a trainer, a housekeeper, a dog walker or enter into any potential business relationship with a visibly tattooed/pierced person.
People without such markings are still available to perform business or healthcare services, so that's who I'd go with.
You're the second person in this thread to express an opinion like this, I think. Does that include ear piercing? Where I live, that's fairly standard for most women.0 -
janejellyroll wrote: »I don't like tattoos and piercings and I don't feel comfortable around visibly pierced/tattooed people.
Consequently I would not hire a trainer, a housekeeper, a dog walker or enter into any potential business relationship with a visibly tattooed/pierced person.
People without such markings are still available to perform business or healthcare services, so that's who I'd go with.
You're the second person in this thread to express an opinion like this, I think. Does that include ear piercing? Where I live, that's fairly standard for most women.
No I don't skeeve ear piercings. But I wish I'd listened to my mother who forbade my ear piercing request in elementary school. Instead I tricked my Grandmother into believing I had permission. So she let me stand in a long line at the mall where a lady was just piercing everyone on an industrial scale. She was using what looked like a strangely shaped office stapler. No autoclaving or sterilization between customers, but like, it was the 70s.2 -
janejellyroll wrote: »I don't like tattoos and piercings and I don't feel comfortable around visibly pierced/tattooed people.
Consequently I would not hire a trainer, a housekeeper, a dog walker or enter into any potential business relationship with a visibly tattooed/pierced person.
People without such markings are still available to perform business or healthcare services, so that's who I'd go with.
You're the second person in this thread to express an opinion like this, I think. Does that include ear piercing? Where I live, that's fairly standard for most women.
No I don't skeeve ear piercings. But I wish I'd listened to my mother who forbade my ear piercing request in elementary school. Instead I tricked my Grandmother into believing I had permission. So she let me stand in a long line at the mall where a lady was just piercing everyone on an industrial scale. She was using what looked like a strangely shaped office stapler. No autoclaving or sterilization between customers, but like, it was the 70s.
Yeah, I think some places still use those piercing guns, but a needle is considered the best way to do it. Piercing guns can't be completely sterilized (they're made of plastic, it can't be autoclaved) and the people manning the guns typically don't have much training. A professional piercing studio is going to use a single use needle and they've undergone considerable training (as well as being licensed in many places). Plus the healing process is usually easier because there is less trauma to the surrounding tissue.2 -
I try not to judge, but piercings look really painful to me lol, it would be uncomfortable for me to look at you. Tattoos however don't really bother me, I have an uncle who has loads and most people around here do have tattoos. I was a lifeguard for a while at the YMCA and had a coworker who had tattoos, the management made him cover them up, and they gave a stern talking to another guy who had a beard... I feel like the beard was over kill, men have beards what's the big deal?1
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I think also you need to consider where you are. If you're in the middle of the bible belt, they probably won't go over well. OTOH if you're in Haight-Ashbury, nobody would notice.
I've stretched my ear piercings (modestly by most standards) and my mom likes to remind me she doesn't like it. Where I work has a very conservative dress code and the only visible piercings I've seen are discreet nose gems. I wear plain plugs that look like studs and nobody says anything.0 -
Super interesting and fun topic! I'm enjoying reading all the comments and opinions and appreciate the opportunity to share mine. I'm a 58 year old female who had a relatively conservative upbringing. At age 40 I got a small tattoo on my ankle and have considered another one. I was thrilled when my mom pierced my ears for my 8th birthday. I tried a cartilage piercing on my upper ear when I was in my 30's but it would never heal right, so eventually I gave up. I kind of miss it.
Like others on this thread I try not to judge, but I'm a curious people watcher. I find other humans and their lives pretty fascinating. When I see someone with multiple piercings and/or tattoos I'm interested to look at them. I find myself sneaking glances without trying to stare. Why did they do that? On the one hand, people who are into that must (might?) want attention so maybe looking is ok? A lot of the tattoo work is beautiful and I want to check it out without being rude. On the other hand, it's a personal choice with individual personal reasons so not my business. A bit of a dilemma.
To OP's original question, it wouldn't bother me as long as you were a good trainer. For others, I'd say it will totally depend on where you get a job and the demographic of the clients. Do your research before an interview. Check out the place and the trainers in advance to see what the norm is there. You might consider removing the piercings for an interview. That's no different than choosing to wear a tie or conservative clothing. You can always ask about their policy if you get a job offer.
Re: body modification in general. People have been doing this in some form for millenia. Trends change. The future might be much different than now. My only recommendation for young people who haven't yet entered the job market is to really think about where they want to be/work in 10-20 years. Tattoos are pretty permanent. Some professions lend themselves well to body art, others do not. For example: one of my nieces has many tattoos including a skull on her neck. At 30 she is still struggling to get a decent job. She has said she definitely regrets the skull but can't afford to have it removed. Another niece had eyebrow, lip and nose piercings. After working as a hotel maid for years she went back to school to become a medical assistant. She just graduated and got a job at a hospital. All the facial piercings are gone (only the holes remain). I see many beautiful young people completely covered in tattoos. I do think about what they will look like when they get to be my age (and older). Again, not my business but something I have taken into consideration when thinking about another one myself. We don't stay young forever.
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It depends a lot on your target market. I've got tattoos etc & I really don't care - at my gym that's the norm (for both PT's and clients/members) and I don't think anyone would react negatively.
However, someone like my mom? Nope, no way would she feel comfortable working with you.0
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