Once you start asking if a piece pays you twice, you start seeing that every tattoo is doing one of three jobs.

Once you start asking if a piece pays you twice, you start seeing that every tattoo is doing one of three jobs.

A dream portfolio piece is the work you'd proudly show anywhere. It moves your style forward and pulls in the clients you actually want, so it pays you now and keeps paying long after it heals.

A bridge piece isn't the dream yet, but it's still pointing you that direction. Maybe the subject isn't quite your thing or the placement isn't one you'd showcase, but it's building your skill or filling a gap in your portfolio, so it earns its spot.

A money only piece pays the bills and isn't pretending to do anything else. Nothing wrong with these and we all take them, but they turn into a problem when they're most of your week and there's no room left for the other two.

If you're still building your skill none of this applies yet, because right now every piece is teaching you something. Once you're established, knowing which job a piece is doing tells you what to charge and how much of yourself to give it.

Want help sorting your own work this way? Comment or DM COACH and we'll talk it through.

#tattooartist #tattooeducation #tattoocoach #tattooartists #tattoocommunity