Being an exotic dancer is generally not necessarily people's vision for themselves as children, but the financial draw of the job is pretty great.
A person can basically pay tuition with the amount of money they walk away with from working in a club. It's a very lucrative thing. But it also draws a crowd that is rather unusual, as it is an unusual job.
Those unusual crowds can sometimes be hard to deal with.
Reddit user iamiconick asked:
[Serious] Strippers of Reddit. What do you really think of the people that see you perform?
Here were some of those answers.
Magic Consideration
Giphy
"Was male stripper for a bit. My opinion: it's all types for all reasons. Passing judgement on folks generally just makes you less approachable. There are good folks who like gyrating naked people but are awkward socially and have lots of money. Creepy is still creepy. Considerate is still considerate. Only difference is I'm not wearing pants."
Parallels To Customer Service
"Ex stripper. The guys that came in and knew the deal were great. Tip the girl on stage, get a lap dance, be polite. The worst were the guys that thought they were smarter than the strippers or that they could somehow game us. Like, one guy I remember went on a whole rant about how smart he was because he could tell it was all fake and the girls weren't really attracted to the men. Uh, yeah dude, you're a genius. Or when they think they're funny by degrading the women. It's not funny and you're the one that looks bad. Honestly, for the most part I didn't think about the guys much at all. I was on autopilot most of the time and didn't judge them any more than thinking who looks interested in a private dance or who was a jerk I wanted to avoid."
Rowdy
"You get your share of creeps but mostly where I worked (a long time ago) a lot of young groups of guys just looking for a good time. Every once in a while you have someone who has too good of a time and gets rowdy and acts like an idiot. Granted I only worked 2-3 nights a week, people who dance full time (especially during the day) have a whole different kind of crowd to deal with. But customers are generally all the same, just looking for something to distract them from life for a while. Feels like a lifetime ago that I danced, my husband and I go together now every once in a while to get a private dance for a while and it's way more fun being on the other side."
Cinnamon Told You Nothing
"Generally depends on what kind of customer that person is really. The best kind is the dude who understands that it is all a game. They tip well, they are sociable and polite, may even be regulars with certain girls and are never a problem. The entire club staff loves guys like this."
"The ones that the dancers hate? The "I don't pay for dances" guy who thinks that line will somehow make him desirable for dancers? His trademark line goes something like "You are too beautiful/smart/amazing to be doing this, if you get with me you can leave this behind".
"The pimps that go around asking the girls if they "Want to make some real money" are real POSes as well. Then there was the ones that I really had a personal dislike for, the dudes who would try and wait in the parking lot at the end of the night because "Cinnamon and I really had a connection you know? She told me to wait for her!" No she didn't buddy, IF Cinnamon told you that, she did so knowing that I would be kicking everybody out of the parking lot before the dancers left for the evening."
"The strip club industry is a weird place."
"Source: Longtime strip club bouncer."
A New Way To Talk
"Ex-stripper here: Of course I encountered all different types, but I am here to mention one type in particular (my favorite). There were a lot of customers who were lonely, or didn't have anyone to talk to who would really listen to them. They figured out that they could come in and pay for company. I would sit at the table with one of my regulars for a few hours and just talk. I made a point of showing that I valued them as a person and was genuinely interested in their conversation. He knew that he was taking up my time, and every so often would hand me another bill. I didn't pity them, I respected them for figuring out a way to engage with other humans and satisfy their need for connection."
Chosen Family
"Depends on the person."
"I've had stalkers follow me home. Creeps who tried to get violent with me at work. People who pissed me off."
"I've also met some really wonderful people I'm fine with calling my friends. I just had a baby and invited two ex customers to my baby shower in June."
Bobs Everywhere
"I used to have a girlfriend who was a stripper, and sometimes I'd visit her at work and hang out with her and her co-worker buddies when it was slow. One time when we were doing this, another stripper sat down with us and said, "Cool, I just got 10 straight lap dances with Bob." I asked, "Which one is Bob?" No one said anything, then one of the girls giggled. My girlfriend said, "Um, Jeremy, they're ALL 'Bob' "
Logique
"I dated a stripper for a while (no we didn't meet at the club). We were 18. She liked some of her regulars, but she would often get married guys in there and she absolutely hated them (not that she wouldn't take their money) because she wanted to just have fun and not worry about ruining people's marriages. She also disliked the people that were old enough to be her dad because there were a lot of old creepy people who would proceed to show her pictures of their kids who were around her same age."
"In general though as long as people tipped well and didn't make things awkward she seemed to really enjoy most of her clients."
"Also never ask your stripper out, she probably doesn't like you. And also don't propose to them because that makes it super awkward. They're just people, no one proposes to cute girls out of the blue, there's no way to handle that situation that ends well."
A Fantasy
"As a male, I asked a stripper this same question. She said "it's just a job. It's their fantasy and they pay for it. Some of these guys are lonely. Some have wives/girlfriends at home who don't give them the attention we give them in a 5 minute lap dance in 5 months. Then you have all the others in-between"
Innocence
Giphy
"Most of the people there are just coming for a good time. You get your occasional creeps who you're giving a lap dance to and they flat-out try to shove their hands down your front but it's all fine and dandy, there's always a bodyguard just around the corner. The one thing I love about working at my local strip club is the younger ones who are always so shy and timid. I was giving a lap dance to one boy with the cutest little face and he didn't know he was allowed to touch us, so when I took his hands and set them on my behind he started freaking out a little bit by stuttering and saying stuff like "is this allowed?" and "I don't know about this".
What an eyeopening read. Do you have similar stories? Please share them below!
But sometimes, the wisdom imparted by friends isn't always helpful or relevant to the situation.
Curious to hear from strangers online who could do without specific knowledge, Redditor Saibotnl1 asked:
"What life advice can just f'k off?"
These Redditors have a problem with how certain people have on outlook on life.
Time To Rest
"Sleep when you’re dead."
"Cool, but you’re going to be dead a lot sooner."
– Tag2graff
Irrelevant Sadness
"People have it so much worse than you so don’t be sad!"
– notrachelmar
"To that I like to say, 'people have it so much better than you so don't be happy!'"
– ___jupiter____
Your Life Path
"Almost anything relating to what age you must be in order to buy a house, have children, marry, have a profession, or do anything else. Seriously, everyone's life is different from everyone else's. Make your life the way you want it to be. If you so desire. Up to you."
– Frn071
On The Contrary
“Cheaters never prosper”
"Yes, they f'king do."
– waqasnaseem07
People can get out of any situation they find displeasing.
But others feel people should just "stick it out."
Ignoring Bullies
"Just ignore bullys or get someone else to handle it for you. I have never seen this work, only makes it worse. The only effective way I've seen to deal with them is by not making yourself an easy target and make them scared to f'k with you again. If going psycho on their a** is the only thing they'll respond to that's their fault. Also want to add in schools they will punish you for self defense but that punishment is only sitting around a few hours in detention or sitting around at home with a suspension. The punishment is temporary boredom, it's absolutely nothing compared to being bullied and when it's over the important message will still stand that you will not tolerate being a victim."
– User Delted
Remain to be Miserable
"Stick it out"
"Whether that's sh**ty jobs, shi**y relationships, shi**y living situations..."
"By all means don't just give up on things when you face challenges, but if something feels wrong or is wrecking your peace then take some control and change it if you can!"
– petitezoey
"Easy for you to say," might be an auto-response to these suggestions for many people.
Invitation For Recklesslessness
"Live like everyday was your last"
Yall know what people do when they learn they have a single day left to live?"
– LimeGrass619
A Possible Consequence
"I did that as a teenager and ended up homeless and addicted to heroin. Didn’t pan out for me too well."
"19 years sober though today."
– Open-Section-7263
A Practical Approach
"If I knew with certainty that I had one day left, I'd double-check all my financials, my will, and my insurance policies, make sure my wife had all of my passwords and knew where all the money was, spend the rest of the day with her and the kids, then call the medical examiner and ask to lie down on the gurney so that when I die they won't strain their back moving my remains out of my house."
– Asteriad
Nose Stuck In A Book
"Work while they sleep. Study while they party"
"That's not a recipe for success, that's a recipe for a lot of white hairs, burnout syndrome and a stroke before your 40s..."
– Khomuna
Doesn't Apply To Everyone
"Do what you love and money will follow"
"I love walking my dogs and grilling food for my friends but That sh*t doesn't pay the bills as well as my engineering degree!"
– Elons_android
While people's intentions are good, they're better off keeping their two cents in their own pockets.
Not everyone likes to hear platitudes.
Sometimes, people just want to know they're not alone with their problems over listening to unlikely solutions that are nothing more than superficial pick-me-ups.
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