Well when I got my first tattoo I was very strongly committed to the idea that all tattoos should have a personal meaning to them. That has faded a bit now I have three (although they all do have meaning), and now I don't have a problem with the idea of getting a tattoo of something just because you think it's beautiful and want to have it on your body forever.
In terms of what I actually chose to get, I spent a very long time thinking about all of them, but when I hit on the right idea it just "clicked" and I knew I would be happy to have that on me forever. I agree that things you put on your body identify you and what you're about and so in that sense I feel like my ink makes me more me.
I got my first one (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/14/snowflaker.jpg/) because it reminds me of being in the mountains with some of the most important members of my family. I've been skiing every year with my Dad's side of my family since I was 7, and the place we go is one of my ultimate happy places in the whole world and the snowflake reminds me of that and them. But it's weird, the longer I have it, the more meanings it acquires. I stumbled on this quote the other day: "snowflakes are one of nature's most fragile things, but just look at what they can do when they stick together" and I just love that.
This one (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/402/photo295s.jpg/) is for my little sister, who is my best friend in the whole wide world and is always by my side. It's also a tribute to Queens of the Stone Age.
And this (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images...102100100.jpg/) is an abstract representation of The Fragile. You're on this forum so I'm sure you can imagine why I have it