You and Workplace-Professional Individuals

Professionalism vs individuality is one of the greatest battles. Ones perception of a professional image may differ massively to another's image of individuality. Conformity to a workplace image and the freedom of personal expression is a difficult game to play. As my girlfriend and myself are finding, jobs are ever harder to get and more people who are way too overqualified for the job are getting them.

So it becomes a question of what is more important. Survival or individuality. I know I have covered this in some previous posts but it is a question on ever bodies minds. The recession and the poor economic climate is a hot topic that is affecting everyone in some way.

This is a good old fashioned man in a suit. (I picked this one to make my girlfriend happy). While Beckham is unique in what he wears, his style is emulated and his style, although modern, is still very much down to earth and importantly conforming, even as a trend setter. This is not a discussion on David Beckham but I simply use this example to display the expected image of a cool, modern and professional individual.



I guess ultimately the point of this post is this. It is not about conforming all your life, nor is it about becoming a weekend wannabe. It is the simple acceptance of the needs of society. Society needs professionals. Ironically it is those of the alternate and darkly inclined scenes that are often the more intelligent.

Therefore it is you and your personality that makes you who and what you are. Over time you may find the freedom in the workplace to add more elements to your outfit. Start small and once you have the job, you can experiment. Gauge reactions and take it from there. Just do it slowly in you image but try to get your colleagues to understand what YOU are like before this.