Social etiquette for expression

People go to extremes in an effort to stand out, to express themselves creatively and, ultimately, to leave their mark on the world – and their bodies.

Last week, The New York Times featured an article about tattoos and facial jewelry and how they are becoming less of a taboo in the workplace. Apparently, employers are growing more lax, and the timing is impeccable because the latest trend has people putting tattoos on body parts only a burqa could hide.

The reporter interviewed employers who said they didn’t mind hiring applicants with tattoos on their hands, necks and other visible places.

While I’m sure some employers are easing up on certain dress code policies, I have a hard time believing they “don’t mind” hiring an applicant who looks like he fell into a huge inkwell and came out looking like an inner-city graffiti hot spot.

Job interviews are set up so that employers can get to know the applicant and figure out what qualities he or she has to offer that the other applicants don’t possess. That in mind, the applicant goes into the interview conscious of the fact that everything is fair game to be judged.

Each employer has his or her own private list of qualities to look for in an applicant. Unlikely to be included on that list: foul odors, defective personalities, tattoos or a face full of holes that have nothing to do with the five senses.

It’s common knowledge that there is something unprofessional about tattoos and facial piercings. It declares rebellion, which causes alarm in employers seeking a hard worker eager to learn and improve on the job.

Sophomore Chris Vaughn has his lower lip pierced. He plans to take out the lip ring when he goes on job interviews but said there will still be a visible mark that resembles a bad pimple or cut.

An employee becomes the face of the company and few companies want a face full of holes or stained with ink no matter what The New York Times says.

Don’t get me wrong, there are many great aspects to having tattoos and piercings. They can be a fantastic creative outlet, and there are many employers in artistic fields who would probably appreciate and be impressed by the art form.

However, there are also many employers who would not be impressed with the permanent reminder of our impulsive youth – especially as we get older.

All of the decisions we make during college will affect the rest of our lives. Perhaps the most literal example of that statement is in the form of the ink that will never go away without the sacrifice of money and pain.

Our generation should have creative outlets and the freedom of expression. But we still need to remember that, for the time being, we’re answering to a different generation. That setup is not permanent, though it should make us rethink the way we view things that are permanent, like tattoos.