The Windsor Knot

Well, come April, it seems as though my day-to-day routine will involve more suits than usual. As of last Thursday, my search for a co-op job placement for this summer has ended. Beginning on April 26, I will be working as the Communications Assistant at Nova Scotia Business Inc. I’m quite excited about the placement. At the very least, I’ll get to take the elevator up to the seventh floor of the World Trade Centre every morning, briefcase in hand, feeling very self-important.

There is one aspect of this, though, that is slightly unsettling. Every morning, before heading to work, I’m going to have to successfully wrap a tie around my neck without looking like I allowed my dog to dress me. This is problematic. No matter how many times I’ve read online tutorials and watched instructional videos on YouTube, I am still a failure when it comes to the art of the necktie and its various knots. Before interviewing with NSBI, I gave myself an extra twenty minutes to create a successful Windsor knot. I was almost late for my interview.

Perhaps this is symptomatic of the larger issue I face – navigating the corporate world. At my heart, I’m an eccentric gay kid who makes weird jokes, listens to sentimental folk music, is on his way to a Lady Gaga concert (OMG squee!), and has done his very best to not fit in, for most of his life. The fun thing about high school and university is that you can differentiate yourself in very superficial ways. Wear a Pink Floyd t-shirt to 11th grade math class and you’re a mysterious cool guy with a deep understanding of music. Run some dye through your hair in the dorm room bathroom and suddenly you’re a whole new person.

So how does one differentiate themselves in a place where virtually everyone is wearing variations on the same outfit? Well, I could always wear a pink necktie. But maybe the better way would be to have good ideas and make valuable contributions, to have a positive effect on the work being done.

Maybe I should look up that YouTube video again.