I think its really pretty if you pair it with the right outfit and colors, i wouldnt recommend it if your wearing alot of neon and bright colors unless you have the dark tints in there somewhere.plus you can always do a smokey eye with another color besides black to see if you like it and have a smokey eye to much your outfit :D

Personally I wouldn't wear smokey eyes for daytime events. For daytime events,I would go for natural look,or nude soft earth colors.For me smokey eyes,are for night,or special occasions.

I would say go for neutrals. Don't get to crazy with glitter and sparkles (though they are fun). If you want a more toned down look but still want colour, I suggest going for a subtle smoked eyeliner look. Add some eyeshadow close to your lash line and smoke it out a bit.

Some other fun looks for daytime are experimenting with coloured eyeliners and mascaras. It sounds crazy, but they can me very wearable. There are tons of youtube videos on these techniques. MakeupByTiffanyD has a lot of helpful videos and ideas for adding colour.

Keep if fun and interesting, but still appropriate, especially for work.