Fashion In A New York Minute

Change

Change is good.
Change is inevitable.
Change is the only constant.

We’ve all heard these phrases at some point in our lives. I’ve recently been reminded as to how vital change is to a person’s life. However, it’s not the three aforementioned cliché expressions that have provoked me to put my thoughts down. Rather, it’s another one that was said to me yesterday:

All good things come to an end.

However, do must they? I guess we could all argue this, but it’s a rather unfavorable outlook to have though, right? Perhaps I’m just in denial or perhaps I have a desire to be uncharacteristically positive on this subject matter, but I refuse to accept that all good things come to an end.

I believe that the changes that happen in our lives are always for the better, whether or not we’re able to recognize the positivity behind the change at the time. While some good things come to an end as a result of these changes, I can’t fathom the idea that all good things come to an end, because if we choose to accept such an ideology, what does that say about our lives?

My Gift To You…

I have gone nearly a month without posting on Tumblr, and I truly apologize that my first post of this month is composed entirely of text, but this is my gift to you all (Happy Holidays!) - I hope that my words can provide some sort of motivation, resolution, comfort, and/or inspiration.

One year and four months ago, I moved to New York City with four suitcases in hand. I left behind the fortress of security that my pre-pharmacy major provided to pursue a fashion-oriented career. Many of my family members thought I was senseless and that I was making a foolish move. Even some of my friends were hesitant to support my decision. As a result, even I had a moment, or two, of doubt.

Fresh off of my flight, I went on three interviews. My first interview was with fashion Magazine X - I didn’t get it. The second interview was with PR company X - far too small and sort of sketchy. The third interview was with fashion PR company Y - an offer was extended, but I knew in the back of my mind that PR wasn’t what I really wanted to do. The next day I interviewed with a Condé Nast magazine, and although it wasn’t fashion-oriented, I accepted it, knowing that Condé Nast was where I wanted to be in the future.

Fast forward to August 2011. After months of occasionally freelancing for the magazine I interned at, it was time for me to officially dip my toes into the fashion world. I had a trial day at fashion Magazine Y and didn’t perform to the best of my ability (darn my nerves). Since I moved to New York City back in August 2010, I had never doubted myself until that very moment that I knew I wasn’t getting the internship. Will I ever get the chance to break into a fashion-oriented magazine? Is my dream going to be crushed? Did I make a mistake moving to NYC? Am I just not good enough? Those were just a few of the questions that pounded into my head that night.

About a week later, I decided to interview with someone at *major* Magazine Z. Was my ego still bruised? Definitely. However, there was no time for self-pity, so I picked myself back up and brushed the dust of (seemingly) failure off my shoulders and walked into Condé Nast again. This time, I got it - I got the internship that any individual striving to work in the fashion industry, especially the magazine side of it, dreams of.

Since then, I’ve counted my blessings every day that I get to walk into the Condé Nast Building at 4 Times Square. Not only do I get to do what I love and work at a highly esteemed magazine with an amazing group of people, but I’m also constantly reminded that I am good enough. I’m constantly reminded that my dreams are achievable and that those who doubted me were wrong.

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This is my story. I’ve laid my heart, and some of my flaws, out and I hope that my story may help relieve any trepidation that some of you may have about your own dreams/future.

Sometimes, things don’t work out in the moment and we may think that it’s the end of the world, but more often than not, another opportunity comes around, and sometimes, it’s an opportunity that is better than the one before. So…

Never give up on yourself and your dreams. Never think that you’re not good enough. Never let others’ doubt bring you down. Most of all, go after your dream. It’s so easy to be influenced by family or significant others to pursue something you may not want to, but at the end of the day, it’s your life. You will spend most of your life working and it would be an absolute shame if you spent it doing something you didn’t absolutely love.