In Fashion Part 6

Take any opportunities that come your way to attend a career fair at your school or in your community because we all have something to learn. I recently presented at such an event at the French high school in New York City (Lycee Francais de New York) that seemed to me a bit like "speed dating"-twenty minutes with a group at a table with a bell ringing in between signaling the rush to a new group.

I admit that I approached the night with a smug fashion att.i.tude that the event was in desperate need of MOI to save it from eternal boredom. Well, the superwoman in the Calvin-esque suit to one side of me was a producer at 60 Minutes, and the chic French lady in a lace Chanel dress was the fashion director at Neiman Marcus. Just goes to show that, no matter how kind, Zen, and non-judgmental I strive to be, I find myself at times slipping back into fashion b.i.t.c.h behavior. #*&#!@@ (See "Fashionista Detox".)

What You Need to Bring to a Job Fair

A notebook and pen to write down the person's name and company and to keep notes and jot down pointers. Having a pen and paper at the ready will also help you focus, show you're serious about the topic, and instantly create a good impression. If things are superboring, just act like you are taking notes-you can actually be writing a list, a note, maybe sketching someone's face-while occasionally nodding and making eye contact with the presenter. He or she will think you're way above average. And you are!

Good questions (see below, a starter set).

Business cards, even if handmade or supersimple.

Portfolio or example of your artwork or writing.

A resume, no matter how simple or empty.

What You Need When You Leave the Job Fair

That presenter's business card or e-mail address, especially if there's a possibility you'd like to intern at his or her place of work.

A STARTER SET OF FASHIONISTA JOB FAIR QUESTIONS.

What is your schedule on a regular day? How is your time allocated between internal activities at the office and external activities?

What education, degree, or training is required?

Does your career have an international flavor? Have you worked abroad?

Does your career provide opportunities for advancement in other fields? Has your career path changed over your professional life?

If you could, how would you prepare for your career differently?

What are the personality traits (say, effervescent and energetic versus serious and disciplined) that best fit with this job?

How did you get your first job?

What's the biggest mistake you've made at work, and how did you get past it?

Which areas in your field of expertise are in a growth mode, involve new technologies, are hot, so to speak, and offer the best opportunity for young people?

What computer applications or software do you use professionally? Is there a specific technology that is changing the way business is done in this field?

Shoving Your Fashionista Foot in the Door

If you're burning to get inside a presenter's company, take a minute at the end of your session to introduce yourself. Ask what the internship program is like and how you should apply. Offer the presenter your card and ask for his or hers. Politely ask if it would be okay if you used the presenter's name when applying for the internship and whether you might follow up on the conversation with an e-mail with further questions. Bingo. You have your lead. Be polite, tenacious, and don't take no for an answer.

THE FASHIONISTA GRAPEVINE.

gossip n. 1. Rumor or talk, of a personal, sensational, or intimate nature. 2. A person who habitually speaks intimate or private rumors or facts. 3. Trivial, chatty talk or writing.

gossipmonger n. a person who relates gossip.

From the American Heritage Dictionary.

Let's talk about the irrepressible urge to dish. If you enjoy speaking cattily and light-heartedly with colleagues about other colleagues, you're not alone. It's a major global office pastime. Perhaps it's human nature-if together we denigrate another, we'll feel superior. Bonded. Pumped up. In charge.

The truth is, the more you communicate negatively about others, the more negatively those around you will view you. While you and the people around you whisper mean things about someone else, someone else may well be doing the same about you. Look inside yourself and find a way to change this behavior. Find something good to say when someone opens up a gossip topic. Or say absolutely nothing. Shut down the conversation with a simple "You think so?" Convert it to something positive: "Oh, I think she's really cool." In the end, you'll like yourself better for turning around this destructive behavior. Plus the world will be a nicer place.

I've heard some people argue that there exist situations in which gossip is good or useful. That if the intent is not evil, it is good gossip. In my book the very definition of gossip implies that there is a malicious undertone. That the impetus for gossip is thoughtlessness or an intentional desire to hurt others. It is essentially stealing someone's good reputation.

I don't believe in dull, robot-like human relations, however. There are well-intended means of sharing inside information. Juicy news can and should be shared.

CONFIDENTIAL OR SPECULATIVE INFORMATION THAT'S NOT OK TO SHARE Discussion of a person's declining health or shabby s.e.x life based on gathered tidbits from unreliable sources and gossip.

Discussion of a person's potential imminent firing or demise.

Commentary about another person's weight, body type, style quotient.

Unsolicited negative commentary about someone's writing, layouts, photographs, or ideas-let these efforts stand on their own merit.

CONFIDENTIAL OR SPECULATIVE INFORMATION THAT IS OK TO SHARE.

The most useful thing anyone ever told me at Midge Richardson's Seventeen magazine was to stay away from Midge on days she wore her gla.s.ses to work. (Thank you, George! You totally got it!) When Midge appeared in the Third Avenue offices with her heavy framed gla.s.ses on, it meant that she was in a foul temper, would say no to whatever you asked or requested, and would not readily like any pictures or layouts presented to her. Had she stayed out too late the night before? Had a bad time with contacts in the a.m.? No one knew. The gla.s.ses would appear only a couple times a month, but word spread like wildfire: "It's a gla.s.ses day." That was code for "Stay in your chair." "Don't engage in idle conversation." "Look busy. Very, very busy." Another reliable barometer of her mood was her outfit. Skirts always signaled a good mood, pants, the opposite. Wearing black said she was down, whereas colors indicated she was up. Is the communication of these behaviors really gossip? No. Though not exactly empirically based information, I prefer to call Midge's mood meter the proper sharing of confidential information for the good of the community.

It is fine to share information of a personal nature that will help a new colleague through a tough situation. If the boss's a.s.sistant is sent out to fetch coffee and you know exactly how the boss likes it, you should pa.s.s it along. The benefit of your knowledge could save her neck. If you know that the business manager has an illness or just lost a family member and is acting incredibly cranky or remote with her new a.s.sistant, you might share this information in broad strokes to explain an unpleasant work situation to the novice. It is always fine to humanize an uncomfortable situation.

Communicating cultural expectations there'd be no way someone would know is an important contribution to the office. Like days when Big Bosses visit and everything should be neat, clean, and in control. It's important to know who gets what reports and when, who attends which meetings and why, when it's okay to dress down, when it's not, and when it's okay to take vacations or skip out early, and when it's not.

Exposure to businesswide gossip is an information system you'd be unwise to ignore. The power of this insider grapevine is mighty. What starts as a rumor, regardless of its truth, can so rattle the confidence of advertisers that a business may topple. Sometimes companies float rumors about themselves to see how the press or marketplace reacts to see if a sale or a purchase is viable. You'll be valued for adding meaningfully to conversations of this nature. Be warned that spending too much time keeping abreast of the last "word" on the street is a waste. Let someone else do that-someone whose job it is to think all day about that stuff.

Now You've Got It. How to Keep It.

Making Your Fashionista Job Your Own: Twelve Basic Steps

Yippee! The dream job is yours! Instead of blabbing your excitement or throwing a party, put your head down and get serious. Show that you deserve it.

1. Know the Code. Look the part. Act the part. BE THE JOB. "Nice pant," one editor reluctantly allowed another editor in the back of the elevator. In one glance, you need to learn to take it all in.

2. Don't take your job for granted. Be humble. The karma of kindness is unbelievable. Treat eager job prospects how you would like to have been treated. Ditto pesky PR people. There is no reason ever to treat others disrespectfully.

3. Always be on time. That means before your boss, at 8:30-not 9 a.m.-on the dot. Don't rush out of the office in the evening until you see that your boss and the big bosses have gone.

4. Keep coming up with new ideas. Find ways to renew your freshness-self-generate projects, ideas.

5. Volunteer to take on projects. Even the doggiest ones, like being in charge of the interns or handling some large and painful mailing.

6. Be the person who doesn't waste time gossiping. (See the Fashionista Grapevine.) 7. Be part of the team. Make friends-do not be a weirdo, loner.

8. Don't undermine colleagues. Give your bosses credit for knowing what's really going on. Your role is not to inform them. Everyone hates a rat.

9. Show that you are ambitious in an appropriate forum. When an opportunity comes up, throw your hat in the ring. Don't wait to be called upon. Even if you don't get the job, people will think of you differently for trying.

10. Admit when you screw up. Tell your boss it won't happen again and move on. Most people are unable to do this-taking responsibility shows character.

11. Nothing beats hard work and talent. That's the c.o.c.ktail. If you possess obvious talent, maybe you won't have to work quite as hard. Remember: Everyone loves the brick that can always be depended on to get things done with a smile.

12. Know your place. You are not a peer. When you are a peon, act like one. That's the hardest lesson for new hires to absorb. What does it mean? You hold the door open. You go into the revolving door first to make it easier for the boss. You NEVER take the backseat on the pa.s.senger side of the car that's reserved for her. When she takes a serious call, you quietly leave the room. It's NONE of your business.

When Work Works: It's One Big c.o.c.ktail Party

The best work gets done when everyone is relaxed, but creating the illusion of happiness and relaxation isn't always easy. Never admit how hard you work. So you were in the office all day Sat.u.r.day with rice crackers and your personal s.p.a.ce heater finishing a project? Who needs to know? It's your secret and will get you nowhere but scorned, reviled, or despised if you admit it. Keep your gargantuan efforts private. Make it look easy.

Liz didn't call it a 10 a.m. Monday morning staff meeting but rather a gossip session on her giant cushy sofa (never say "couch" or "drapes"-it's "sofa" and "curtains"). She wanted to hear what films we'd seen, what restaurants we'd tried, which socialites we'd seen prowling about the dinner party circuit. Or she'd ask a few of us for lunch at Petrossian for no reason at all. Beluga and champagne all around. Extravagant? Sure. But Liz knew such spontaneous acts of extravagance earned her our eternal devotion.

In this c.o.c.ktail party environment, play bad news as good news. Angelina Jolie dumps the gown you helped fit and tweak just minutes before leaving for the Oscars. Your editor kills the sixteen-page feature you've been working on for six months, and you hear about it from the art department intern. Big smile-that's the way it goes. Don't show the pain. Don't pout, stomp around, or go home early or angry. In my case, I bounced back by presenting a new, intriguing idea to my editor and discussing it with her. When doing this, be sure to communicate that you are sorry she didn't like your original piece. Then, in this positive context, she is more likely to give the information you really need to get it right the next time. Chances are you'll get a second chance. Weirdly, it's in your hands.

WHAT: Designing clothing or accessories.

DEGREE: Art, design, or fashion.

TRAITS: Charismatic, creative.

ESSENTIAL ABILITIES: To create something original that defines you (Dior's New Look, the Chanel suit, Diane von Furstenberg's silk jersey wrap dresses, Calvin Klein's tight jeans and branded briefs, Ralph Lauren's polo shirts, Halston's single-seam jersey dresses, Prada's minimalist uniforms).

ROLE: Be the embodiment of your aesthetic.

WORKs.p.a.cE: From cramped closet to posh Paris atelier.

PATH TO POWER: Go to the right design schools, intern for the right designers, or wing it early with pure genius.

MOST COVETED JOBS: In-house designer, eponymous designer, with the ability to expand label into bags, shoes, fragrances, lifestyle.

DOGGIE JOBS: Don't be a sn.o.b-you can learn anywhere.

KEY BRANDS: Chanel, Dior, Lanvin, Balenciaga, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Marc Jacobs, Yves Saint Laurent.

KEY PERSONALITIES: Career angels like Anna Wintour, financial backers (that is, anyone with deep pockets), the people who get you best, to work with you and build your business.

KEY ALLIANCES: Hip young stars, potential backers.

MODERN SUCCESS STORIES: Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein.

MISCONCEPTION: That every designer is a tailor or that you need to know how to sketch.