Editor Turned Intern

I used to be the managing editor of a fashion magazine. I had interns. Now I am an intern. Strange how life ebbs and flows.

My interns were fantastic, talented girls who loved fashion and loved magazines. Before they were hired, I would quiz them on their favorite editors, whom they knew by heart (Vogue/Anna Wintour, Bazaar's/Glenda Bailey, Marie Claire/Joanna Coles, Town & Country/Pamela Fiori). As interns, their responsibilities wavered from fashion related jaunts such as packaging clothes for returns, doing pick ups and drop offs, organizing addresses, packing up trunks for shoots, and making sure the editors have all the items they need for their upcoming stories. Or, they helped with editorial work: text, pictures, captions, and headings. For me, I depended on the interns for everything from laughs to lunches to learning about the ins and outs of the hottest reality tv shows (that I didn't have time to watch).

Now, I am the intern, having quit my job and returned to grad school. I'm interning for an international company that advocates for corporate accountability. I am a communications intern and I spend most of my time blogging. Adult internships have become a hot topic recently. Due to the tough economy, these "non-traditional internships" are a way for grownups to shift career paths, gain experience during a layoff or work during school, like me.

This shift in leadership has been a radical change. It has made me think about what kind of leader I was when I was in a leadership role. At the magazine, we used a traditional top-down hierarchical style of leadership. I had higher-ups who I reported to. In turn, I was responsible for managing a slew of writers, photographers, clients and interns on a daily basis.

The notion of servant leadership emphasizes collaboration, trust, empathy, and the ethical use of power, rather than leading and managing from the top down. I like the concept of servant leadership, but having worked in an industry full of daily, weekly and monthly deadlines, I value the importance of leadership as a critical management skill. I believe I led in a hybrid-style, encouraging goals and deadlines but also utilizing team collaboration.

My style of leadership seems to have worked: my interns still write me emails, send me Christmas cards and wedding invitations and ask me for letters of recommendation.