Story Behind the Story-Shelby Ivey Christie — Vogue Magazine

How I Came Across the Article

In a search to find a new book to read in my free time, I came across an article entitled “5 Lessons I Learned on Surviving in the Workplace from Aliza Licht’s ‘Leave Your Mark’ on my favorite website xoNecole.com.

Shelby Ivey Christie, a New York native, wrote the article. She majored in Race, Class and Culture at North Carolina A&T State University. She actually dropped out her freshman year because her grades were bad.

“I wanted to find out what I really loved before I went back to school so I would be motivated to do well in school,” Christie said.

That motivated she was searching for was fashion, in which she went on to intern at multiple places for free until she was 24-years-old. She even volunteered to be the Business Section Editor without pay for xoNecole.com because she says she finds it important to be willing to do what others don’t want to do.

“One day I inquired about it and she explained that she didn’t have the money to pay and editor. I volunteered to do it without the pay because I was passionate about career content and empowering women,” Christie said.

Christie is a very hard-working woman who decided not to take the traditional route to success and it worked for her. So, I asked her what advice she would give to students seeking success like hers within their perspective fields and she advocated for getting experience.

“Get as much experience as you can. It takes experience to get experience, so intern every semester you can. Write for your school’s paper, intern at your local fashion week, intern for local papers. Every bit counts,” Christie said.

This is why, in her article, she encourages women to “be all about yes.”

Christie also runs a personal blog entitled Bronze Bomshell where she offers feedback and advice regarding career content based off of things women email or direct message her inquiring about.

“It’s my way of answering all of their questions,” Christie said.

Christie knows her stuff as she currently serves as the Digital Sales Planner for Vogue Magazine in New York.

Leave Your Mark

Christie was first introduced to Licht’s book “Leave Your Mark” when it was gifted to her as a graduation gift. Christie was immediately intrigued.

“What really drew me to it was of course the similar fashion background Aliza had. I too had worked at the bottom of the fashion industry and could really identify with her struggles,” Christie said.

The first thing that drew me in to her article was Christie’s writing style. Her writing is hilarious and I can identify with that because I like to have a laid back style within my writing also. She used a ton of hash tags in her writing and inserted a few jokes here and there. Christie described her writing as unscripted, but surprisingly, she said it wasn’t a passion of hers for long because she has trouble focusing while sitting down to write.

“I just write as if I’m talking to a girlfriend. It became more of a chore than a passion. That’s why I moved into advertising, which is what I do at Vogue now,” Christie said.

In her article, Christie mentioned that fashion was one of the toughest industries to work in, which is why she enjoyed Licht’s book because it gave guidance on how to deal with those challenges. So, I asked Christie was challenges she overcame while interning in fashion.

“Too many to list, but mostly the cattiness. Some people feel the need to compete and overstep you to get what they want. They think there isn’t enough room for everyone to shine. I’ve been on the receiving end of nasty people’s competitiveness,” Christie explained.

One of the key things Christie took away from her intern experience and she applies to her job today is multi-tasking.

“Multi-tasking is key in my role. My day consists of communicating externally with Vogue’s clients and communicating internally with my team to meet the client’s needs,” Christie said.

As social media has become the forefront of today’s journalism, even within Christie’s area of interest, fashion, I asked her how she makes effective use of her personal accounts. She says she doesn’t have a brand per say, but she, like her writing style, is very authentic in what she posts.

“I’m just a hard-working girl sharing my ups and downs. My social media has definitely garnered me respect. People have seen how hard I had to work to get to where I am and they respect me for it. They know I am not stuntin’ online. I’m the real deal,” Christie said.

So far, the biggest lesson Christie says she has learned within her career is that “hard work beats talent.”