Editor

It's very important to me that I look good when I go out publicly. I like looking at my clothes rack in the morning and deciding what to pick out. I enjoy fashion.

Traditionally, those that work in fashion have always had the point of view that items made by hand have their own aura and are something special.

My father was a newspaper editor, so I was surrounded by journalists my entire life. I think the fact that he was so well known may be why I chose to go into magazines and move to the States at a young age.

One doesn't want fashion to look ridiculous, silly, or out of step with the times - but you do want designers that make you think, that make you look at fashion differently. That's how fashion changes. If it doesn't change, it's not looking forward. And that's important to me.

I don't believe in wasting anybody's time. I like to be honest. I like to be clear.

'Vogue' is a fashion magazine, and a fashion magazine is about change.

I don't understand that if you look wonderful, does that make you less important, less powerful, less serious?

I don't have a high-powered life out of work. I like to go to the country for the weekend with the kids and the dog and play tennis. I am very good at turning off.

I'm struck these days by how often people come up to me and ask to take a photograph instead of shaking hands, meeting one's eyes, and having an actual conversation.

Learning how to be editor-in-chief of 'Vogue' wasn't something that happened overnight.

There's no point about whining or complaining or screaming.

If one comes across sometimes as being cold or brusque, it's simply because I'm striving for the best.

In my own personal career, I have felt almost the most difficult thing to deal with is someone who doesn't tell you what they are thinking.

I like having young assistants in my office; they have energy, and I spend time with them to make sure they understand what we're doing. By investing in them, I'm investing in the magazine. All over 'Vogue,' 'Teen Vogue,' and 'Men's Vogue,' there are people who have been through not only my office but also many other offices at 'Vogue.'

Fashion is a reflection of the time.

'Vogue' is the best of everything that fashion can offer, and I think we point the way. We are, you know, a glamorous girlfriend.

Everyone should get sacked at least once. It forces you to look at yourself... It is important to have setbacks, because that is the reality of life. Perfection doesn't exist.

I don't think I am that hands-on. I'm much more of a believer in finding a great team of people and trusting them to follow their instincts. They work better when they feel they have freedom and they are trusted.

I don't think of myself as a powerful person.

In the fact that 'Vogue' is someone that can help guide enormous audiences through this fascinating world, I would like to think we are as influential and actually are now reaching so many more people than we ever dreamt of back in the Fifties or the Sixties.