One Major Vogue Editor Has Some Surprising Career Advice

If there's anyone who knows a thing or two about how to build a fashion career, it's Vogue's André Leon Talley. Having risen through the ranks while assisting for the iconic Diana Vreeland, the small boy from North Carolina is now a bona fide fashion force.

Fashionista recently asked him to share his most-prized advice for starting a successful career in fashion. His surprising response? Forget Google.

"You have to do your homework. In life, homework is important. That’s the advice I give to students. Homework could be reading or learning how to do [a particular] stitch," Talley said. "You can also do that on your own if you simply go to the library. It’s not necessarily about being on the computer and googling it. That’s not enough. You have to explore it."

He continues, "You can’t go toward the future without some sense of the past. Everything in life goes in cycles, and you cannot have any strength if you don’t know what the masters did. Masters in fashion would be the history of Balenciaga, the history of Yves Saint Laurent, the history of the 18th century."

There you have it—do your real homework on the fashion greats of the past, and step away from the computer, folks. Head to Fashionista to read the rest of the interview, and keep scrolling to shop some editor-approved picks now!