5 reasons to give your parents if you want to study or work in fashion How to convince your family that fashion is really your thing
Dream job. We all have one, depending on our aptitudes and interests. According to a 2018 study conducted by PWC, for six out of ten young people that job is in fashion. But if, according to the «observatory on perspectives and expectations at work» Millennials and Generation Z are determined to turn their passion into their job, convincing parents and family members to believe in a creative career is not so easy. As a survey conducted by 1Granary shows, 68 percent of more than two thousand respondents recounted that they had quite a bit of difficulty getting their loved ones to accept and respect their work - and this is for two reasons. The first is that, in common understanding, any creative work is still associated with financial instability. The second relates instead to the cultural background of parents as members of Gen X, as Laura Bachmann writes in an article entitled Do your parents hate your creative career too?. According to Valerie Steele, author of Anti-Fashion: The 1970s, fashion has lost credibility in the eyes of those who grew up in the 1970s, at the time of the controversial (and contradictory) race between couture and ready-to-wear. This is why most parents do not conceive of the idea that a creative job can guarantee respect and economic certainty in life. However, before we give up at the outset on the prospect of studying in a fashion school or applying for a creative position, it is worth trying to give them our motivation. Here, then, are five key concepts to expound to one's parents to convince them that fashion is the right path.
1. The data are clear
If there is one thing we have learned from the lock-down period, it is the importance of finding a "work-life" balance. Fashion companies, in this sense, are offering workers more and more flexibility. Increasing day by day are the tasks assigned to freelance professionals who, along with an ever-changing percentage of employees, work remotely. This method encourages the conduct of a healthy lifestyle, in which work is not everything and each worker is free to cultivate interests and passions. In addition, virtually no one is forced to live in a particular place anymore - and pay the price involved in a city like Milan, from being far from home to overpriced rent.
3. You never stop learning
«After all, we do it for the culture», Virgil Abloh writes to Gabriella Karefa-Johnson. Abloh, with his multifaceted approach, has shown the world that a stylist, designer or any other industry insider adopts a creative process that feeds on countless resources and contaminations. As a documentary made by the news outlet 1Granary and the Parsons School in New York shows, clothes make up just 20 percent of a student or fashion expert's work. The rest is made up of art, stories, cultures, experiences, inspirations, travel and other obsessions that converge in the cultural baggage of those who choose this path and help make them an expert in many - so many, things.
4. Networking is everything
In fashion (and beyond), it's not all about an axiom like «Choose the job you love and you'll never work, not even for a day in your life», as people do work, many times even more than they should. But that is why those who have the privilege of being able to choose their dream job deserve the opportunity to pursue their dreams, opting for the job they are best at. Sometimes we forget this, but our parents and loved ones want our best for us more than anything else in the world.All we need to do is open our hearts to them and tell them that we feel we were born for that job and that no matter how risky the path may prove to be; we are willing to take the risk.
