Calhoun Ada - Gunns golden rules: lifes little lessons for making it work

GUNNS GOLDEN RULES

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Copyright 2010 by Tim Gunn Productions, Inc.

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First Gallery Books hardcover edition September 2010

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Designed by Joy OMeara

Manufactured in the United States of America

1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Gunn, Tim.

Gunns golden rules : lifes little lessons for making it work / by Tim Gunn, with Ada Calhoun.

p. cm.

1. Gunn, Tim. Project runway (Television program). 2. Clothing and dressUnited States. 3. Life skillsUnited States. I. Calhoun, Ada.
II. Title.

TT507 .G858 2010 746.9'2092dc22

2010012417

ISBN 978-1-4391-7656-6
ISBN 978-1-4391-7767-9 (ebook)

CONTENTS

RULE 1
Make It Work!

RULE 2
The World Owes You Nothing

RULE 3
Take the High Road

RULE 4
Dont Abuse Your Poweror Surrender It

RULE 5
Get Inspired If It Kills You

RULE 6
Never Underestimate Karma

RULE 7
Niceties Are Nice

RULE 8
Physical Comfort Is Overrated

RULE 9
Talk to Me:
Theres Always Another Side to the Story

RULE 10
Be a Good Guest or Stay Home
(I Wont Judge YouI Hate Parties)

RULE 11
Use Technology; Dont Let It Use You

RULE 12
Dont Lose Your Sense of Smell

RULE 13
Know What to Get Off Your Chest
and What to Take to the Grave

RULE 14
When in Rome I Still Wouldnt Eat
Monkey Brains

RULE 15
When You Need Help, Get It

RULE 16
Take Risks! Playing It Safe Is Never Really Safe

RULE 17
Give Back (but Know Your Limits)

RULE 18
Carry On!

GUNNS GOLDEN RULES

INTRODUCTION

On Project Runway, I enter the workroom and offer my thoughtsas a mentor, not a judgeon the designers work. The advice I give most often is to make it work.

Thats not just a catchphrase. Its a philosophy Ive followed my whole life, and I credit it with all the wonderful and surprising success Ive had as a TV personality, teacher, and writer. What make it work means is that you should use what you have on hand to transform your situation. Its always possible to use whatever tools you have at your disposal to create something that youre proud of and that gets the job done.

Far too often in classes Ive taught Ive seen students throw out a lot of hard work and start again from scratch. They may wind up with a good garment, but they arent learning the skills that are essential to excelling in a creative field: patience, innovation, and diligence.

I love to see students trying to learn as they go along. The designers and artists I admire spend their whole lives learning. Everything they make may not be a commercial success, but every bit of effort they make gets them closer to realizing their vision.

One of the things I admire about Project Runway is that its really about developing creative design work. Ill never forget a woman coming up to me at an airport and saying that she loved Runway because she felt it set such a good example for her nine-year-old daughter. It demonstrates that good qualities of characterlike hard work and persistencepay off, and cheaters never prosper, she said.

Well, that was one of the nicest things anyones ever said to me. I love to think that were setting a good example in that way.

Few people remember it now, but Project Runway was quite controversial in the beginning. It took the mystique out of the fashion world and said, This is a demanding, gut-wrenching industry. You need a really strong drive and love for the work in order to be successful.

I guess we shouldnt have been shocked, but people in this industry did not react well. They thought we were taking the glamour out of fashion. The design world had been enshrouded in a kind of veil of mystery, and Project Runway pulled it back to let the world see it for what it was, warts and all. We got some very nasty reviews and some very harsh comments from our colleagues.

But we wanted to tell the truth. And the truth is that in this business, crazy crises happen, like when youre waiting for the knits to get off the boat from China and the show is tomorrow and the boat doesnt dock. What do you do? Remove fourteen looks from the show? You make it work, somehow. Its a fashion 911, and you have to respond to it. You cant pretend it doesnt exist.

Now the industry has bought in to the shows concept completely, and everyone pretends they loved Project Runway all along. Well, Im happy that the shows become so popular and that everyone is so full of praise for it, but I do remember those early days, when we were treated as though we were magicians telling everyone how the rabbit got in the hat.

I like to think that my role in the fashion industry has been a bit like Project Runways position among reality shows, which is a voice of simple reason. Let others be shimmery and flashy and brilliant. (And no one loves daring geniuses more than I do.) I will always be there in the wings saying, You need to be good to people. You need to take your work seriously. You need to have integrity. You need to work with what youve got.

A woman behind me in line at Starbucks the other day introduced herself as an assistant at a popular womens magazine.

Are you taking a break? I asked.

No, Im here getting coffee for everyone. She laughed a bitter laugh and showed me a mile-long list.

Its all in the details, I said. Do everything one thousand percent. You could be editor in chief some day!

Im afraid she thought I was teasing her, but the fact is I am constitutionally incapable of being snarky. Im not throwing out barbs and making fun of people. I believe in giving a dimension of seriousness to the whole enterprise of creating and talking about clothes, even to red-carpet reportage, and Im very proud of that.

As anyone whos been on the red carpet can tell you, the experience is