Nothing is impossible if you believe in yourself and persistently pursue your dream, says Alina Fartushna, founder and editor-in-chief of GOSSIP magazine. She inspires this confidence in her team, readers, and people around her.
Alina told us about how she created and made her own magazine successful, what its mission is and how she manages to achieve even the most ambitious goals. Our heroine also shared insights about whether it is possible to promote printed materials during a pandemic and what is needed in order not to lower the bar during quarantine.
Alina, why did you decide to start your own magazine? Was it scary to get involved in such an adventure?
Even in my youth, journalism was my dream and passion. Unlike many of my peers, I knew who I wanted to be, so I had no doubts about what to do and how to do it. University, master’s degree, 2 years of wandering – and here I am at the helm of my own magazine.
I started under the auspices of an investor, to whom I am incredibly grateful for the start, experience, and opportunities. And now I am a full-fledged leader, ideological inspirer, and owner of a glossy magazine. My path is both easy and difficult at the same time.
I am sure that only those who do something are lucky. Was it scary? Highly. Was I ready for this? Definitely.
The reasons why I decided to do this are simple. There are good magazines in Ukraine, both printed and online. But in 2017, when I registered GOSSIP magazine, 90% of them covered exclusively the lives of popular people in Ukrainian and foreign show business.
I tried to tell the stories of talented women and show by their example that there are many successful people in Ukraine, as well as opportunities to achieve the most ambitious goals.
Nothing is more inspiring than the story of an ordinary girl who built a corporation. Personally, I missed this in the Ukrainian media space. And my principle is simple: if you lack something, you need to create it 🙂
What difficulties did you face at the beginning of your journey?
There were and are plenty of difficulties, but I love my path of becoming an entrepreneur. During the 3 years that I run the magazine, I have changed a lot. My priorities, goals, and desires have shifted, and my ambitions and self-confidence have increased. After all, the more difficulties you overcome, the less you doubt your abilities.
I show by my example that nothing is impossible. You can even create a print magazine in the digital age and make it successful.
And the difficulty is that people always perceive something new with apprehension and distrust. Therefore, initially we had to fight through non-acceptance, to prove that we are making a really worthwhile product that can be trusted.
With your permission, dear reader, I will give you advice: think and do. You can not think, but not decide or do without thinking through your actions. Define goals, analyze the situation, make a plan – and move forward to your dream.
Fear is the enemy of your development. Yes, you can’t do without difficulties, but they will help you believe that absolutely everything is possible.
Can you be called a strict leader? Or is there full democracy in the editorial office?
You can call me a friendly boss. I like to be on the same wavelength with my team, but as a leader, I can’t stand excuses, excuses, and whining. I’m the kind of person whose glass is always half full! There are only a few things in life that you can really get upset about, and problems at work are not one of them.
If something does not work out, you need to look for another way to solve the problem, make more efforts, and ask for help or support, but do not complain and give up. Therefore, I am for a democratic approach, for the responsibility of both parties, for a favorable atmosphere in the editorial office, and for the happy, motivated eyes of my employees.
How is your workday?
My working day is like a curve in geometry 🙂 2020 started very fast, so now our team has a million urgent tasks at the same time. I organize shooting for the magazine, I do the layout for the summer issue, I go through training, and I prepare a press brunch. And, of course, meetings, meetings, calls, communication, and a sea of different emotions.
Tell us more about GOSSIP magazine? How does it differ from competitors?
GOSSIP magazine is a magazine that the whole team puts their soul into. I understand that every owner will say this about his business, but no one treats work with such trepidation with my team creates it 🙂
This year we are 3 years old, and believe me, it is worth a lot for a printed product to stay on the market for so long.
The era of digital sweeps away many publications in its path, but my team and I are only gaining momentum.
Our magazine has a different approach. We talk about women whose paths can inspire and motivate new achievements. We don’t care how famous the heroine is or in what area she has achieved success. The main thing is that she inspires with her actions, speech, thoughts, point of view, and even appearance.
We have a special approach to the development of the image, advertising, interviews, filming … These are not my words, but the words of clients after working with us, which I am very proud of. I love bringing happiness to our customers. When they are happy, the entire GOSSIP magazine team is happy.
Who is it primarily for? What do you see as your target audience?
When I worked at the local newspaper at the age of 16, I was often “forced” to write about the unusual actions of ordinary people, the inhabitants of our town. Then I could not understand why not write the same stories, but about popular figures – it is much more interesting to read about them. And now I am sure that it is important to show not only the life of stars, but also the success of ordinary people in entrepreneurship, career, creativity, and other areas of life.
Did you know that in Ukraine there is an incredible number of smart, beautiful women who have built their own business, which is on everyone’s lips? Very often we do not even guess who is behind this but in vain. After all, it can motivate other girls to start their own businesses. Therefore, we show the behind-the-scenes of Ukrainian businesswomen.
Our target audience is smart, thinking women whose goal is development, self-realization, and achieving harmony in life.
How did you decide to continue working during isolation in Ukraine?
For me, it was a bolt from the blue. We were preparing a new issue for printing, as on March 12 we are all sent home for self-isolation.
Paused all workflows inside the log, as it was not clear what would happen next. I waited. The hand was on the pulse. But as soon as it became clear that this was not a story of one week or even one month, I realized that I needed to act and adapt. Naturally, we postponed the print edition of the magazine to better times, but we began to go online more often. Work has resumed, and we continue to prepare interviews for both print and online magazines. They brought out new headings and began to conduct live broadcasts on social networks, thus preventing the reader from getting bored.
I, like all entrepreneurs, am scared. We will never be the same again, but I try to find the positive in it. I’m waiting for the end of quarantine and forward to the song!
What are your future plans? What are you dreaming about?
I want to develop the magazine in Ukraine and beyond, to expand my horizons and not stop. Together with the team, we are preparing one project, which will soon be heard by all of Ukraine.
And I dream of being a necessary and important unit of society, and the magazine was in demand and readable.
What qualities have helped you get where you are now?
Purposefulness, is the ability to act in spite of fear and doubt. I am sure that in order for you to succeed, you have to try. It is important to clearly define your goal and not be afraid to change the plan in the process of achieving it.
I believe that the qualities of a leader are genetic or acquired in the process of life. Not everyone can be entrepreneurs, directors, and founders, and there is nothing wrong with that. It is important to find the activity that you like and develop it in the way that you can.
And I encourage everyone to read more. Classical literature, novels, contemporaries, poetry, non-fiction, journalism, interviews, and articles. Just read. After a while, it will become noticeable how thinking, worldview, and life changed for the better.
