Farrah Storr is the award-winning editor-in-chief of the UK's Cosmopolitan magazine. She took over the brand in 2015 where she was tasked with reimagining it for the millennial woman. The October issue of Cosmo magazine has model and body-positivity advocate Tess Holliday on the cover. It was celebrated across the internet by many who lauded the magazine for championing body positivity and embracing larger bodies but it was also battled out on Good Morning Britain (by Piers Morgan) arguing that it glorifies obesity. Over her 17-year career as a journalist Farrah has done everything from undercover investigations in the world of cut-price cosmetic surgery to reporting from inside some of the world’s most luxurious fashion houses. She was also the founding editor-in-chief of Women’s Health magazine – the most successful women’s magazine launch of the decade.
In 2017 Farrah was cited as one of only 36 BAME leaders in The Guardian UK’s 1000 Most Powerful list.
Her first book is out now called The Discomfort Zone all about the power of discomfort, published by Piatkus, which we discuss a lot in this episode.
Quotes from the episode:
"Being vulnerable is what you have to do as a writer, that is your job.. sometimes that means putting yourself up for scrutiny from other people, but that's what makes the best writers."
"You can have it all....ish. It's naive to think you can have everything."
"True heroes are never that popular."
"Most of success is the climb; the grind to actually get to success. The grind should be the enjoyable bit."
#245 Rana Foroohar: The Rise of Big Tech
#244 Ann Napolitano: From 80 Rejections To A Global Bestseller
#243 Ruby Warrington: What Does It Mean To Be "Sober Curious"?
#242 Kiley Reid: When Fiction Does What A Thinkpiece Cannot
#241 Gillian Anderson: TV, Time Out & Trying New Things
#240 Sarah Ellis (Part 2): Confidence Gremlins & Squiggly Motherhood
#239 Sarah Ellis (Part 1): Embrace The Squiggly Career
#238 Lucy Sheridan: The Comparison Cure: Be Less ‘Them’, More You
#237 Emma Forrest: Writing & Transcendental Meditation
#236 Rachel DeLoache Williams: My Friend Anna, The Scammer
#235 Ayesha Hazarika: on Online Tribalism & Multi-Hyphening
#234 Emily Weiss: On Building Glossier
#233 Eva Chen: On Building A Brand On Instagram
#232 BONUS: How Do We Make Work Better? (with Investors In People)
#231 Elaine Welteroth: On Quitting Your Job & Carving Out A New Path
#230 Jennifer Pastiloff: On Hearing Loss & Listening For A Living
#229 Jamie Bartlett: The Missing Cryptoqueen
#228 Marie Le Conte: Gossip, Power & Politics
#227 Dawn O'Porter: Is Anyone's Life As Perfect As It Looks?
#226 Scarlett Curtis: It's OK To Feel Blue
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