The first issue of the Russian version of Psychologies went out of print at the end of 2005 with French actress Juliette Binoche and family secrets on the cover. For ten years we have matured, become Russified, changed externally and internally, discovered many psychological secrets for ourselves and our readers… On the occasion of the anniversary of the magazine, we are talking about those who create it.
My son is calling me at the door. «Do you have a room to rent?» he asks. “Uh-huh,” I reply without looking up from my phone. The calendar is open on my phone, and I’m trying to figure out how to have time to interview for the third one between writing one text and typesetting the second one. “And how did you guess?” «Well, you’re actually trying to leave the house in different shoes.»
Everything about renting a room has long been known to my family, my friends and even my au pair. At this time, I do not have to wait for dinner. And sometimes for breakfast too. At this time, I don’t care what shirt to wear, and whether it’s ironed or not, it doesn’t matter to me either. It is useless to talk to me, unless you start talking about frustration, dementia, or at least penis envy (this is from psychoanalysis, in case you suddenly do not know). Calling me is also useless. I answer all proposals, as a deputy to a question about real estate in Cannes, with a short and decisive “no”. We are all like that here.
Here — this is in the edition of Psychologies. The exception is Sigmund Freud. He is always immaculately dressed and absolutely calm. Neatly leaning against the wall behind Nastya’s photo editor, a cardboard, life-size Freud looks at what is happening as if he knows something important, something that explains everything about us.
- Always connected? What is harmful work without borders
Cardboard, life-size Freud looks at what is happening as if he knows something important, something that explains everything about us.
Now, however, Freud is watching the system administrator, who has arrived on an urgent call. Editor Olga’s computer is blocked by a virus. “Typical ransomware Trojan,” mutters the system administrator. “Strange, where did you pick it up?” “Well, I went to three or four porn sites here,” Olga replies calmly. She is just finishing up an article about swingers (in case you didn’t know, they are couples who practice partner exchange). The system administrator opens his mouth, but does not find what to say. He silently overcomes the virus and heads for the exit, but does not have time to reach. “Wait a minute,” the photo editor Nastya calls out to him, with a tenacious glance assessing the degree of brutality of the system administrator. “I thought you must have darts.” We really need darts for shooting.” “Yes, there is,” he replies, obviously flattered. — I have a magnetic dart — a great thing! Nastya’s face becomes stern and loses all interest in the system administrator. “Magnets are no good,” she snaps. “They will break the whole concept of shooting for us. The real ones are needed!” About an hour later I meet the system administrator in the smoking room. “There she had such a cache! he describes the morning incident to his colleagues. “No, well, I understand in Maxim, but in Psychologies?!” Then he notices me and smiles knowingly. In response, I shrug: what to do, this is the work. In the corridor, I run into a happy Nastya. She has a bunch of darts in her hands. Real ones with arrows.
On the table for the editorial boards is the calendar «Moods» by the wonderful Tanya Zadorozhnaya. Every time I come to work, I move it to the “Today I am a jubilant giraffe” page. Well, or at least «Sad Penguin». Usually rolls. But not on delivery days. On the days of the release of the issue, the editor-in-chief Ksenia decisively suppresses my amateur performances and chooses the option “Today I am an unshakable panda”. And sometimes even «Today I am a rude mongoose.» So, it’s really bad.
Xenia does not agree with my concept of the female unconscious. In the midst of the discussion, Nastya appears with a memo. Nastya urgently needs money to buy five bags of gummy bears. For shooting. “And without bears, in any way?” — Ksenia asks doomedly. “No way,” Nastya replies sternly. “The concept will collapse.”
- Is it worth it to talk about the personal at work?
Meanwhile, the concept of the unconscious is not cleared up, and we go to the editor-in-chief Irina. The path runs through the gorge between the racks up to the ceiling height. There are probably five thousand books there. Not only has Irina read almost all of them, she remembers in which of them and on which page there is something that will clarify the concept. Forty minutes later, having dealt with the unconscious, I run away for an interview. In the corridor I run into a happy Nastya. In her hands are packets of gummy bears.
Naturally, I skip lunch, which I bitterly regret. The editorial exit for lunch on the days of the release of the issue is a whole event. If I were the owners of nearby catering establishments, I would have fed us for free a long time ago. Because over lunch we continue to work on the number. And the TED lectures, let me tell you, pale in comparison to what we sometimes report on the latest advances in science. And what was going on at the neighboring tables, when we discussed sexual fantasies, I won’t even tell you.
Nastya from the doorway stuns with a question: “Yura, do you happen to have a mini-trampoline? We urgently need to shoot.» Dropping myself in Nastya’s eyes, I confess that I don’t have a mini-trampoline, and plunge into the struggle with a giant tail. The tail is the text that did not fit during layout and which must be shortened. And, of course, nothing can be shortened, and my battle with the tail is more and more reminiscent of the duel of Hercules with the Lernean Hydra. Designer Natasha sympathetically watches the battle: “Yura, and you have an engineer Anatoly talking about relations with your parents there. Is this a real character? “Of course it’s real,” I reply. — And what?» “Sorry,” Natasha sighs. — And then you can do not “engineer Anatoly”, but “doctor Yan”. A whole line would be cut.»
- Romance at work — a risky adventure?
Opposite me, editor Anton is sitting with his eyes closed. It just looks like he’s sleeping. Actually it works. Anton talked with a well-known neurophysiologist, and he said that if after dinner you sit for 15 minutes with your eyes closed, the brain will have time, as if in miniature, to reproduce the missing sleep cycles and rest. And the courageous Anton tests this theory.
And next to Anton sits editor Galya. She just got back from procrastination training (in case you didn’t know, procrastination). «How’s the training?» — the editor-in-chief Ksenia asks as she passes by. “Very good, in my opinion, effective,” Galya replies. “I’m sitting here, thinking, right now to write a report, or it’s better to do it tomorrow.”
I crush the tail, valiantly preserving Anatoly’s name and profession, when a rumble comes from the hallway. Anton shudders and opens his eyes. Joyful Nastya appears on the threshold, dragging a mini-trampoline behind her.
- What is your main talent at work?
A team of psychologists created a board game and submitted it for review. Therefore, now we will sit down at the table and play it.
I have almost started transcribing the interview, when the editor Alla announces that in the next half hour we will not all be working, because we will be playing. A team of psychologists created a board game and sent it to us for review, but how can we review without trying it? And we sit down at the table for the editorial boards (I stealthily change the page on the calendar to “Today I am a stunned elephant”), take cards with tricky questions that you can’t always answer even to close friends while drunk, and honestly answer them to each other. Behind this lesson, a representative of the management of the publishing house finds us. He brought us a spectacular girl, a specialist in search engine optimization. And now she will give us a lecture on how to increase site traffic by eight times. After all, we still play the fool, instead of renting a number. And we listen for another hour about keywords, search frequency and content virality. It’s dark outside the windows. Nastya looks at the optimizer girl appraisingly, and when the lecture finally ends, she says insinuatingly: “Tell me, do you happen to have any acquaintances who would like to be naked? We just need a few volunteers.» «What, completely naked?» – dumbfounded girl-optimizer asks. “Well, no, of course not,” Nastya smiles encouragingly. — To the waist. The girl nimbly rushes to the exit, the wind rushes through the open door by her — and the sound of falling is heard from behind the table. “It seems that the concept of shooting has collapsed,” Olya states phlegmatically. No, it’s just a cardboard Freud.
Nastya carefully puts it in place, and we finally sit down to work. There are still five hours before we still go home and get some sleep. Another whole day before the number goes to the printing house. And there are many more such numbers to come. Well, at any rate, we’d love to.