Millions read it every day, but few stop to think about the personalities that make Time magazine one of the top news publications in the world.
One of these people is Eileen Naughton, president of Time and a Penn alumna.
Nestled in the Benjamin Franklin Room of Houston Hall, approximately 60 to 70 people came to listen to Naughton speak yesterday evening as part of the Robert A. Fox Leadership Program's Lessons in Leadership series.
Naughton -- who graduated from Penn with three degrees: a bachelor's degree in international relations from the College in 1979 and both an MBA from Wharton and a master's degree from the Lauder Institute of International Studies in 1987 -- talked to students about her experiences in the work force and at Penn, as well as the role that leadership has played in her career.
"I didn't have a road map" coming into Penn, Naughton said. While at the University, she "took courses that interested" her and "grew ... both figuratively and literally."
After graduating from the College in 1979, Naughton helped lead a biking tour across Europe for 30 students, during which she learned the importance of "experiencing [the] joy of collective effort" and teamwork.
She returned to New York City to look for a job and eventually took a position as a journalist.
Naughton told last night's audience to "follow your passions," and that there is "no right career [and] no script for being satisfied in [one's] career."
Naughton, who is trilingual speaks German, French and Italian, later moved to Italy where she briefly worked as a cycling tour guide.
She returned to the United States to earn her MBA and master's degrees.
After meeting her husband at Penn, she moved with him to Europe before finally settling in New York City.
There she took a job at Time, a company she had always respected and wanted to work for even when she was a student at Penn.
"Expect from yourself and everyone the highest possible standards," Naughton said. She added that students should "never stop learning" and "keep in touch with humanity."
She urged audience members to play to their inherent strengths but not to overly depend on them.
She added that it is important to approach tasks or obstacles from many different angles and to "dare to do it differently."
Wharton freshman Vivek Kumar said that he "loved" the talk and thought Naughton was a very good speaker.
Jenny Ning, also a freshman in Wharton, added that she learned a lot from Naughton's presentation and that her story was "inspiring" because Naughton, like many students, was unsure about her future career goals when she first came to Penn.
