8 Lessons I Learned From Loving "The Devil Wears Prada" For All These Years

1. It's Not Super Easy To Get A Job Doing What You Love After College

Although it didn't take Andy (Andrea Sachs) long to get a job after she graduated from college in The Devil Wears Prada, it wasn't the one she had her heart set on. She didn't dream of working at a fashion magazine and halfheartedly applied to a position at Elias-Clark just to have something. As a former college grad, I can relate!

I've always wanted to be a journalist but had no idea where to start. This led to insanely brief stints working at places like Papa John's, Ted's Montana Grill, and Charlotte Russe. When I finally landed my first adult job, I found myself working at a law firm as a receptionist and Title Report Researcher for almost 10 years.

I thought I'd at least land close to my dream career, but I found out that life doesn't move as quick as the movies I love to watch. I personally love the realism of landing a job that doesn't have anything to do with her initial career goals because it's something a lot of people experience. Even though social media makes it seem like there's a straight path to your dreams, pursuing them is everything but linear.

2. Sometimes Our Internal Biases Hold Us Back

Like Andy, I was a kind of a "know-it-all" young adult. I thought I didn't need to put in much effort when I worked at the law firm, but girl was I wrong. That line of thinking is what caused me to make so many — luckily — forgivable mistakes. When I checked in with myself and stopped complaining, I was able to actually start doing my job better. I also started interacting with clients in a more positive way.

The same thing happens to Andy. When she started confronting her own biases and enlisted Nigel's help, she was able to start immersing herself in the Runway world a little more. Then she started to understand why the magazine was successful.

Ultimately, Andy represents the hopeful college graduate because she's convinced that her ambition and tenacity will lead her to the job she truly wants.

3. Leaving A Job Isn't Always Painless

At first it feels like Emily Charlton's character was written to make us automatically dislike her. But, she has endearing qualities underneath what feels like an icy exterior. The more time Andy spends working alongside her, we can see that Emily is caught between doing whatever it takes to be the best at her job even if she doesn't necessarily agree with what that entails. She's worked hard to become a senior assistant and feels offended that Andy doesn't understand the gravity of the roles they have. However, this doesn't stop her from becoming an ally to Andy in the sequel to The Devil Wears Prada which goes to show that she became really fond of her the more they worked together.

Frankly put, Emily wasn't the b-tch we thought she was. She was just really passionate about doing what it took to progress from being a glorified assistant to an incredibly demanding boss. She was playing the long game even if it didn't look or feel fair to others.

There's so many different opinions about how hard someone is supposed to work in order to move forward in their careers, but I think it's important to remember that we can't tell others how much or little they should care about their jobs. In fact, there's a lot of people who are doing whatever they have to in order to survive. With inflation, rising daycare costs, and more, there's a lot more to life than just leaving a job simply because you don't like it.

My own decision to pivot careers wasn't easy given I have a toddler, so that means a chunk of my decisions revolve around his wellbeing. Unlike this idea that kids are terrible decisions, I don't look at that as a bad thing. It just means my responsibilities and priorities experienced a shift that made me want to have something else lined up before resigning from my last position.

4. Speaking Of Priorities, I Learned That Dating Can Be Complicated And Messy

How many times have you dated someone and swore they were the one? I'm embarrassed to admit how often I looked for my soulmate because I thought I'd have a fairytale romance that involved a high school or college sweetheart. To be fair, Andrea and Nate did have a bond that wasn't superficial. It truly was a real relationship that had its cute moments, but it showed that it can be hard to juggle a demanding job without your partner feeling like you no longer have time for them. Not only that, but Nate felt like Andy was changing...and he wasn't entirely wrong.

In a time where more people would rather point out someone else's red flags than realize we're all capable of having unhealthy feelings, I honestly don't think this makes him a villain. It just means that Andy and Nate's relationship became complicated — and ultimately not right for them — when faced with the demands of both of their jobs and dreams.

It's not easy to maintain balance in a relationship when a huge change happens. For me, having a baby and deciding to pursue my career caused a lot of stress in my relationship. My S.O. and I argued off and on for well over a year because we were navigated brand new territory where our sole focus was no longer each other. Sometimes people have a hard time pivoting, and this can lead to a complicated breakup like Andy and Nate's.

5. Friendships Aren't Perfect Either

This is a tricky one for me because I would've preferred to see the book version of Lily in The Devil Wears Prada movie. (I also feel like she didn't get as much screen time as she deserved, but that's a conversation for another day.) IMO, the movie version of Lily painted her to be a little more put-together, and I feel like it took away from the reality of her being a layered young adult. In the book, her character supported Andy without much judgement while also making impulsive decisions herself. If you were to look up the definition of "two things can be true at the same time," you'd probably see a picture of Lily.

The one thing the movie got right? Lily never shied away from calling Andy out on her crap. She needed help being accountable too, but that's the point. No one's so well-rounded that they never say or do crappy things. We're all capable of missing the mark even with our closest friends.

6. Hookups Aren't Always Worth It

After Andy woke up after a passionate night with hot writer Christian Thompson, she clearly doesn't feel great about herself. In fact, she's wondering if she made the right decision and it leaves her feeling frazzled.

I'm the last person to pass judgement on anyone's intimate life, so that's not what this lesson is about. Instead, it's an acknowledge that someone's attractiveness doesn't always mean sleeping with them is the best decision to make. The one and only time I had a one-night-stand, I felt uncomfortable the entire time we were merely talking. It was a planned meet-up, and our awkward attempts at small talk should've told me all I needed to know.

The only reason I refer to it as a one-night-stand is because I told him we were better off never seeing each other again. Mind you, this was after he said he didn't make a good friend, yet still wanted to have access to my body. Major a-hole alert.

7. We've All Had A Boss Like Miranda Priestly Before

Now the moment we've been waiting for — let's talk Miranda Priestly. She's this fictional larger-than-life EIC at one of the world's most prestigious fashion magazines, and it's rumored that she's based on a real person. Whether or not that's 100% true, I think the way she's presented in The Devil Wears Prada is an accurate depiction of how some supervisors can be in any industry.

She demands excellence at all times, but doesn't typically take the time to set her staff up for success in the process. In her mind, it's her assistants' job to anticipate her needs and will quickly tell them, "The tales of your incompetence do not interest me." Now that I've worked for a couple of sane supervisors, I can say that it's possible their minds are running at a mile per minute, so it's helpful to have people who can help them get things done. But, emotional abuse and gaslighting are things I wish didn't exist in the workplace.

Be as it may, Miranda occupies the psyche of her staff and is even seen being ruthless to Nigel during Paris Fashion Week (still not over that TBH). All she seems to care about is ensuring that her success as an EIC is solidified and has no problem being seen as this cold, calculating woman. It's a role that Meryl Streep successfully embodied and she'll always come to mind when I picture Miranda Priestly. Frankly, I think we can all agree that she's the one character we'll always have a love/hate relationship with.

8. Life's Imperfect Pieces Can Create Something We Actually Enjoy Looking At

By the end of The Devil Wears Prada, Andy has changed into a version of herself that she's actually proud of. She's come a long way from being the hopeful college grad she used to be and is finding her stride. It serves as a reminder that life isn't out to get us. Sometimes we make terrible mistakes or are faced with unforeseen circumstances, but we can choose to move forward or not.

I feel like my experiences helped prepare me for the point I'm at in life and that's not something I take lightly. I even found that some of the things I thought I wanted changed because I was given something much better.