Happy Friday! I have to confess this fantastic summer weather we're having has distracted me from my blogging so you may have noticed a few gaps in the posting schedule! But during that time I haven’t been ignoring my design and décor biz.
In fact, I’ve been networking and promoting my business and working on a couple of exciting new ventures (watch for upcoming announcements!). In the process of meeting with people the question regarding my background and experience and how I became an interior designer inevitably comes up. I was apologetically explaining that I have done a 180 and gone from working in Management and IT consulting but then decided to follow my passion. But why apologetically?!
Just like meeting clients and working with them to identify their business challenges and making recommendations for changes together with a game plan to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their organization, I meet with clients to discuss and identify what challenges they are dealing with in their homes. I then make recommendations and provide a plan to create an inviting, comfortable, functional home in which they can live and play.
Surprisingly, many of the questions asked in either profession are very similar and designed to get clients talking about likes, dislikes, goals, desired outcome, etc. In fact, I relied heavily on my consulting background when developing the questionnaire for my interior design clients and just like management consulting, one or two questions are all it takes to get them chatting and discussing what frustrates them, what they would like to change, what they’d like to see disappear and how they picture using their space.
While the path I have traveled is a bit unconventional and not the one typically taken by most interior designers, I wouldn’t trade it. I loved working with my consulting clients and now I get to work with people on a much more personal and intimate level and see the recommended changes come to life.
The ultimate goal is happy, satisfied clients regardless of what services you are providing. While I am following my passion and starting my echo career, the experience gained in my previous life has actually made me a better interior designer!
Happy long weekend!