But I LOOOVE interior design and looking at beautiful things.

But I LOOOVE decorating my own home (AND, everyone tells me I have a “knack”).

But I LOOOVE to help OTHER people make their homes fabulous!

Yes, yes, yes, my lovely. I do know how you feel.

If you’re thinking seriously of going pro, and if indeed it’s the RIGHT move for you, I want you to go in – full bore!

Equally, if it’s a better move for you to say, “never mind” and walk away, then I hope this 2-part blog post does the trick to swiftly move you in the right yay-or-nay direction.

So here in Part I, I present to you the Ups and Down of Being an Interior Designer, whether you want to take your love of interior design and turn it into a nicely paying side hustle or full-time gig.

It’s SO important that you know what lies ahead. 😊 Here’s what nobody tells you to expect:

First: The Things to LOVE and That Need No Explanation:

1. Working in a creative industry with beautiful things and creating more beauty out of those elements.
2. Helping OTHER people have truly more beautiful spaces than they did before you crossed paths.
3. Making a living doing work you find deeply gratifying and fulfilling.
4. Creating beauty.
5. Solving creative challenges – like doing fun puzzles for a living, except your puzzles are design puzzles.
6. Working in (and sculpting spaces with) color, fabric, materials, shapes, furnishings, lighting, art, accessories.
7. Collaborating on a deeply gratifying creative process with clients and other design professionals to create something spectacular…
8. Shopping for a living. (Yep…you actually do this in a sense)
9. Getting to do work that you love and getting to do it EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.
10. Being creatively stimulated by your work.

Oh…what a list! I cold drink a tall glass of all of that, throw in some ice, an olive, and stir.

SO, lovely, now let’s move on to the Things to Hate list, and for each item, I’ll try to attach a little lesson/hack.

Seatbelt fastened, girlfriend?

Things to Hate

1. Monetizing creating in a world that places low $$$ value on creativity can be challenging and frustrating.
   1. Unless you know how to do it – then it gets way easier!
2. It’s a very full marketplace.
   1. This is a problem, unless you know how to distinguish yourself and your design offering, then it gets a lot easier. But reality check: Anyone and their mother can hang a shingle and call themselves a designer…hence the derogatory term, “housewife with a hobby.” This is the negative name given to dilatants: people who say they are, but are not, technically proficient designers. Therefore, they frustrate and anger clients while creating a bad name for themselves with clients, builders, and architects. Anyway, interior design is NOT an uncrowded playing field. Unlocking the door to “distinguishing yourself” is your game changer.
3. Dealing with the truly crazy client (nasty, moody, unreasonable) that slipped through your front gate “filter” and who provides non-stop stress.
   1. This is a problem, unless you know how to weed them out before you sign them. After your first nut-job client, you swear off ever taking on another, no matter how great the project looked.
4. Dealing with demanding clients:
   1. This is a problem, unless you have excellent client service systems and policies in place so you remain the expert and authority AND can manage demanding clients.
5. You are competing with furniture stores that offer design for free; you are competing with the free-info world of Houzz and Pinterest that appears to offer “it” for free.
   1. They don’t really offer what you do for free, but at face value, consumers think design is free. The solution is that you have to thread the needle, so they understand what you’re offering, your difference, and your value to them.
6. You are competing with a certain customer segment who think they know how to do what you do because they watch HGTV and read blogs.
   1. Most of them won’t hire you, or try, but some will. This will not be a problem if you know how to say “no” to these prospective clients, or, turn them into the right customer with your messaging and offer.
7. Dealing with the non-stop river of furniture that ships in with defects and needs repairs that the manufacturers and showrooms won’t always stand by (Yep – you get to pay for the repairs sometimes!).
   1. Unless you have systems to handle this because in fact, about 30% of what ships in today needs repair due to freight damage or manufacturing defect.Unless you don’t plan to sell furnishings and do design consulting only.
8. Dealing with billings, contracts, invoices, receivable, and purchase orders sucks up time.
   1. Whaaat?!?! Yes, exactly girlfriend. This business side of the biz has a LOT of detail. The answer is you must have the right system to handle these and it becomes SO much easier.
9. Dealing with the bookkeeping side of the business.
   1. Whaaat!?!? Yes, you’ve gotta track the money, the expenses, the profits, and the responsibly of handling your client’s $$. It’s a problem – make that a nightmare – unless you have the right system in place and then…it does become a snap.
10. The length of time it takes to complete a job.
    1. Unless you do consulting only, in which case your jobs will complete quickly.
       But if you supply products it can take up to 4-5 months from job start to installation for a single room….and yes, the natives (aka…clients!) get restless.
       The solution is to either learn some good puppet tricks or have excellent communication systems in place so that you manage clients’ expectations.
11. All businesses, like all of life, have cycles – ebb and flow. Ebb will make you crazy….
    1. Unless you have a solid mindset, an excellent mindset, support, and the tools and wisdom to know how to ride the normal cycles of any business.
       And yes, cashflow management becomes key too… (another system.)
12. Doing it all yourself will exhaust you.
    1. Without a support network and without an eventual team member (super part time, super virtual, so don’t panic!).
       The key is to know what and when to outsource and how so you keep your overhead low while freeing up your focus on what YOU SHOULD BE focusing on: designing, client service, and marketing.
13. Social Media can suck the life out of you:
    1. Unless you have a system for doing “it all” – or at least “the important stuff” because in today’s market – the world of info-tainment – social media is about connecting with your potential clients and customers.
       The trick is to know which social media platforms are not worth your early efforts, vs. which ones to focus on, particularly when you’re launching or building.

And then these last 3 are Things to Hate when you’re just starting or less than 3 years in:

15. Knowing how to launch to an audience who is waiting for you.
    1. I’m a fan of using a prelaunch strategy….
16. Knowing how to keep marketing.
    1. I’m a fan of planning this out by breaking it into management rinse and repeat chunks.
17. Knowing how to keep booking jobs and filling your pipeline.
    1. The multi-million-dollar question, but looking back, I wish I knew “then” (when I was first starting out) what I do now! I’d have saved endless time and yep, a few tears too, if we’re being honest.

OK lovely…so if none of the above scared you off entirely…you are golden.

You’re allowed to feel a little nervous, but if you’re still feeling like, “Yeah Donna, I’m still all in to try this…”

If you feel you’re up to the challenge because you are so excited at the thought of making this happen in your life…

Then, lovely, you’re going to LOVE, LOVE the 2^nd blog installment coming in this series: How to Turn Your Love of Interior Design Into A Side Hustle or Business.

Stay tuned and Cheers!