Podcast
Creative Genius Podcast
Hosted by Gail Doby & Erin Weir · EN
Gail Doby and Erin Weir interview influential people in the interior design industry, business, and entrepreneurs
25episodes
Episodes
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The Secret to Drama-Free Projects (Janine Aurichio)
Dec 17, 202400:30:09Tap to summarizeInterior design is demanding work, involving thousands of detailed decisions, project challenges and competing personalities. That can give rise to a lot of friction and stress. While you can’t eliminate every stressor, you can minimize them by establishing good project management practices and cultivating mental fitness. In this episode, Gail talks with mental fitness coach Janine Aurichio. A self-titled “Joy Master,” Janine offers an approach she calls Life Styling that trains interior designers to build the capacity to respond to life’s challenges with a positive mindset rather than getting stressed or upset for breakthrough results in their life and business. “I believe our true nature and essence is joy,” she says. Gail asked Janine why she chose to focus on working with designers. She said that after working in the industry for twenty years she has come to admire what designers do and bring to the world. “What they do is part science and part magic,” she said, adding “beauty is my core value.” Janine said that from what she’s seen in her practice the biggest challenges for many designers are twofold. They have an internal challenge of maintaining command over their mind and mindset, in part because they have many demands on themselves and many distractions. In addition, they have an external challenge because they lack or do not utilize a well-oiled process for managing their projects and other aspects of their business operations. “Good project management leads to more and better projects, more profit and more peace of mind,” she explained. It should be core to every interior design business. As well, Janine identified what she sees as the three biggest mistakes designers make when managing their projects. A major one is that they think of the client as the center of the project rather than of the project itself. They are afraid to communicate truth to the client for fear of being reprimanded or even fired. They don’t have a plan for executing the project, or they have one but don’t follow it. Janine went on to talk about how designers can better deal with their internal challenges by learning to manage their mindset. She described a four-step process that she teaches to rewire negative ways of thinking in order to develop positive intelligence. The goal, she said, is to achieve mental fitness, which she defined as your capacity to handle life’s challenges with a positive response or mindset. Gail and Janine also discussed why good project management is so crucial to the success of a design business, the major types of “saboteurs” that contribute to negative thinking, and the steps designers can take to improve their mental fitness and boost creative flow. Get all the details by listening to the entire podcast. If you’re listening on your favorite podcast platform, view the full shownotes here: https://thepearlcollective.com/s12e5-shownotes Mentioned in This Podcast Download the Drama-Free Projects Guide PDF here: https://www.yes2yum.com/drama-free You’ll also find other resources that Janine mentioned on the podcast on her website. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdo1KPg4GJw Episode Transcript Note: Transcript is created automatically and may contain errors. Click to show transcript Today we have Janine Arricchio on our podcast and her superpower is managing design projects. And her zone of genius is the inside job of managing your mindset for peak performance, thriving relationships, and maximizing happiness. And today we’re going to explore the outside in and inside out ways of creating drama-free projects. And wouldn’t we all love that? Welcome to the Creative Genius podcast, Janine. Thank you, Gail. It’s great to be here with you and your listeners, and I’m really grateful for the opportunity. it’s so great. I love your LinkedIn post or listing that says you’re a joy master. So tell us about how you came up with that title. Yes. Well, my coaching teacher actually gave me that title because I was always so curious and asking people about what brought them joy. And maybe you’ve heard the expression teach what you need to learn. Well, I am a joy seeker and a studier of joy because number one, for a while there, I forgot how to be joyful. And number two, because I’ve also seen this as the case for many other people, including designers and folks in our industry. And I believe our true nature and our essence is joy. And so I want to help others remember that too, while also giving them. really effective tools to help their businesses run better and smoother. Well, anytime you can be a good project manager and have a good mindset, think things go a lot better, right? Yes, indeed they do. Well, how did you find this path for yourself? What inspired you? Well, Gail, I think it found me kind of, and isn’t that just how things are a lot of the time? It certainly was not a direct path, but the short version is that I had a very strong people pleaser or pleaser saboteur, especially as a younger person. And I made a lot of big, important decisions really to please my dad. And so that was as a young person. Fast forward several decades and many great experiences and also some not so great ones. Let’s just say I was ready for a change. I was really unhappy in what I was doing. And it was clear to me that personal and professional growth was what I was here to do at this time, both for myself and then to teach others. I love that. Well, why do you work with interior designers? two reasons. I’d say one is because what designers do is part science and part magic. And I just relate to that so much. That’s also that’s been kind of a thread in my life. And another is that Beauty’s been a threat in my life. Beauty’s my number one core value, for sure. And I fell in love with the design community after going back to school and then working in the industry for 20 years. And you all are the beauty makers and I believe beauty can help heal the world. And so I want to help designers keep bringing beauty into the world. And I know firsthand how challenging this business can be and how it can dampen your joy at times. So to be their best and their happiness and their happiest, I want to help designers sort of rediscover that joy and support them in that journey. Well, speaking of challenges, which ones are the ones that you think are the biggest ones facing designers right now? Yeah. Well, you know, this is a complex business. so I, I, you know, we could talk about that could be a whole nother podcast, right? But of the two. Biggest ones that I’ve witnessed that kind of relate to this conversation. One is an internal challenge and one is an external challenge. And the internal one you referred to earlier, I you were called it the, I call it the inside job. And that is about, maintaining command of your mind and having a positive mindset, sort of responding versus reacting and doing that. when things are challenging and stressful. And then the external one is having a well-oiled process, especially for managing projects. And I’ve seen many firms that don’t even have a process. And if they do, sometimes they’re not using it and both are problematic. And, you know, I love the, recent episode on policies, process and procedures. I can tell you’re kind of a process nerd like I am. And it’s not the sexy part of the business, but it’s so important. It really is. for a lot of people that you mentioned that there are many designers who really don’t do that. They don’t do project management per se. They just do what they think is part of it. And the thing that I think is so interesting is that our job is really that. That’s what we do every single day is we have to manage projects. So if we don’t have a system for it, then how do we run our business? I guess how do we get them interested in it? How do we encourage them to really embrace project management? What’s in it for them? Gosh, well, it impacts everything. It creates structure that sort of holds things together, right? And gives people, you know, your employees or team members guardrails and on what to do next. It impacts the many relationships that we have that you have as a designer. whether it’s your employees or team members or vendors, it impacts your peace of mind, your staff’s motivation and buy-in and ownership of the process and ultimately the quality of your output, which impacts your reputation and your ability to get other projects. So I’d say those are some really important reasons to care. so what’s in it for them is more and better projects, more profit and that peace of mind. which I think we all want at the end of the day. Well, we do want that peace of mind. Sometimes we don’t have that when we’re up at two in the morning and thinking about all the things aren’t going right on the project. Yes. So as far as that goes, what are...
Transcribe →Podcasting to Build Your Interior Design Business (Nicole Lashae Ben)
Dec 10, 202400:33:24Tap to summarizeIt seems like everyone nowadays has a podcast. So why not you? Although one might argue that there are far too many podcasts, they are extremely popular ways of consuming information. Like blogs and videos, different podcasts attract different audiences, offering something for everyone. That makes them a great medium for marketing and building brand awareness if you tap into the right niche. In this episode, Gail talks with Nicole Lashae Ben, CEO and founder of Thrive in Design, a web-based firm that specializes in empowering exceptional design-focused brands to tell their stories through impactful product launches and podcasts. A seasoned expert in the interior design industry with over 17 years of experience working in firms and with manufacturers, Nicole found her true calling in helping interior design firms and product companies boost brand awareness and revenue by telling their unique stories. Gail asked Nicole why interior designers might want to consider podcasting. She said, “You should be podcasting if you want to establish yourself as an expert and authority in whatever it is that you are doing.” Podcasts are an effective way of building brand awareness, broadening audience reach, and giving value to clients and prospective clients. Before diving into podcasting, advised Nicole, think about who the audience is that you’re trying to attract and what your goal is in attracting them. “Your podcast is a marketing tool, a sales tool,” she said. “Think about what call to action you want people to take as result of listening to the podcast.” Whether you choose a video or only an audio format, realize that producing a podcast takes a fair amount of time and resources. You have to develop topics or themes for your individual podcasts. You need to identify, invite and schedule time with guest participants. You have to record and edit the podcast. Once in its final form, you have to upload the podcast to the various platforms that distribute podcasts. Usually, this requires a team of support and technical folks to make it manageable. However, the results can be quite rewarding. Nicole also talked about what kind of content to develop for your podcast, how to get the most from your investment by repurposing your content in various ways, and some of the tools she uses to prepare and distribute her podcast. For all that and more, listen to the entire podcast. If you’re listening on your favorite podcast platform, view the full shownotes here: https://thepearlcollective.com/s12e4-shownotes Mentioned in This Podcast For more information about Nicole and Thrive in Design, go to the firm’s website at www.thriveindesign.co. Gail and Nicole mentioned Zoom and several other software programs useful for podcasters: Klap – This is an app used to create short videos from longer videos for use on TikTok, Instagram and other social media platforms. More information at klap.app. Riverside – This is an online studio for high-quality podcast and video recording and editing. You can use it for live video events as well as for editing text, audio and video. More information at riverside.fm. Garage Band – This is Apple’s video editing app. It comes standard on Apple smartphones, tablets and computers. Pod Bean – This is an app for recording, editing, publishing and distributing podcasts. More information at www.podbean.com. Izotope – This is an audio mixing and mastering software. More information at www.izotope.com. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbX4CeNkQW8 Episode Transcript Note: Transcript is created automatically and may contain errors. Click to show transcript Welcome. Today we have Nicole Lachey-Benn. She is our guest on the Creative Genius podcast. Welcome, Nicole. Thank you So good to have you. Thank you so much for having me. I’m so excited about this conversation today. it’ll be so great. Well, tell us a little bit about your background in the interior design industry. Yeah. So I always think this question is so funny because my background really goes back to childhood. Like I did my first interior design project when I was five years old. My mom and I moved into a new house and I was like, I want this wall purple and this wall pink and a ballerina border. So that’s kind of where it all started. But fast forward, I ended up going to Syracuse University and getting my BFA in interior design and fell even more in love with the interior design process and design industry. Went on to get my master’s in design management from Savannah College of Art and Design. So I’ve always worked in end. gone to school in the interior design industry literally forever. I’ve worked at design firms for product manufacturers in that evolution of just loving design, loving the strategy behind the business side of design has led me to start my own business, which is called Thrive InDesign, to really focus on design focused brands that wanna amplify their stories in the design industry. Tell me a little bit about what you’re doing now because you’ve created this special niche for yourself and it’s helping those brands through their stories, through podcasts and product launches. And here we are on a podcast today. So tell us a little bit more about that. Absolutely. So for me, I always knew that I wanted to start my own business and I had this very vague idea. like, I want to help brands increase their brand awareness and their revenue. So I ended up starting, with actually virtual summits before the pandemic when everybody had to do virtual and started these business summits where I was bringing together experts, I was doing workshops and just helping people understand the strategies behind business and how to increase their brand awareness and revenue. And then that evolved and I learned a lot about my customers in different conversations and services that I was providing. And no matter the type of business, They all were saying different things, but it came down to like the same problem. They were like, hey, Nicole, you know, I want more people to know about my brand. I want to make more money. I want to be known in this design segment. Or sometimes it was international brands. Hey, I want to be known in the U.S. But even though it sounded like all completely different things, really everybody was saying the same thing that they needed to tell their brand story effectively, whether it be online or offline. So that really became my thing. And I niche down into that about three years ago, and especially for brands in the interior design industry. Like how do I help you tell your brand story online and offline? And I think especially in the last year and a half, that has become even more niche for podcasting and product launches, mainly because those are like, that’s like my zone of genius. Like how to effectively tell your brand story on a podcast and attract that ideal audience. convert them to a paying client. And then when it comes to product launches, whether you’re a designer launching your own product line or you’re a manufacturer, there’s a certain strategy in our industry that is different from any other product industry out there, right? The way that Apple launches their products is very different from our industry and how somebody launches like a textile or a chair. So I really understand. the brand story that needs to be told in those product launches and what needs to be done online and offline for those things. So it’s been an evolution, but yeah, this is where I am now and the things that I love to do with my clients. That is so interesting. And we have a similar story in a way, because back in 2008, when we started our business in October was our first virtual summit. And we did it at that time without Zoom, which today it’s like, my God, it was on audio. we literally had separate, we had interviews, some were recorded, some were live and we did 14 people in three days. It was wild, but you know, I look back to those days. had no idea that anybody was really doing that kind of thing again. So good for you. That’s awesome. That was so funny. Well, Let’s talk a little bit about why an interior design firm should consider podcasting. think you kind of touched on it a little bit, but for a lot of people, they’re not sure that they want to go this direction. And they’re not sure if it’s worth the time and effort and money and all the things that they have to learn how to do in order to do podcasting to do that, because they’re thinking social media. That’s where most people are spending their time and effort and money. today and maybe sometimes on SEO. So let’s talk about why podcasting. the basics podcasting is actually something that I was not thinking of before, which is so funny. I was like, why would I do a podcast? Like who’s going to listen to my podcast? It’s my audience really listening. But then a few things clicked in a conversation that I had with another woman who I was in a business ac...
Transcribe →Designing a Home for Holistic Well Being (Matthew Tenzin)
Dec 2, 202400:55:06Tap to summarizeAll designers aim to create environments for their clients that will improve their lives and support their health and wellness. In the execution of those designs, that often focus on functionality and aesthetics, other areas of wellbeing may get overlooked. Taking a broader, more holistic approach to client needs and the connection of the space to the natural environment can produce additional benefits. In this episode, Gail welcomes back to the podcast Matthew Tenzin, principal designer with Joe McGuire Design, with offices in Aspen, Boulder and Denver, Colorado. Previously Matthew appeared in an episode with the firm’s founder and partner, Joe McGuire. A former Buddhist monk, Matthew has had a lifelong love for creativity and interconnectivity with spirituality and the natural world. In 2017, Joe and Matthew launched a Holistic Design Consultancy, now known as Home Within, where they focus on offering the healthy, sustainable and energy-balancing aspects of their design process. Matthew explained that their method is to examine the project in the context of five levels of holistic wellbeing in the home, taking a top-down approach. Those are the spiritual and/or sacred level, a wellness vision, symbolic or meaningful level, sensory level and functional level. Matthew said that normally the energetic level in the home is not addressed in traditional building and design. He explained that spaces contain residual energies from previous inhabitants that can affect the current residents, either for good or for ill. From an energy perspective, the space may be out of balance and require cleansing before any other work is undertaken. Connectivity is also central to their process. Matthew urged designers to make more of an effort to connect with their clients. “If only the designer could just breathe and slow down for a minute to connect with client, it’s amazing what can come out of that,” he said. Connecting to the natural environment is also essential. “If we can’t connect to the planet and the whole from our home, where are we going to do that?” he noted. Matthew also talked about how the firm is using a new wellness space they opened up next to their studio and their work with indigenous communities in the rain forests of South America. Listen to the entire podcast for more details and insights from Matthew. If you’re listening on your favorite podcast platform, view the full shownotes here: https://thepearlcollective.com/s12e3-shownotes Mentioned in This Podcast For more information about Matthew and Joe McGuire Design, go to the firm’s website at www.joemcguiredesign.com. For more information about their wellness consultancy, Home Within, go to the firm’s website at www.homewithin.com. Listen to the previous podcast with Matthew and Joe discussing ways designers can break out of the cycle of constant business ups and downs. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-ZgO8K21sU Episode Transcript Note: Transcript is created automatically and may contain errors. Click to show transcript Welcome to the Creative Genius podcast, Matthew. You’ve been with us before, but our listeners might not have heard that episode. So we’re gonna dive right in. So how did you become a designer? Tell us about that. Well, hi, Gail. Thanks for having me back. Of course. It’s wonderful. I always love chatting with you and I’m excited to get to talk a little more with your listeners. So yeah, I became an interior designer in a little bit of an unusual way. didn’t go to design school, my background was more, I was more interested in fine art. And even though as a kid, I told people I wanted to be an interior designer, I grew up in a very conservative Christian family and community. And I think at the time when I said I wanted to be an interior designer, it was a teacher and I can’t remember which one said, well, that’s what women do. So you should be an architect. And so that sort of planted a seed of. Okay, well, I’ll explore architecture. And that wasn’t quite my thing. And then I got into painting and that led through a whole creative and spiritual path, I guess, of exploration. When I was living in Chicago, I got to hear the Dalai Lama talk and I went to hear him and got very into meditation, ended up becoming a Buddhist monk for a number of years, for about five and a half years living in retreat. But I always had a very creative aspect of my being and I wanted to, after my time as a monk, which was an incredible life-changing time, I wanted to figure out how to integrate what I’d learned and express it creatively. I also felt a real deep connection to nature and to the planet and that’s something that’s always been a part of my life and I wanted to find a way to do something meaningful or beneficial to help others feel more connected. to nature and to the planet because it felt like we wouldn’t do the things we do to the planet if we felt more connected to it. And right after my time as a monk, I met my husband, Joe, in Aspen at a talk by the Dalai Lama. We just happened to be sitting next to each other. And he was an established interior designer in Aspen. He’d been designing homes there for many years at that point. But he also had a background of interest in meditation and healing arts, he had gone to massage school, he had lived at the Dalai Lama’s monastery and taught English before I was there. And so we had all these overlapping interests and we were really soulmates, know, it was meant to be. And so we started, you know, dating and, you know, became partners in life. And then over a few years, we started working together in design as well after tagging along with him on projects and things. Eventually he got a number of projects and needed help. And he’s like, well, what do you think about helping me? And I thought, okay, great, let’s give it a shot. And that was 12 years ago. So I really learned through working with Joe, as well as just, you know, so much of it is just intuitive and a part of me, or there was sort of a natural impulse to design spaces, even from a young age. it’s an unusual path. but I feel so grateful for it. It is so fascinating. And every time I hear you talk about being a Buddhist monk, I just try to imagine what would that be like? Because that is such a different lifestyle than what you have now. And of course, it informs what you’re doing. But and we’ll talk about that a little bit more. But what was that like? What was the difference in how you felt about yourself versus? now that you’re away from that. What is that like? Yeah, I mean, it’s it’s something that’s it’s really hard to to put into words, of course, because it’s just such a such a powerful experience. It’s just so different from from the way that that pretty much all of us live. I felt really lucky. Like most days I felt like I won the lottery to have the opportunity to fully immerse in nature. For two and a half years, I was in solitary retreat. So I would go for six or seven months at a time without seeing another human being, including other monks. There were a few of us in little cabins in this remote valley in Big Sur. So we were kind of over a ridge in a valley tucked in near the ocean, but we couldn’t see the ocean. just to have the opportunity to immerse in meditation all day, that connection to nature and to the web of life, you become very sensitive to things when meditating that much. Wasn’t exposed to any news about the outside world. I would get letters when I would come out for those breaks and I would see my teachers and then go back in. And so to have that opportunity to not be distracted by devices and email and news and all that we have to process on a daily basis. That was an amazing opportunity. when doing that, become, think, I mean, when anybody meditates, I know you meditate, we’ve talked about that before. We just naturally become more sensitive because we start to slow down and tune into the present moment, which is what meditation is, mindfulness especially, is being aware of what’s arising in the present. And then we start to notice things that we didn’t notice before. And they’ve always been there, but we just didn’t tune into it. thoughts, our emotions, the breeze, the sensation on our skin, the way we’re breathing, the way we’re sitting, we start to open and sense in a deeper, richer way. And that’s just an incredible opportunity to do, especially in nature, because it opened up this feeling of connection to the web of life. I felt like I was communicating with nature. I would notice that I would have certain prayers or thoughts or intentions. that would seem to be reflected in nature around me, in the animals, in the plants. And at times on the non-physical level, when you meditate deeply, you start to have connections on a more subtle level and where I was really sensitive to the energy of spaces and places, as well as to non-physical beings that have become kind of a part of my reality. I know a part of most world religions or spiritual traditions ac...
Transcribe →Sell Without Selling (Shannyn Lee)
Nov 26, 202400:37:17Tap to summarizeMany interior designers are uncomfortable with the idea of selling their services to a client. For them, the word “selling” carries a connotation of persuading someone to buy something that maybe they don’t want or can’t afford. There are other ways to approach a sale, however. Keep in mind that prospective clients are looking for help from you, the expert. Explain to them what you have to offer and explore whether you are a good fit for each other. In this episode, Gail talks with Shannyn Lee, managing director of Win Without Pitching, based in Kaslo, British Columbia, Canada. Shannyn stated the firm seeks to help people in the interior design industry and others to learn to sell more professionally. Shannyn stressed that designers need to accept that “it’s okay to sell and price like the experts they are.” She said a professional sales approach is a combination of understanding the client’s mindset and then giving them a framework for the different conversations that happen during the sales process. Let them know they have choices and options. From the designer’s perspective, said Shannyn, think of the discussion with the prospective client not as an opportunity to pitch a sale but as a qualifying conversation. Leave room for the client to open up and talk about what they want, what’s motivating them to make a change. You’re looking to see if you’re a good fit for each other. You may find that you have reservations about taking on this project or working with this client. “It’s okay to have power in the sale,” said Shannon. She advises that before meeting with the prospective client that designers repeat a helpful mantra: “I am the expert. I am the price to be won. I am on a mission to help. I will only be able to help you if you let me lead. All will not follow, and that is okay.” For many designers, Shannyn said, it’s a matter of getting “comfortably uncomfortable” with selling. They just need to shift their mindset that it’s okay. “When you have the right mindset, typically the correct behaviors follow.” Keep in mind it takes a lot of practice to build up your confidence. Work on your skills and give it time. Shannyn noted some common mistakes designers make when selling or pitching a project. She also discussed why the better option for some designers might be not to sell but rather to hire a business development person to handle that side of the business. For all that and more, listen to the entire podcast. If you’re listening on your favorite podcast platform, view the full shownotes here: https://thepearlcollective.com/s12e2-shownotes Mentioned in This Podcast For more information about Win Without Pitching, including the many resources they have available, go to the firm’s website at www.winwithoutpitching.com. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJv3Ji76LhY Episode Transcript Note: Transcript is created automatically and may contain errors. Click to show transcript Welcome to the podcast, Shannon. I am so excited to have you on here. Thank you, Gail. I am too. I’ve been looking forward to this, so thanks for having me on. it’s my pleasure. Well, we met in a mastermind, and it has been a lot of fun. And I have found out what great expertise you have in an area that I think will be great for our listeners today, which is sales, especially for people in the services business. Yes. I can’t wait to talk about that. But first, I have to ask you a few questions that are a little bit personal, and I would love to hear about these. And we asked this question about what your biggest life lesson was. Why don’t you share with us what you shared? So I have to remember honestly what I shared, but I’ll tell you what I think I shared. Okay. There’s a lot of life lessons, but I know one that made a big impact on me was when I was fired from a job. And it definitely was humbling, but also lit a fire. And what I mean by that was it caused me to take a hard look at who I was and what I was doing and where I belonged. And I did not let myself give in to the story that I had failed. I reframed it for myself because I do think that was the truth. And the truth was it wasn’t the right fit. I shouldn’t have been there. They probably shouldn’t have hired me. And it was a beautiful moment in a lot of ways because it caused me to really just think hard about where do I add value? Where do I want to be? And that really started a journey for me that ended up at win without pitching eventually. But it started a journey for me where I went to work for small to medium sized independently owned businesses and left. corporate America, which I wouldn’t have traded that experience on the corporate side, but I certainly figured out what my unique ability was after that. Well, I think sometimes it’s important to have those setbacks because if we had it all going so well, I don’t think we would learn the lessons that we really are here to learn. 100%. I am unafraid of failure, of setbacks, hard conversations, like it just changed so much for me in that moment. And so it was a good thing in the end. Well, that’s an interesting comment that you bring up about having the hard conversations. I was just having a conversation with another client this week about hard conversations and I still struggle with it. tell me your secret to doing that. You know, it’s a really good question and I don’t know for sure if I’ve landed on why it’s okay for me or why it feels comfortable for me. But I think it has something to do with a combination of life experience, a combination of just trusting myself and knowing what’s right and finding the right words to convey that to somebody that that honestly come with a lot of love and a lot of care. Like I really believe in empathy and vulnerability in life and in the professional setting. And I think if we’re just really focused on the greater good and this idea of an abundance mindset. When something feels hard, I think we should be able to talk through it. And I did have a boss at a previous job tell me one time that it’s almost like climbing a mountain or having a baby. She said, like, it’s scary and the moment is going to come and it might cause you, this is what she said, it was so like visual. It might cause you to just kind of feel like you have to throw up. But the minute you start talking, everything is okay. The minute you start climbing, everything is okay. The minute labor starts and you’re having that baby, everything is okay. So it funny analogies I know, but it really like struck me as yeah, it might feel hard in the moment, but the minute you get going, it’ll work itself out. I think too what happens, I know for me, if I’m pushing myself and I haven’t done something before or it seems uncomfortable to do, I probably should do it because I’m going to learn from that. And it’s hard to overcome that resistance to doing that, making that leap from wherever you are, which is a status quo to something that’s going to be probably a hugely important learning lesson for you in life, right? Yeah. Yeah. And I think it’s okay to practice a little and think a little bit about what that hard conversation is going to be and how you might handle it. So you’re just a little more prepared. And then I think you don’t want to overthink it. It’s time to just take action. that’s another really good topic too, which is following that gut instinct about what to do. And I think sometimes we take that away from, or we quit doing it because we feel as if we should follow a process or do things a certain way or somebody has taught us a certain way. But in the end, I think that gut instinct, don’t you, is really critical. Trust your gut. It is really critical and I agree with you that most of us don’t give ourselves enough credit for trusting our gut instinct. And after years of coaching and working with lots and lots of clients, they are smart and they have good instincts and I see it in them. And I see it as they’re working through a problem and talking it out. And in most cases, I’m just raising my hand saying, you actually know what to do here. You just need to trust your gut and… and be unafraid to say what you need to say. So I think we all need to listen to ourselves a little more. that’s well said. Well, and because you’re teaching how to sell without really being salesy, I think it’s so interesting that we as individuals tend to maybe have a poor feeling about people that are in sales, which is unfortunate because we all sell every day. We sell our ideas, we sell what we want, if we’re trying to talk our spouse into doing something that maybe they didn’t think about or didn’t know they wanted to do. So we want to sell them on our ideas so that we’re getting them to do what we want them to do. So I don’t think it’s a bad word. So talk to me about sales. Why did you get so interested in that? Yeah, I kind of fell into what I guess is considered a more formal sales role, but you’re right that I’d been selling all my life...
Transcribe →Conversation with a Mid-Century Modernist (Christopher Kennedy)
Nov 19, 202400:26:08Tap to summarizeSometimes a designer latches onto a particular period or style and builds their career around it. It may appeal to their sense of aesthetics or taste. Or it may speak them in more profound ways. They look for clients who also respond to that style and adapt when possible to meet that client’s needs. In this episode, Gail talks with Christopher Kennedy, principal, Christopher Kennedy in Palm Springs, California. Christopher has a B.A. in architecture and an MBA in finance. He has been labeled an architectural designer but considers himself an interior designer, not an architect. He designs interiors, not buildings. He is the author of California Modern and Making Mid-Century Modern. Christopher related his journey of how he eventually found his way to becoming an interior designer. He said that from a young age he was interested in creating positive environments for people. Although he is perhaps best known for his revival of mid-century modern design, he stressed that above all he thinks about how his clients will be impacted by the spaces he designs. As designers, he said, “we’re not like selling a chair or a pillow. We’re really creating the home where someone is going to live out their human drama.” Gail asked Christopher about his own books and what books he’s been reading lately. He mentioned a few titles and added that he basically reads three types of books, those on healing, spirituality and business. In addition to his interiors work, Christopher has also developed a furniture line and currently has a number of licensing agreements with various manufacturers. In the future, he said, he would like to try his hand at designing fabrics, lighting and perhaps some smaller accessories, such as mirrors. Christopher is a strong believer in giving back. Some years ago he created the Christopher Kennedy Compound showhouse in Palm Springs and helped to establish a Modernism week celebrating local design. Showhouses are not for everyone, he acknowledged, but there are many other ways designers can contribute to their communities. “We all have ways that we can give,” he said. To learn more about Christopher and his work, listen to the entire podcast. If you’re listening on your favorite podcast platform, view the full shownotes here: https://thepearlcollective.com/s12e1-shownotes Mentioned in This Podcast To learn more about Christopher and to read his blog, go the firm’s website at www.christopherkennedy.com. Christopher’s book, Making Mid-Century Modern, is available from online booksellers. His other book, California Modern, is currently out of print but available from used booksellers. Gail asked what Christoper was currently reading, He said, Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They Expect by Will Guidara You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life by Jen Sincero Forever Strong: A New, Science-Based Strategy for Aging Well by Gabrielle Lyon He also said he was reading various writings by Abraham Hicks, who writes about manifesting and related topics. Gail mentioned the book, Areté: Activate Your Heroic Potential by Brian Johnson. She called it inspiring. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ac-6UZBkbQo&pp=ygUYcGVhcmwgY29sbGVjdGl2ZSBwb2RjYXN0 Episode Transcript Note: Transcript is created automatically and may contain errors. Click to show transcript So Christopher, welcome. So glad to have you on the podcast. Thank you, Gail. I’ve been a fan of yours for a long time, as you know, and I’m thrilled to be here. it’s just a delight for us. I want to start off and talk a little bit. We’re going to dive into your background and all of that, but I want to go to your About page on your website. love that About page. So please share that with us. sure. You mean the one that talks about like I believe in humanity? Is that the copy? Yeah, that’s the one. I happen to have it here. okay, what it says, I’ll just read it for you guys. I believe in humanity. I believe in beauty. I believe in crafting spaces that enhance the lives of my clients. I believe that our physical environments have power. Creating rooms that inspire people, that elevate them, that help them live in the moment, to have meaningful conversations with their loved ones, to get a good night’s sleep. That is what inspires me. impacting people’s lives for the better. I think that’s such a beautiful statement. And I’d love to know how much wine did you drink when you were writing that? know me. Too much wine or too much coffee, I’m not sure. For me, it’s 2. It’s 9 AM now, so it’s just the coffee kicking in. But yeah, I don’t know. I think I wrote that for my first book. I don’t remember. But I was of the Hemingway School. know, write drunk, edit sober. I wouldn’t say that. Maybe a glass. But I still think it holds up. that’s so good. Well, I think it’s a beautiful statement. And it was very inspiring to me. And I like the best part about getting a good night’s sleep. I think that was humorous, too. well, we do. I mean, we don’t, you know, we’re not like selling a chair or a pillow. You know, we’re really creating the home where someone’s going to live out their human drama. You know, they’re going to. you know, fight with their dog and love their kids, probably love their dog and fight with their kids. You know, we’re really setting the stage for where they live their human lives and their human existence. And that’s a really big deal. It really is. And it’s a beautiful thing to be able to inspire people and create that space for that. Yeah. So let’s talk about your mother because she was a big influence on you and how she influenced your direction toward interior design. thank you. My mom, Marilyn had polio she was born just before the vaccine in 1944 and she was ever supposed to be able to walk but her mother Sela was a nurse and did physical therapy at home on the farm in North Dakota before it was a true discipline and my mom was able to walk she could never run and she wasn’t really supposed to be able to have kids but she had me so we were very close obviously and I’m an only child and I think she could tell that I was creative really early on and she fostered that and you know. gave me all the art supplies that I wanted and all the books that I could devour. So she definitely inspired me and fostered my creativity. my gosh. And of course you’ve had an interesting journey along the way and you lost your parents at a very early age in their twenties. And how much did that impact the direction of your life and besides leading you to Palm Springs? Yeah, I was in my twenties, my parents passed away and my dad had me when he was 56. He was about twice my mom’s age. He was in his 50s, she was in her 20s. It was San Francisco in the 70s. You can probably get the whole picture. So he was 82 when he passed away when I was 27 and my mom died a couple of years later. And yeah, you kind of do realize you’re an orphan, you know, and I think like you’re looking for the adults in the room, right? And I think, you know, I’m 48 now, I’m still sometimes looking for the adults in the room. It’s you and you got to boss up and put your big boy or big girl pants on. and do all the things. I mean, just caring for her as she was dying definitely was a big responsibility and a big privilege. Yeah, I think the thing about it, you’ve lost your parents, right? It’s like you like, like when something good happens, like what do want to do? Like you want to call your mom or something bad happens. You want to call your mom. And it took a good year to like break that habit of picking up the phone. So now we just try to talk to her when I think about it. That’s so cool. I love that. Well, and our mothers do have a big influence on us. I know that That was in my background and she, my mother was very artistic and had all those skills. And that was part of what led me into design. I think we all have some, something that leads us that direction. So even behind me is a piece of art that she did. She’s right there looking over your shoulder. I she is. I think of her every day. Well, let’s talk a little bit about your background. Now you have a BA in architecture and an MBA. And you say you’re an interior designer and not an architect, which I find interesting. And you are so much more than that, which we’re going to talk about today. But how important was education to your success and which part was the most impactful, the MBA or the architecture? all the questions, Gail. I mean, I don’t call myself an architect because I’m not a licensed architect. have a bit of a hate-hate relationship with architects that we can talk about later, but or over a glass of wine sometimes. OK. I mean, I wanted to be an architect since I was like seven. It’s really all...
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