Lucky 13

Up on the blog today, we are celebrating a milestone.  Delia Designs has been serving Interior Design clients for 13 years!  It’s been 13 years since I sat down with my first ever client.  Since then, it’s become a little ritual for me each year to sit back and reflect on the lessons I have learned along the way.  Some big, some small, some very painful.  I hope that by sharing these with you, there will be a nugget or two in here for that will help you to move your business forward too.

Relationships

This anniversary isn’t just a celebration of my success. It’s a celebration of the trust-based relationships I’ve built with clients, dedicated consultants, and the communities I serve.  For new business owners, never stop building meaningful relationships with clients and other people in your industry. Choosing to instead form relationships with as many potential partners and collaborators as possible can positively impact your business in a big way.  Over the past 13 years, I've developed lasting relationships both with clients and consultants. Delia Designs has grown, even in the face of trying challenges like the pandemic, and I'm still as committed to my mission now as I was back in 2009.

Measure Twice. Cut Once.

I always remember advice I was given was in a clothing construction course by my instructor. It was an undergraduate course full of teenaged girls learning how to construct clothes. They were both frivolous and quick to make decisions on cutting into beautiful pieces of fabric. So, the instructor said to measure twice and cut once.  I say this to myself at least 10 times a week.

The reason this advice is so important is that often people are quick to make decisions or take actions, only to use twice the time later to fix mistakes that could have been avoided.  “Measure twice, cut once” ensures that that we do things properly and—prior to delivering, executing or starting—we ensure that all the checks and measures are taken to ensure our chances increase for a successful interior design implementation.

Do the most important thing at the start of the day.

Spend the first two hours of your work day doing the most important thing, so that if you did nothing else, you would be satisfied.  This is an idea that has been drilled into me over time by various mentors and business coaches. I–and many people I know–have a tendency to get caught up in “doing things” that we forget, or worse, neglect the things that should be done to help move our businesses forward.

Find the puzzle pieces.

Talk to as many experienced people as you can. Each person you talk to will have one small piece of the puzzle, but not the entire puzzle.  Your job, as an entrepreneur, is to find as many pieces of the puzzle as you can, from as many different, experienced people as possible, and then to construct your own version of that puzzle as best as you can.

Life is too short to learn everything through experience.

When you’re a business owner, your best lessons often come from two places: failure or wise words from owners who have been there. There are going to be inevitable ups and downs in every enterprise. Taking advice from executives who have already learned some lessons the hard way can help you avoid their mistakes and accelerate your success.

Here’s to Many More Years 

Hey Philadelphia, let's get social.  Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and connect on LinkedIn! Each day I will post follow up interior design thoughts from the latest blog post to give you more inspiration.  AND, please leave me a comment below and let me know what you thought of this post!

In addition to being a Philadelphia Multifamily Interior Designer,  I also design boutique hotels, fitness centers, office spaces, residential development projects, other commercial spaces such as office and retail spaces, and the senior living community throughout the tri state area.  We work here in Philadelphia, the main line, and even Nationally!