How To Fall In Love With Your Interior Design Business All Over Again

You started out with so much enthusiasm for your interior design business. You were passionate. You couldn’t wait to get up in the morning. I mean, you practically leapt out of bed. Let’s be honest — you were kind of obsessed.

And then like all good love stories, the honeymoon phase ended, and that passion fizzled. Worse, you found yourself overwhelmed and bogged down. This wasn’t what you signed up for. You started to wonder whether this business was for you after all. 

Look, I get it. It happens, even to us entrepreneurs. And I know that because I’ve been there myself. But it doesn’t have to mean the end of the line for your interior design business or that you need to start from scratch with some new venture.

By shifting your mindset, finding a good squad and staying in your zone of genius, you can learn to love again.

Delegate and automate

First up: Are you feeling overwhelmed because you’re literally trying to do all the things? Reality check: You don’t need to do it all!

Start looking at what you can take off your plate. What tasks are not in your zone of genius — those things that you love doing and come naturally to you. You started your business to design, and if you aren’t fully utilizing those gifts because you’re bogged down in paperwork and social media, then it’s time to outsource. 

You can find a pro at social media who can do it better and more quickly than you ever could. Administrative tasks? There’s someone for that too. If you’re still doing your accounting, please stop — like right now. Anything not design-related should be on the table for outsourcing.

Don’t forget your core team, either. These are the talented employees who will help run your interior design business day in and day out. Finding these magical people is often not as hard as it sounds. 

Outsourcing and delegating will leave you with time to reconnect to who you are as an interior designer, business owner and entrepreneur. You’ll have space to reexamine what really fuels your passion. 

If you’re trying to figure out where to start, think about your long-term goals and how you want to spend your days. Find someone else to handle work that falls outside those lines.

Stay in your lane

The next thing you need to really focus on is staying in your lane, aka your zone of genius. That lack of a spark in your work could be a result of you feeling like you can’t turn down any opportunity or you trying to be all things to all people.

Maybe you’re accepting clients who don’t fit your ideal profile, and they are just running you ragged. Perhaps you haven’t set up enough boundaries. Or you could have a stale interior design client contract weighing you down. Hopefully, you don’t have a trifecta of those, but if you do, even that can be addressed.

Take some time to figure those things out, along with what really feeds your soul. That might mean narrowing your interior design business focus and being more intentional about the services you offer. No wonder you’re feeling burnt out when you’re offering anything and everything to everybody. Whittle that down into what actually makes you money and what you actually enjoy doing.

Speaking of money ....

Know your value, and charge for it

It’s easy to fall out of love with your business if your business is not taking care of you and your financial needs. 

As entrepreneurs we sometimes feel a bit uncomfortable talking about money but guess what, this isn’t a charity, it’s a business. There is no conflict between wanting your business to serve others, make the world a better place and help you thrive financially.

If you’re working your tail off and only seeing pennies on the dollar then it makes sense why you wouldn’t love your interior design business anymore. Take it from me: Charge more for your design genius. 

Find a profit formula where the level of fulfillment for your hard work makes it all totally worth it. Take time to refocus and reposition yourself, reimagine or refresh your services and your brand. My review and planning guide will help you take a deep look at your interior design business from the bottom up.

Who knows? You might not just fall back in love: You could end up finding those key missing pieces that will take your passion to the next level

Need more business insights and advice? Join me in my Interior Designer's Business Launchpad — my free group on Facebook where I offer weekly coaching sessions to help your business thrive while creating beautiful spaces.