It's Not For Me To Say

I’ve been spending a great deal of time lately working on my new book.  I have a deadline of June 30th for the first manuscript and I am on schedule and almost ready to submit.  As I have been writing, this time about client management, I have once again learned a few things about how I operate my business and what just might be the optimum way for a lot of designers to operate theirs.  Now, as the title says, it’s not for me to say what might be best for you and your business but I certainly can give you a few ideas.  I’ve been in this industry for over thirty-five years and if nothing else have learned a thing or two.  Actually, I’ve learned a lot.  Most of it by trail and error.  Boy, did I make mistakes in the past.  Oh, yeh, have I told you about the mistakes I made just last year.  All of us make mistakes but its how we use the experience to our advantage that makes us successful business men and women.  There is no way we can go without mistakes now and then.  We’re human, or haven’t you heard.  Within these mistakes are the jewels of knowledge we will take away with us as we move on.  It’s also important to forgive yourself those mistakes and get on with your business and your life.  You will remember the lesson learned and incorporate it into the daily routine of your business.  That’s how experience works.  It becomes a part of your very being.  Whether your experience is good or bad ensure you view it for what it is.  Experience.  Nothing more.  It doesn’t’ mean you are better, wiser or saner than the rest of us.  You just have more experience.  I am also a believer in letting others benefit ones own experiences.  That is why I continue to teach business practice for the interior designer at Monterey Peninsula College and why I created a proposal and sold it to Allworth Press, Inc. for the new book, “Interior Design Clients The Designer’s Guide to Building and Keeping a Great Clientele”.  I know it’s a long title but how else could I tell you what it says inside?  Now that all of you are laughing out loud remember to keep your mistake experiences in perspective.  The experiences are just another learning tool, nothing more.  They are not the end of the world; they are just a part of living in the world.