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Think & Grow Rich

Napoleon Hill

“All achievement, all earned riches have their beginning in an idea”.

You will find stories of inspiration from leaders of the past. It drives home the idea that ‘thoughts are things’ all things begin in our imagination. As designers we imagine spaces for our clients, we bring the idea to reality, and we affect great changes in the real world both for our clients and ourselves. If you are struggling with imposter syndrome or the dread of facing the day then this is the book for you.

Remember the ‘time will never be just right. Start where you stand.’

The Speed of Trust

Stephen R Covey

‘Trust is the ultimate root and source of our influence.’

In this book we learn to shore up trust in all aspects of your life and business. When trust is lost – and we have all been there, our projects and our businesses pay the price. You will learn how to restore trust, that trust once lost can be re-built and faster than you may think possible.

In this book you will find practical actionable steps to gain trust in all aspects of your business, with employees, colleagues and clients. The 4 cores of credibility lay out the framework to establish and maintain trust. Learn to demonstrate integrity in your daily operations. True ‘openness takes courage and humility.’

Soar

Build Your Vision

TD Jakes

‘Flying for the first time is like creating your own business…requires overcoming inherent fear of leaving the safety of solid ground.’

If you are thinking about starting your business or are just getting off the ground this book is the perfect read for you. Here you will find references taken from the wright brothers experience in defying the conventional wisdom of the day – human flight. The author is a renowned orator, if you have not heard his speeches then you truly are missing out. TD Jakes leads the reader on a journey of discovery of courage to overcome your fears.

Launching your own business, especially for those of us who do not come from a family of entrepreneurs requires ‘a little bit of crazy and a whole lot of courage.’

For those of us who suffer from imposter syndrome and operate from a position of fear – this is the read for you. This book references Christian faith and values, but for those who do not share in this faith there are valuable lessons and insights that you can adapt to your own spiritual guides. Here you will learn to believe in yourself, to see setbacks as mere lessons on your business journey.

Learn to go to bed with a ‘mind full of peace’. You will learn to fill your mind with ‘creative and healthy thoughts’. Learn to trust in your power and develop that power to achieve your business goals.

‘Be kind to yourself’

The Toyota Way:  

14 Management Principles

Jeffery K Liker

The cornerstone of the Toyota Way is ‘Challenge’.

Here you will expand on your lean journey of ‘Kaizen’ with these 14 principles for team management. You will learn to make management decisions that are focused on your long term goals – even when that can mean short term finances may suffer. Learn to identify opportunities early and to make decisions in line with your vision. Address problems at every opportunity.

Find an introduction to pull planning – learn to pull to your long term goals and eliminate waste on the way. Learn tools to help level out your workload, expand and contract - breathe with your project load. The art of achieving long term success through leadership development. Manage trade partner relationships and curate them to enhance your companies goals. So many amazing tools and insights to help you build and grow your business into a successful enterprise.

The Toyota Way To Lean Leadership

Jeffery K Liker

Gary L Convis

‘Innovation is not just about creating something new; it is about making something better.’

This guide references the author’s journey to study and understand the manufacturing differences that Toyota uses to drive their success. Why am I recommending a book about the business of manufacturing? It’s simple really – this book will open your mind to a new way of thinking. This is an introduction to Lean thinking in leadership and business management. If you are not aware of the Lean movement in design and construction, then this is your best first step in that direction.

 I found this book to be a great study guide for Lean thinking. This book is filled with new and simple techniques to apply to any industry. You will switch from a traditional method of operation to ‘Kaizen’ – a Japanese term for continuous improvement.

You will find that you can create big changes with simple techniques. You will learn to eliminate waste, improve productivity, and find continued sustainable improvement throughout your business.

Gift-ology

John Ruhlin

Learn the ‘Art & Science of Using Gifts to Cut Through the Noise, Increase Referrals, and Strengthen Client Retention.’ This book is a quick read and outlines ways to utilize the law of reciprocity to your gain. You will find tools to help you unlock customer loyalty through acts of generosity.

This book explores the premise that if you make your clients feel like family, if you take the time to notice their likes and preferences and go the extra mile with a genuine act of generosity you will continue to reap the rewards throughout your career. Learn to step outside of the traditional gifting of your top clients for major holidays and learn to treat them in singular fashion.

You will begin to think about the art of gifting in a whole new way and lead your business to new horizons. Don’t spend hundreds on blind marketing when you can curate your gift giving muscles to become your new marketing normal. ‘Remember – its not the thought that counts it’s the thoughtful thought that counts.’ The power of personalization will push your gifting to another level.

This workbook caters to the creative professional to feel ‘empowered as a business person and as a creative’. This is a great book for those just starting out on their own or building a plan to start their own business. You will find fun templates and exercises to help you visualize where you want to take your new venture, set goals, and find inspiration along the way.

The exercises you find here are laid out to build on your vision, create your brand, set up a marketing strategy and much more. A brief overview of the ‘scary’ business-minded tasks you will need to consider helps you focus on how to tackle these challenges. This book leads you from first dreaming, building, and doing the work you anticipate providing. Each chapter provides a review page for you to reflect on lessons learned and thoughts moving forward. A great resource for the new start up design firm.

‘You don’t have to get it perfect you just have to get going’ Marie Forleo.

‘People judge you by the words you use’. As interior designers we present our work to a myriad of clients, colleagues, and trade partners to get their buy in on our vision for their project. A few well placed ‘smart words’ will go a long way to winning your cause.  There is nothing more devastating for a design professional than to not be able to articulate or defend your design.

Become more efficacious in your speech and you will reap immediate benefits. I use phrases that can speak to my design decisions and remind the clients that these small details all lead to one amazing, finished project. By focusing on a few adjectives and repeating your point you can learn to pivot with your clients without compromising your designs.

“Never loose sight of the fact that all human felicity lies in man’s imagination..” – Marquis de Sade

‘The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten’. This book does focus mostly on residential design principles. However, I find that many of these principles are easily applied to the business of commercial design.

You will find timeless tricks and tools to speed up your design decisions to create harmony and balance in any interior environment. You will find actionable and practical design advice. This book is a valuable resource for the self-made interior designer. The seasoned professional will find this to be a good guide and quick resource manual.

A must have resource guide for any interior design firm. This book provides guides and templates for space planning based on anthropometric standards. You will find this to be a great reference for layout of commercial spaces. This book is packed with scenarios and layouts based on human metrics that span the breadth of the built environment. Here you can find layouts for a myriad of commercial spaces, restaurants, office spaces and much more.

‘What you actually need to know to succeed in the industry’. This book’s focus is on digital design, print and other aspects of design. The principles taught here will help you fine tune your portfolio, develop business skills, and help you package and sell your services to prospective clients and trade partners. This is a good quick read and so insightful for the designer in all of us.

Here you will find templates and space planning resources as well as surface material considerations, lighting standards and much more. Focusing on all aspects of interior design – a veritable design manual- that covers you from fundamentals through to completion. You will find helpful planning tools for breaking down your design project timelines, budgeting, and layouts. It is all here and focuses on both residential and commercial design needs.

This book is a comprehensive guide to the commercial interior environment. You will find resources for planning and execution. Each chapter is dedicated to a different commercial space and provides practical considerations for each space. You will find insight and guidance for most spaces under the commercial umbrella. 

This book breaks down standard ADA details in a clean and concise way. This book is based on the 2010 ADA guidelines and will provide solutions for designers and architects in planning and designing accessible spaces. You will find help and tips here for most commercial spaces. A great quick resource for all your compliance and interpretation questions.

Be aware that new standards are rolling out – we will work to keep you up to date on these new standards.