The podcast enterprise is booming since 2020, after the unfortunate pandemic hit, that put the television and film industry in severe production and launch crises. But podcasts are great in many ways for such market circumstances. You can connect with your audience from the comfort of your couch and make your way around less-expensive recording equipment. It is a big window of opportunity, and every hit show has jumped into the launch of a companion podcast. But well executed and thoughtful podcasts are particularly tough to produce, and suitable podcasts which can be doing something revolutionary or precise are rare. So, we’ve compiled this list of our 10 best podcasts for 2022 which you must subscribe to and get access to unlimited resources of knowledge and great pieces of advice to excel as a podcaster of the Interior Design, Home Remodeling, and Architect niches. 

Let us know your favorite podcasts in the comments section below. For more information you can review our website under Resource Library section.  

​What you should look for in an ideal coach? Solopreneurs need someone to talk to for mentorship. It comes down to your relationship with the person you take as your business mentor. Coaching relationship transforms to mentoring relationship over time. Best coach is also a mentor.


Who Qualifies for an Ideal Coach? 

You as an interior design business owner needs to do some research whether you want a general coach or niche specific mentor. This decision needs careful investment of money and time. It is a long-term commitment to follow the road-map provided by your business coach. 


Finding an Ideal Business Coach

The best way to find the perfect match is by asking around, networking or attending events where mentors are present. You may also want to consider joining a professional association that has a mentoring program. Ask your network of friends, colleagues, family members, business associates, etc., if they know anyone who might be willing to serve as a mentor. If no one comes up, then start looking online at sites like LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, etc. There’s always somebody out there!
Organizations like SBA, NKBA, AIA or ASID have resources and connections with business coaches. Small Business Association (SBA) mentoring services vs business coaching is another aspect. Private coaching doesn’t have external funding. Their digital training levels may also vary. 


Interview Your Potential Coach

Where do I go from here? Where your coach fits in your business hierarchy? Accountability partner, helper etc. Once you have identified potential coach, it will be important to determine how much time each person would be able to devote to helping you grow your interior design business. It’s not uncommon for people to say “yes” when asked but later back off because their schedule doesn’t allow them to commit fulltime. So make sure you ask about availability before committing to any relationship. Know their personality type to find the best fit for your business. Know their communication style and norms.
If you decide to work with more than one coaches, try to keep things balanced so everyone gets equal attention. Also, don’t expect too much from your first few relationships; just get started and see what happens. As long as you stay focused on growing your business, everything else will fall into place.


Benefits of Having a Business Finance Coach

A Finance Coach can provide insight about income tax issues, financial planning strategies, estate plans, retirement savings options, insurance coverage, investment management, banking services, loan refinancing, education loans, home ownership assistance programs, debt consolidation, mortgages, credit cards, student loans, auto financing, small business administration, real estate transactions, and other topics related to finance. An experienced person can offer advice regarding these matters based upon his/her expertise and experience. For example, he/she may recommend additional courses of action such as investing in stocks versus bonds or buying life insurance vs health insurance. The bottom line: a good Business Finance Coach will save you money over time through better decision making. And yes, we all love saving money!


Right Time to Hire a Business Coach

Hiring a mentor is an opportunity to learn in a business coaching environment. You need them the most when you need your attention, you feel you are overwhelmed, you feel you are stuck and you need a jumping off point. A coach can be an accountability person to help you uplift and to refine your plan on a holistic approach.


For more information you can review CEU Webinar on our website under Resource Library section. If you have any questions or just want to speak with one of our professionals to learn more contact our office or schedule a strategy session to see how we can be of service. ​

Systems vs Processes
Systems in a design business may include interior design service, accounting system, marketing systems, SBUs and so on. Whereas, processes define road-map and definite steps you as a designer needs to take to help your clients reach next level in their project.

Importance of Systems & Processes
Why is this so important for a design business? How economically accurate are your systems and processes? Do they save you time? In order to answer all these questions, you need to start with a framework and hone in your style of work to develop your systems and processes. There is not enough historical data available to device systems and processes from scratch. You can look into other businesses to take motivation. Look around and see ways to improve your current systems and processes.

Are Your Systems & Processes As Good As Happy Meals?
McDonalds serve you same taste every time. It is reflected in the consistency of their systems and processes. Keep your systems and processes simple and repeatable. Having your systems and processes in place will make you more creative and your client happier. This can free up your mental space to focus on other things. Having systems and processes can help you bring in human resource that can replicate same results.

Should You Hire a Business Coach to Supervise Your Systems and Processes?
You as a designer might not be classically trained to manage those systems and business basics like licensure, office organization, trading group information etc. But good news is that you can be vulnerable and honest about your business with the coach you put your trust in. Coach can help you in deciding on good business practices by defining boundaries, ensuring accessibility and building confidence. Second opinion is important. A Coach can help you build your genius zone and business mindset.

What are top 3 basic systems to start with?
First and foremost condition is that you should be fully mindful of your design process. There are several processes that need your attention as priority including onboarding a client, writing a proposal, process of writing and signing contracts. You need to brain dump on a piece of paper and draw a framework. Project management templates like Persona can help you align your thoughts and task division strategy. Find your local ASID, AIA where your ideas are translated and discerned the way you want to convey. Secret takeaway is to jot down everything and create different binders for different processes in your biz.

What Business Transformations Can You Expect from Your Systems and Processes in Place?
Inviting freelancers, internees in your business can help you boost your progress. Persona templates help you assign tasks to your employees. You can trust people more when they are given right tools to do the project. You can have enough mental space to brainstorm and improve your biz processes like finding new income avenues. You can work more on your business. You can generate more business assets that are purchasable. If you want to sell your business, is it attractive enough? Systems and processes, well documented, increase worth and market of your business in buyers’ group.


For more information visit our website kitchenandbathmarketingsolutions.com

Finding and hiring the right talent can be instrumental to the success of a business. Especially in service-oriented sectors like interior design and remodeling, the human factor can actually make or break a company. With the onus of recruitment and selection laid on top management, the stress is inevitable. However, following certain rules and guidelines, you can improve your chances of hiring the right people for the right jobs.

Talking about the interior design and remodeling industry, great talent is hard to find. Companies that rely mostly on qualification alone may hamper their ability to tap into the real creativity of their people. So, finding and recruiting in this industry may be a little more complicated than the usual profit-oriented companies.  Overall, if you look at the statistics from the US, almost 142,894 people are employed in the interior design industry alone and this figure is expected to grow by more than 1% by 2026. On average the number of employees in the interior design business is increasing every year.

Post-2020, the demand for home improvements, renovations, and interior design uplifts is on the rise. As a consequence finding and hiring great talent for design and remodeling is becoming harder and harder. Whether you are looking for skilled labor, architects, designers, salespeople, construction workers, or engineers, you need to find people who can get the job done right and will stay loyal to your business.

Here is a look at some of the tips that you can follow for finding and hiring great talent for your design or remodeling business.

Be Proactive and Plan Effectively

Staying ahead of the game requires you to plan your employee shortages, labor requirements, project forecasts, and HR processes before the actual need arises. Like all other businesses, predict interior design and remodel peaks, and find and hire the right people before you get more work on your hands than you can handle and you have to rush the process to make faulty decisions.

Do Your Research

To find and hire great talent, you must be able to attract them to your company. For this purpose, you need to carefully research and analyze what employees in the interior design and remodeling industry want from an employer. While every individual might have his own personal preferences for a new job, there are some basic things that you need to assess and streamline in conjunction with the design and remodel industry.

• Base Pay Structure
• Professional Education
• Type of Project Work
• Office Environment
• Working Conditions
• Perks and Privileges
• Colleagues and Coworkers.

Find out the basic criteria that a great talented professional might be looking for in a job based on these categories.

Carefully Draft Job Descriptions

Every time you go out for headhunting, you are sure to get hundreds of resumes in your hands. As your job opening becomes public, there will be an outpour of applications and candidates. The best way to sift out the unqualified and irrelevant applicants is to post a detailed job description with your advert. Be clear, to the point, and include all the job requirements and expectations without any doubts. The more accurate your job description, the more your chances of hiring the right talent.

Conduct Thorough and Well Organized Interviews

Interviewing candidates may sound easy but it requires proper skills. Not everyone possesses the qualities and analytical knack needed to conduct an interview and extract productive and relevant information from it to make better decisions. If you do not have the right interviewing skills, your chances of hiring the wrong person for the job can be very high. So, before indulging in the hiring process, make sure to polish, refine and strengthen your interview capabilities and draft the interview in an organized manner before the actual process.

Lookout for Commitment To their Career

A person who has a history of frequent job switching and career shifts, might not be suitable for your company. You need to look at his or her experience and assess the level of passion and commitment towards the interior design and remodeling profession. Getting a higher salary does not mean you lose loyalty to your company. Hire a person by analyzing her/his previous job duration and reason for leaving the previous organization.

Always Hire Interns

Many people disagree with this concept, but it is probably one of the most effective ways to hire great new talent. With on job assessment, evaluation and training, you can rightly analyze their strengths, weaknesses, and all types of personal skills. It is a perfect way of sifting out the best from a lot.

Final Thoughts - Don’t Forget to Constantly Improve Your Hiring Process

Whether you are a big organization or a small startup business, attracting, finding, and hiring the right candidates for a job is the basis of your operational success. But there is no such “one size fits all” solution to your hiring problems. Every time you plan to fill a job opening, you need to work on the process beforehand. Customize your advert, job description, modes of communication, interview questions, and other minutest details to make it fit for meeting the requirements perfectly. 

For more information visit our Resource Library section. If you have any questions or just want to speak with one of our professionals to learn more contact our office or schedule a strategy session to see how we can be of service.