What if you could turn your passion into a thriving career? This week, I sit down with Jamie Gasparovic, the visionary founder and principal designer of Studio Gaspo, to uncover the secrets behind her meteoric rise from a marketing professional to a celebrated interior designer. Jamie takes us through her journey of launching her own firm at just 27, without traditional mentorship, and how sheer determination and self-reliance fueled her success. Jamie generously shares hard-earned wisdom on val...
Jun 18, 2024•51 min•Season 1Ep. 49
Ever wondered how a background in IT could transform the world of interior design? This episode of The Designer Within Podcast with John McClain promises an engaging exploration of career transitions with our inspiring guest, Sarah Wilson, the owner and principal designer of Chansaerae Designs. Sarah’s incredible journey from the structured environment of IT to the creative realm of interior design is a must-hear. She openly shares her experiences of returning to design school as an adult, lever...
Jun 10, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Season 1Ep. 48
Can you imagine transforming every client consultation into a surefire sales opportunity? That's exactly what you'll learn in this episode of the Designer Within Podcast with me, John McClain. We explore the essential strategies for mastering successful consultations in sales-driven businesses, especially for creative entrepreneurs. By embracing consultations as crucial sales calls, you’ll discover ten actionable steps that have driven my own business success. From setting clear legal expectatio...
May 31, 2024•25 min•Season 1Ep. 47
Imagine transforming your home into a sanctuary that not only soothes your soul but also stands as a testament to ethical living. Join me, John McClain, and pioneer Deborah Dimare as we navigate the intersection of interior design and moral responsibility, ensuring that every piece of furniture and fabric honors both your well-being and the planet's. Our lively discussion explores my journey to creating healthful living spaces, and Deborah's transition from traditional design to championing anim...
May 17, 2024•49 min•Season 1Ep. 46
If you have ever felt behind schedule before you even opened up your laptop or found yourself chasing the clock to get something done by a deadline. Well, you're not alone. We have ALL been there my friend, but guess what? There are solutions to your productivity problems and Amber De La Garza is the productivity expert and she's HERE on the podcast today! She has created a very detailed list of ways that we (as creatives) can be more productive in our days. ( Trust me, I know it's hard )! Get y...
May 04, 2024•49 min•Season 1Ep. 45
I love having talented and successful friends on the podcast and Christopher Todd Hall is that and so much more! Christopher not only is a successful 30 year veteran of the design industry, but also has lots of exciting ventures within his company that allow him to spread his creative talents while increasing revenue. In this fun and very enlightening convo, you will learn: * How Christopher markets himself in his own very unique way * The trip across the country that led to the Academy Awards f...
Apr 25, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Season 1Ep. 44
Have you ever felt the wear and tear of burnout creeping into your life, inching its way into your creative soul? I know I have, and it's time to talk about the lifeline that boundaries are in our industry. Today's episode of the Designer Within brings in Lori Miller, an interior designer with a unique twist—her expertise in mental health counseling. We peel back the layers of how psychological principles can shape the spaces we live in, affecting our overall well-being. I get personal with my o...
Apr 16, 2024•53 min•Season 1Ep. 43
As I head to High Point Market Spring 2024, I thought I would play some of a seminar that I taught LIVE at the fabulous Universal Furniture Learning Center about a year and a half ago. The information STILL stands trust me. It's all about Essential Systems and Processes, what those are and how to set them up. It's actually a portion of a course that I teach within my Design Success Academy! So you're getting a bit of a course for free! We all need processes defined, but do we really take the tim...
Apr 07, 2024•59 min•Season 1Ep. 42
Let's talk about finding specific ways to find success with our trades and vendors! Welcome to the episode my lead designer, Heather Rau. In this episode, Heather and I discuss the backbone of a design project that involves any sort of labor and materials: your trades and vendors. The delicate dance of finding both trades/vendors that align with your values, meet your company and client needs, and also represent you and your brand can sometimes be difficult. This episode has detailed, actionable...
Apr 01, 2024•37 min•Season 1Ep. 41
Welcome Nicole Roe of R. Nickson Interiors to this episode of The Designer Within podcast! Nicole is the founder of R. Nickson Interiors and has over 10 years of experience in the design field. With a degree in construction, Nicole has interned with a luxury developer building and spent time working for a team of construction companies heading up their business development & marketing. To say that Nicole recognizes the full scope of a design project would be an understatement. With hands-on ...
Mar 25, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Season 1Ep. 40
They say "you don't know what you don't know," but I'm here to flip the script and remind you that you "DO know what you DO know!" And that's a lot! It's time we take pride in our past and value our skills and accomplishments. Bettering ourselves is great, but also let's remember to take stock of what we already bring to the table! In this uplifting episode you'll learn: *What is your "sliding scale of skills" * How to take count of the past successes that are a part of you now * How to notice s...
Mar 16, 2024•25 min•Season 1Ep. 39
Welcome to an interview episode of The Designer Within with Valerie Darden. Valerie founded Brexton Cole Interiors in 2014. As the founder, Valerie named her company after her two sons Brexton and Cole. Brexton Cole Interiors have completed multiple residential and commercial design projects all over the US. Ya'll know me and I love to find out the nitty gritty of the BTS of business operations and the thought process of design, and Valerie delivers! In this very insightful and informative episo...
Mar 09, 2024•56 min•Season 1Ep. 38
Tech has become a huge part of my business success. It's actually like it's another employee in my firm! From scheduling appointments to signing agreements, technology has fully been embraced in John McClain Design, and for the better! If you have not gotten on the tech bandwagon for fear of it being too complicated, well fear no more! I'm going to share my top 7 pieces of technology that I can't work without AND that are easy to install and use. Here are the tech I will discuss today: ⚙️ Showit...
Mar 02, 2024•30 min•Season 1Ep. 37
On this episode, well over half a year after launching this podcast, I decided to pull out my very first episode to help explain my "why." If you have not listened to this episode, it's a must listen. If you have listened to it, well, maybe it's time for a cautionary tale refresher! Either way, here's the WHY for this episode: 🤔 Why did I start this podcast? 🤔 Why did I start a learning program for designers? 🤔 Why did I decide to overhaul my entire design business? 🤔 Why do I operate my des...
Feb 24, 2024•45 min•Season 1Ep. 36
After Market... Marketing. What in the world am I talking about? Well it's actually simple! After Market Marketing is a technique I use to create more awareness around a piece of press or any marketing exposure you have received for yourself or your business. In this episode, I will discuss WHY you need to initiate a plan for After Market Marketing and 3 easy techniques you can implement right now for marketing your marketing. I will discuss using : 1) Social Media 2) Blog Posts & Newsletter...
Feb 17, 2024•27 min•Season 1Ep. 35
Let's go deeper. Let's go beyond the fabrics, the wallcovering, and even the paycheck. On this episode of The Designer Within Podcast, Joshua Smith and I have a heartfelt conversation around so many of the events that occur in our lives: business and personal. Joshua has such an open spirit and heart and he's sharing his thoughts on how he handled the ups and downs that many of us also endure. In this episode, Joshua and I discuss: * His personal journey into interior design and how his non-trad...
Feb 09, 2024•1 hr 8 min•Season 1Ep. 34
I'm so delighted to bring on fellow designer and friend, Amala Raj Swenson to the podcast today. Amala is the Principal Designer & Founder of Amala Raj Interiors based in San Diego, California. We cover so much in this fun and information filled episode! Here's just some of the topics we will cover: ⭐ The unique way Amala blends her business and personal life ⭐ How Amala's "secret sauce" leads to more and better clients ⭐ The simple yet effective organizational software Amala uses to keep he...
Feb 03, 2024•48 min•Season 1Ep. 33
They say when you become an entrepreneur, you trade your 8 hour day for an 18 hour day, which, is kind of true in some ways. BUT.... what about all of the time that you allow to become a part of your workday? You know? Those unpaid jobs that you keep doing out of obligation to clients and friends and family.. Well I would like to hit this problem head on today and figure out exactly how to eliminate some of those unpaid jobs that you have! In this unfiltered episode, I will discuss: 🛑 How to re...
Jan 27, 2024•37 min•Season 1Ep. 32
In this episode, I welcome Susan Hayward and Jillian Hayward Schaible. They are are the mother and daughter design team behind the successful firm, Susan Hayward Interiors in Milton Massachusetts. In this episode, Susan and Jillian share their interesting insights on how their internal relationship has worked to build a very successful design firm with lots of repeat and long term clients. We also discuss: * How working together actually WORKS for them * How interior design is not the first care...
Jan 20, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 31
Hi Friends! Can I celebrate episode 30 with you for a moment?! That's 30 weeks of podcasts in your earbuds from me, & I'm so thankful that you take this journey of learning with me every week. Today's episode is another BTS episode! I'm sharing an actual PRIVATE member podcast episode that I created for my program, Design Success Academy . Here's what you will learn in this note-taking, head nodding episode: Key Points: How to deal with the reluctance to discount yourself and the need to rec...
Jan 12, 2024•29 min•Season 1Ep. 30
And I mean that! :) In this short but powerful episode, I am sharing with you some insights that I shared during a coaching session recently with a student of mine. The student was having issues with clients trying to dictate the investment amount of projects and even my student's design fees! As you can tell, this doesn't bode well with me, but the blame is on us as business owners to educate our future clients on how operate our companies, particularly how we price our products and services. I...
Jan 05, 2024•19 min•Season 1Ep. 29
Ok friends, I'm being even more open and vulnerable today than ever. I'm sharing with you my own year end review and the results of that. I took a deep dive into my own 2023 and found out the good, the bad, and the ugly of this past year. I found areas that went well....and then some that did not go so well. But the beauty of a good year end review is that you learn from the past and make a new path for the upcoming year and that's what I'm doing for you today. Now, trust me, there were LOTS of ...
Dec 29, 2023•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 28
At this time of the year, it's important to reflect on the past year, but also to reflect on ourselves, as human beings on this planet. With that thought in mind, I'm pulling out an episode from the archives about that very subject. As entrepreneurs or anyone working in a client facing business, we often find ourselves balancing our personal and business lives, and authenticity is the key to success in both areas. Authenticity is about being true to yourself and your values, expressing your genu...
Dec 22, 2023•37 min•Season 1Ep. 27
I'm back with another "Take a Walk With John" episode! You all seemed to like the last one, and I felt inspired on a recent walk through my neighborhood, so out came my phone and I hit record. In this walking episode, I'm talking about when and how to say no. It's a hard thing to do sometimes, and we, as people pleasers, tend to feel we have to overexplain the reasoning behind it. And when saying YES to everything, you are forgetting the things that really matter to you, i.e. your own values and...
Dec 15, 2023•32 min•Season 1Ep. 26
You're in for a real treat in this episode! My talented friend Beth Kushnick is here and we are diving deep into her 30+ year career as a set decorator. Beth has honed her design chops starting with the original production of Little Shop Of Horrors on Broadway to TV shows and movies that I know that you have all seen today. In this fun, enlightening episode we will discuss: The immediate parallels between set decorating and designing for residential clients. Beth's process for set decorating Why...
Dec 07, 2023•51 min•Season 1Ep. 25
Welcome to Episode 24 of The Designer Within Podcast! Can you believe it's already December? Time flies! Today's episode is a bit different—it's a broadcast of a segment from a recent online presentation I did for designers. The topic? How to "social media-proof" your company. In the original hour-long presentation, I covered various aspects, but I've condensed it to about 25 minutes for you. I'll discuss why social media shouldn't be your sole marketing platform, the good and bad sides of socia...
Dec 02, 2023•30 min•Season 1Ep. 24
I can guarantee you one of two things: either this year has flown by for you or dragged by at a glacial pace (bonus points if you know that reference). Either way, it's time to stop, pause, reflect, and look back on what actually occurred over the last 12 months. Good, bad, and indifferent. This is a practice I started years ago and continue to this day, and I encourage you to do the same so you can grow as a person and a business owner. In this short and sweet episode, I'm going to share 3 simp...
Nov 24, 2023•17 min•Season 1Ep. 23
Whether this has been a blockbuster year for you or just so-so, you still might have revenue goals for your business that you want/need to reach before 2023 bids us farewell. Well, I have some ideas for you! I'm going to share 4 ways to bring in revenue (and brand awareness) now and even in the years ahead. In this episode, I will discuss relatively quick methods of adding revenue streams to your design business right this minute centering around: * The Real Estate Market * Making Space for Past...
Nov 16, 2023•26 min•Season 1Ep. 22
You, my designer friend, are your best and most important client. Everything that makes your business what it is starts with you! Why, then, do we always put the issues of others ahead of our own needs? Why do we think that a client's feelings are more important than our own? If your foundation is not secure, you are of no use to anyone, especially those in your business. In essence, just like they say on the plane.... put your own mask on first, then take care of everyone else. I KNOW this is h...
Nov 10, 2023•34 min•Season 1Ep. 21
Did that episode title get your attention?! I hope so, because it should! I bet you are working hard to market your business and bring in new clients, but are you doing ALL that can you can? Well, we're going to find out today when we discuss Call To Actions or CTA's. CTA's might just be the superpower that you have been missing in your marketing efforts. They're easy, impactful, and even fun to do! Listen to this episode closely and you might even want to take some notes (or listen twice) becau...
Nov 02, 2023•35 min•Season 1Ep. 20
