Isn’t this a great question? How do we make money doing what we love in the area of interior design? We hear often to follow our passion. Or, if you do what you love you will never work a day in your life. While these can be true, there is a bit more that needs to be added to make the plan work. Here are my recommendations for having a profitable business born out of passion.

If I run into you on the street, I’d probably ask, “How are you doing?” You’d have an answer, right? But what if I stopped you in the street and asked, “How’s your business doing?” Is the answer as ready?

It’s time to figure out the state of your business and how it’s doing. Do you have a good profit margin?

When you talk about margin, you’re looking at a percentage that represents a relationship between two numbers. You may hear profit margin also called a profit margin ratio. Both of these terms are referring to a percentage and can be used interchangeably.

Bouncing back from a revenue dip is hard. The worst part is feeling like a failure. Too many entrepreneurs place their value in context of their success—a great month means you’re a success, and a bad month means you’re the worst. This is a very dangerous cycle that could ultimately sink you, heart and soul.

When a ship is off course, the Captain consults appropriate tools and maps to get the ship back on track. It’s called Course Correcting, and it’s the same concept that you can follow when you’re off-track with your business. For times when your interior design financial statements tell a scary story or you feel doubts about your decision to start an interior design business, don’t abandon ship!

By now, your cash is flowing and you’re reading your interior design financial statements to follow the ebb and flow of the cash beyond just mere bookkeeping. You know your sales cycle, you’re tracking money due and expenses pending, and you’re able to take the pulse of your business at any time.

You probably chose to start an interior design business without first assembling an accountant or bookkeeper, but there comes a time when you must create and maintain interior design financial statements. The alternative is a finance guessing game that sees you scrambling to avoid reaching bottom over and over again because you do not have a realistic picture of your money.

Anxiety is a normal part of business, and most of us manage our emotions pretty well, using those feelings to inspire or motivate. However, if you have a sinking feeling in your gut at the thought of one client or have difficulty facing a project because you must interact with this individual, that is not normal—you have a wrong client.

If you already feel like screaming at a client who just requested your services, then get out, now!! Not every client is right for you, and that’s A-Okay. So, once you’ve discovered one is the wrong client, it’s time to disengage. Save yourself and save your business; wrong clients can cost you time and money—and your reputation.

When you chose to start an interior design business, you embarked on a unique journey. As an entrepreneur, a well-run business will impact every facet of your life. Your interior design business plan is a key document to managing your business—and therefore, your life. So, you must ensure the plan works.

We’ve all heard the term, ‘business plan,’ but then no one seems to explain the nuts-‘n’-bolts, the guts of the plan. What goes into this thing?? This is where most of us feel overwhelmed, confused, and frustrated, and then we put the whole plan on the back burner while we continue to plod along. Don’t plod! Don’t waste your energy heading down wrong-turns or dead end. A well-run business will impact every facet of your life. So, make a plan.