Obstacles are part of life. If you haven’t encountered a roadblock or two in your life, I’d encourage you to stop reading this post and check your pulse, because facing challenges is something we all have in common. In our professional lives and our personal lives, we have all had to develop strategies to overcome mountains in our path. These obstacles shape us and push us to become better than we were before.
In our previous articles From Concept to Construction: Part 1 Unique Renovations and Part 2: Renovation Evaluation, we discussed the process of starting hotel renovation effectively and then walking through the finished spaces to evaluate the work on behalf of the client’s success. There’s one final step that JAI takes that many other design firms may not consider. At the end of each project, we have an invaluable opportunity to look at our experience and perform our own personal renovation.
Every interior designer at JAI would tell you, we face the most unusual challenges in our profession. The hospitality industry is full of surprises and unexpected hurdles. As a team, we have learned to thrive on the unexpected and embrace the difficult moments. It’s the only way that we will distinguish ourselves and the entire JAI team as industry leaders.
As crucial as it is to perform our final walkthrough and take evaluation notes on a project, it is just as vital to complete a personal assessment of our own work. Such a review would include questions like:
Did I ultimately anticipate, execute, deliver and properly analyze the client’s goals?
What could I have done differently to uncover and/or prevent any unforeseen issues on this project?
Am I happy with the execution of finished goods from my vendors? If so, what steps can I repeat to assure the same results in the future? If not, how could I improve communication and results?
How well did my color selections and fabrics communicate the mood of each space? If I could go back and change something, what would it be and why?
What are my overall thoughts on the art selections I made?
Were there sparse areas that I could have designed better?
Should I have used more or different accessories? If so, how could I improve my choices in the future?
What are the greatest successes of this project?
What are the biggest misses for this project? How could I improve these things moving forward?
Today, the design industry is changing quickly. The JAI team strives to keep our talent-level high, our workplace diverse, and our business practices fresh. Through personal assessment, we demonstrate a commitment to growing strong design leaders and separating ourselves from our competition. After reviewing the strengths and weaknesses we brought to each project, we are better positioned to craft an improvement plan that will help move our clients toward even greater success.
“Rather than shrinking away from your problems, grow bigger than them.” –Zig Ziglar
