33. Your Coaching Questions Answered: Ask Me Anything
Out of Overwhelm is my high-touch group program where clients can get support whenever they need it. From weekly coaching calls and learning from their peers to monthly co-working sessions, it's where they can access my expertise to tackle the challenges they're facing in their businesses. My favorite part though is the online community where they can use the Ask Desi feature.
What has this got to do with you? I’ve been brainstorming fun ways to connect with more of you, and I thought it would be a great opportunity to extend the use of Ask Desi to you, just like my clients in Out of Overwhelm. Whether you need guidance on navigating a difficult conversation, saying no to a client that's not the best fit, overcoming procrastination, or any other support you require, this is your chance to receive personalized help directly from me.
Tune in this week to discover what the Ask Desi feature of my online community offers, and how you can begin using it to submit your questions and get the support you need.
If you never want to miss an episode of the podcast, make sure to follow the show wherever you listen to your podcasts. If you haven’t already, I would appreciate it if you left me a rating and review. As a thank you, I’ll send you a midweek pick-me-up in the mail. Simply screenshot your review and send me a message on Instagram here!
What You’ll Discover from this Episode:
What the Ask Desi feature of my online community offers.
Why I’m offering Ask Desi for you to use, just like my Out of Overwhelm clients.
Some examples of questions I receive in Ask Desi.
How Ask Desi is a way for you to get my brain on your business.
Listen to the Full Episode:
Featured on the Show:
If you love what you’re learning on the show, I’d love for you to check out my signature group coaching program, Out of Overwhelm
Follow me on Instagram!
Sign up to my Monday Mindset email list to get bite-sized insights on topics that you can use to set your week up for success!
Submit your questions for Ask Desi here!
Full Episode Transcript:
Hey designer, you’re listening to episode 33. This is the one where I’m sharing how to get personalized support from me, just like one of my clients. And it’s totally free. You don’t want to miss this.
Welcome to The Interior Design Business CEO, the only show for designers who are ready to confidently run and grow their businesses without the stress and anxiety. If you're ready to develop a bigger vision for your interior design business, free up your time, and streamline your days for productivity and profit, you're in the right place. I'm Desi Creswell, an award-winning interior designer and certified life and business coach. I help interior designers just like you stop feeling overwhelmed so they can build profitable businesses they love to run. Are you ready to confidently lead your business, clients, and projects? Let's go.
Hello, designer. Welcome back to the podcast. It is the Tuesday after Memorial Day weekend that I'm recording this and we had an amazing, for the most part, long weekend at the cabin. The first two and a half-ish days, amazing. And then I got sick. I have no idea where I picked up this awful stomach bug. I think it might have been at the cafe that we went to in town.
But yeah, we had a great time aside from that. We planted flowers and we got a bunch of stuff done around just to kind of get the cabin ready for the season and did a lot of swimming in the lake with the kids. And as I was thinking about this weekend, I was thinking about how me swimming in the lake is such an example of the subtle ways that coaching impacts your entire life.
Now, swimming in the lake, maybe this does not feel like a big deal for you, I don't know. But for me, this was a huge, huge hurdle. Swimming in any open water really was a huge fear of mine. And it still, honestly, gets me a little bit nervous. But lakes were especially challenging with not being able to really see what's at the bottom.
And I will say that our lake is exceptionally clear, but there's still that sort of unknown. And occasionally there is that little bit of grass that comes and touches your skin and you're like, “Ah, what is that?” And then it's cold. The water is cold. And I don't like being cold. And yes, I live in Minnesota, that's why we like to travel so much. But I thought it was interesting as I was thinking about this because there were just so many reasons for me to sit it out, make excuses and not participate in certain types of water activities.
And maybe this was five years ago, it was before we had our own cabin. We were at a friend's lake place and we were on their boat. And everyone including my husband and the friends that invited us, our kids, they were just having the best time jumping in. And I started noticing this nudge that that was something that I really wanted to experience for myself. And I hadn't ever recognized that before.
And it was this playfulness and spur of the moment energy that I had just decided was not for me because of the belief that I don't like being in the water. And a lot of that had to do with my ears. So, growing up I had a lot of ear infections and had a lot of tubes. And as an adult I actually had my eardrums reconstructed. And so there's been some fears around getting water in my ear.
And so I just assumed that even though I could now technically be in the water, that being in the water would be just something that would be way too hard for me to overcome. And this would just be a part of who I am. I’m just not somebody who gets in the water.
And because of coaching I was able to recognize that this thought pattern was there, to question it, and also tap into the desire that I was noticing. And to start to think about how could this be for me? If this is something that I want to experience, this fun being in that shared connection and shared activity, what would I need to believe to create safety for myself? And what would I need to do to support myself in leaning into that desire?
And I took those questions that I was asking myself and started to lean into it. And I think it's just such a beautiful example of how learning to release the pressure and assumptions about who I am and what I'm capable of in my business has really touched every area of my life, right? Because I never got into coaching because I thought, oh, I want to become a lake person. I got into coaching because I felt totally stressed and spread way too thin in my design business.
But in doing that work, I have grown so much as a person. And this weekend jumping into that freezing cold water, feeling totally alive and excited to be dragging my daughter around on a floatie and enjoying the moment being with my husband and mom listening to music, having some snacks, and not thinking when can we get on with this? When can we do something else?
I mean, it was such a moment of reflection. And without the tools I've used in my business and the coaching tools that I've developed through my own practice, I would have been on the sidelines still missing out on all of those fun moments I could have been sharing with my family.
And I wanted to share that with you because this is what I hear from so many of my clients, that they come to work with me on their business, but everything changes. Their relationships, their confidence, their commitment to taking care of themselves. The work that they do in their business really benefits them personally.
And when they are thriving as a person, it impacts their business and it's this wonderful cycle. And I encourage you to consider how personal development is really business development, and how you can start creating time and space for that yourself.
On today's episode, what I want to share is a fun, free opportunity to get personalized private help from me. You can get my brain on your business, just like my clients. The way that I've set up Out Of Overwhelm, my group coaching program, is so that clients can really get support whenever they need it. It's an incredibly high-touch group program.
We've got weekly coaching calls where each designer can raise their hand for coaching. They can also learn from their peers watching others be coached. We've got monthly co-working sessions where they get direct feedback from me on what they're working on. And then my favorite part is the online community in terms of getting support. It is available 24/7. It's where the designers in our community can connect with each other, share resources and develop long lasting relationships.
And it's also where my clients can utilize the Ask Desi feature, and I want to give you access to the Ask Desi feature today. Now, the Ask Desi section is a special section of the community where clients can type in their questions or whatever challenge they're facing and get coaching, support and additional resources whenever they need it. Because sometimes let's face it, something comes up on a Thursday at 2pm and we've already had our weekly coaching call and you need help.
So I'm there every day in that community, answering questions and providing coaching. There's no limit to the amount of support you can receive. And there's never a reason to be stuck because you can always reach out. The program I use is available on the web, but also has an incredible app. And so it's kind of like having me in your back pocket or in one of those huge totes us designers are known to schlep around.
So you’re probably listening and thinking, “That sounds amazing, Desi, what does that have to do with me?” Well, here's what it has to do with you. I've really been having this desire to connect with more of you. I know there are a lot of current clients and past clients that listen to the podcast, but I also know there are a lot of you I've never connected with.
I've also been playing around a lot with fun lately and bringing it into more aspects of my day. One of the things I've been doing is, this is kind of a side note, but I've been committing to doing an activity a day that I've deemed an if I didn't have a business activity. Basically what I did was I brainstormed a bunch of ideas like, what would I be doing if I didn't have a business to run? What would I do for fun? And then started asking, why am I telling myself I can't do that now, even though I have a business?
And I've been challenging myself to pick one of these activities, some of them are bigger, some of them are really simple and small, and doing them daily. And guess what ? I can. I can have fun, I can also get a whole lot of stuff done in my business, provide a ton of value to my clients because of the tools that I use and teach my clients.
And I've been doing this over the last three months and it has been fun, right? I'll have to do another episode on that at some time. But I was brainstorming what would be a really fun way to connect with you all. And I thought I know, I'm going to give you all an opportunity to use Ask Desi just like my clients in Out Of Overwhelm.
Now, you won't be in this specific platform that I use for each of the cohorts of Out Of Overwhelm, but this is your opportunity to get my eyes on your business and your challenges and get personalized private support. It is totally free and here's how it's going to work.
All you have to do is go to the link in the show notes and fill out a super quick form. You can ask me a question, share a challenge that's been coming up, or anything else you want support with. If you have a specific example, that's always ideal so I can give you a more targeted answer. But don't get hung up on asking the perfectly worded question. Just tell me what's on your mind and I'll take it from there.
Once I receive your form, I'll record and email you a video with personalized coaching. This response will be specifically for you, just like my clients receive. There are so many types of questions that come up in Out Of Overwhelm it's kind of hard to narrow it down, but I thought it'd be helpful if I gave you some examples to get your brain thinking on what you want help with.
So some of the things I get asked in Out Of Overwhelm are, what do I do with an employee who isn't meeting expectations? Or how do I get that thing done that I keep putting off? How do I say no to a client who isn't a best fit? You could also consider these prompts if you're not sure what to ask. Maybe something's coming immediately to mind and go fill out that form now. But here are a few questions to get you started.
These are just great questions to ask yourself in your business in general to start to see where there are places for improvement and to start developing solutions. So here are the questions, what’s slowing me down during the day or is a source of friction? The second one is, when do I find myself frustrated with my business? And the last one is, I know I want this thing in my business to change, but why can't I make it happen?
Think about what comes up for you with those, and then go click the link in the show notes and submit your form. Once again, once I receive your form, I'll record a personalized video for you with mindset, actionable strategies, and whatever I think would be most supportive of you. You'll get to experience the power of coaching and having individualized support just like my Out Of Overwhelm clients.
And speaking of Out Of Overwhelm, there are still a few spots available in this intimate program and I'd love to have you join us. If you're interested in more information or want to schedule a consultation with me, you can note that in your form that you submit with your question, or head to the other link in the show notes, which is the Out Of Overwhelm program page where you can get all of the details.
I really want you to consider how taking a couple of minutes to go to that link, submitting your question and taking action on what I share with you could really change everything. I'm so looking forward to working with you in this way and I can't wait to start seeing your questions come in.
And one last thing, if you've been enjoying the podcast, please take a moment to write a review and give a rating. This podcast is something I love to do and it's also part of my mission to uplift the design industry to create businesses that really support the lifestyle you want to live and be financially compensated in a way that allows you to do just that.
When you leave a rating and review, that tells the trusty algorithm you're paying attention and others should too. It really helps so much and it only takes a couple of minutes. It'll make my day and you could be the reason another designer gets to pursue a life and business they love.
In the next episode I'm going to be diving into the idea of trading dollars for hours. So you can know if you're doing it, why you should stop, and how to make money from value, not time. It's going to be a good one. And until then I'm wishing you a beautiful week. I'll talk to you in the next episode.
I’m going to make the bold assumption that you enjoyed today’s topic. Let’s make sure you never miss an episode; follow the show now wherever you listen to your podcasts. If you haven’t already, I would really appreciate it if you’d make the time to leave me a rating and review. This is how I know what you’re loving so I can share more of it.
And it’s also how you can help others find The Interior Design Business CEO. As a thank you for leaving a rating and review, I want to send you a little midweek pick-me-up in the mail. Simply screenshot your review and send me a message on Instagram, @DesiCreswell. I’ll talk to you next week.
Thanks for joining me for this week’s episode of The Interior Design Business CEO. If you want more tips, tools and strategies visit www.desicreswell.com. And if you’re ready to take what you’ve learned on the podcast to the next level, I would love for you to check out my signature group coaching program, Out of Overwhelm.
Welcome to The Interior Design Business CEO, the only show for designers who are ready to confidently run and grow their businesses without the stress and anxiety. If you're ready to develop a bigger vision for your interior design business, free up your time, and streamline your days for productivity and profit, you're in the right place. I'm Desi Creswell, an award-winning interior designer and certified life and business coach. I help interior designers just like you stop feeling overwhelmed so they can build profitable businesses they love to run. Are you ready to confidently lead your business, clients, and projects? Let's go.
Hello, designer. Welcome back to the podcast. It is the Tuesday after Memorial Day weekend that I'm recording this and we had an amazing, for the most part, long weekend at the cabin. The first two and a half-ish days, amazing. And then I got sick. I have no idea where I picked up this awful stomach bug. I think it might have been at the cafe that we went to in town.
But yeah, we had a great time aside from that. We planted flowers and we got a bunch of stuff done around just to kind of get the cabin ready for the season and did a lot of swimming in the lake with the kids. And as I was thinking about this weekend, I was thinking about how me swimming in the lake is such an example of the subtle ways that coaching impacts your entire life.
Now, swimming in the lake, maybe this does not feel like a big deal for you, I don't know. But for me, this was a huge, huge hurdle. Swimming in any open water really was a huge fear of mine. And it still, honestly, gets me a little bit nervous. But lakes were especially challenging with not being able to really see what's at the bottom.
And I will say that our lake is exceptionally clear, but there's still that sort of unknown. And occasionally there is that little bit of grass that comes and touches your skin and you're like, “Ah, what is that?” And then it's cold. The water is cold. And I don't like being cold. And yes, I live in Minnesota, that's why we like to travel so much. But I thought it was interesting as I was thinking about this because there were just so many reasons for me to sit it out, make excuses and not participate in certain types of water activities.
And maybe this was five years ago, it was before we had our own cabin. We were at a friend's lake place and we were on their boat. And everyone including my husband and the friends that invited us, our kids, they were just having the best time jumping in. And I started noticing this nudge that that was something that I really wanted to experience for myself. And I hadn't ever recognized that before.
And it was this playfulness and spur of the moment energy that I had just decided was not for me because of the belief that I don't like being in the water. And a lot of that had to do with my ears. So, growing up I had a lot of ear infections and had a lot of tubes. And as an adult I actually had my eardrums reconstructed. And so there's been some fears around getting water in my ear.
And so I just assumed that even though I could now technically be in the water, that being in the water would be just something that would be way too hard for me to overcome. And this would just be a part of who I am. I’m just not somebody who gets in the water.
And because of coaching I was able to recognize that this thought pattern was there, to question it, and also tap into the desire that I was noticing. And to start to think about how could this be for me? If this is something that I want to experience, this fun being in that shared connection and shared activity, what would I need to believe to create safety for myself? And what would I need to do to support myself in leaning into that desire?
And I took those questions that I was asking myself and started to lean into it. And I think it's just such a beautiful example of how learning to release the pressure and assumptions about who I am and what I'm capable of in my business has really touched every area of my life, right? Because I never got into coaching because I thought, oh, I want to become a lake person. I got into coaching because I felt totally stressed and spread way too thin in my design business.
But in doing that work, I have grown so much as a person. And this weekend jumping into that freezing cold water, feeling totally alive and excited to be dragging my daughter around on a floatie and enjoying the moment being with my husband and mom listening to music, having some snacks, and not thinking when can we get on with this? When can we do something else?
I mean, it was such a moment of reflection. And without the tools I've used in my business and the coaching tools that I've developed through my own practice, I would have been on the sidelines still missing out on all of those fun moments I could have been sharing with my family.
And I wanted to share that with you because this is what I hear from so many of my clients, that they come to work with me on their business, but everything changes. Their relationships, their confidence, their commitment to taking care of themselves. The work that they do in their business really benefits them personally.
And when they are thriving as a person, it impacts their business and it's this wonderful cycle. And I encourage you to consider how personal development is really business development, and how you can start creating time and space for that yourself.
On today's episode, what I want to share is a fun, free opportunity to get personalized private help from me. You can get my brain on your business, just like my clients. The way that I've set up Out Of Overwhelm, my group coaching program, is so that clients can really get support whenever they need it. It's an incredibly high-touch group program.
We've got weekly coaching calls where each designer can raise their hand for coaching. They can also learn from their peers watching others be coached. We've got monthly co-working sessions where they get direct feedback from me on what they're working on. And then my favorite part is the online community in terms of getting support. It is available 24/7. It's where the designers in our community can connect with each other, share resources and develop long lasting relationships.
And it's also where my clients can utilize the Ask Desi feature, and I want to give you access to the Ask Desi feature today. Now, the Ask Desi section is a special section of the community where clients can type in their questions or whatever challenge they're facing and get coaching, support and additional resources whenever they need it. Because sometimes let's face it, something comes up on a Thursday at 2pm and we've already had our weekly coaching call and you need help.
So I'm there every day in that community, answering questions and providing coaching. There's no limit to the amount of support you can receive. And there's never a reason to be stuck because you can always reach out. The program I use is available on the web, but also has an incredible app. And so it's kind of like having me in your back pocket or in one of those huge totes us designers are known to schlep around.
So you’re probably listening and thinking, “That sounds amazing, Desi, what does that have to do with me?” Well, here's what it has to do with you. I've really been having this desire to connect with more of you. I know there are a lot of current clients and past clients that listen to the podcast, but I also know there are a lot of you I've never connected with.
I've also been playing around a lot with fun lately and bringing it into more aspects of my day. One of the things I've been doing is, this is kind of a side note, but I've been committing to doing an activity a day that I've deemed an if I didn't have a business activity. Basically what I did was I brainstormed a bunch of ideas like, what would I be doing if I didn't have a business to run? What would I do for fun? And then started asking, why am I telling myself I can't do that now, even though I have a business?
And I've been challenging myself to pick one of these activities, some of them are bigger, some of them are really simple and small, and doing them daily. And guess what ? I can. I can have fun, I can also get a whole lot of stuff done in my business, provide a ton of value to my clients because of the tools that I use and teach my clients.
And I've been doing this over the last three months and it has been fun, right? I'll have to do another episode on that at some time. But I was brainstorming what would be a really fun way to connect with you all. And I thought I know, I'm going to give you all an opportunity to use Ask Desi just like my clients in Out Of Overwhelm.
Now, you won't be in this specific platform that I use for each of the cohorts of Out Of Overwhelm, but this is your opportunity to get my eyes on your business and your challenges and get personalized private support. It is totally free and here's how it's going to work.
All you have to do is go to the link in the show notes and fill out a super quick form. You can ask me a question, share a challenge that's been coming up, or anything else you want support with. If you have a specific example, that's always ideal so I can give you a more targeted answer. But don't get hung up on asking the perfectly worded question. Just tell me what's on your mind and I'll take it from there.
Once I receive your form, I'll record and email you a video with personalized coaching. This response will be specifically for you, just like my clients receive. There are so many types of questions that come up in Out Of Overwhelm it's kind of hard to narrow it down, but I thought it'd be helpful if I gave you some examples to get your brain thinking on what you want help with.
So some of the things I get asked in Out Of Overwhelm are, what do I do with an employee who isn't meeting expectations? Or how do I get that thing done that I keep putting off? How do I say no to a client who isn't a best fit? You could also consider these prompts if you're not sure what to ask. Maybe something's coming immediately to mind and go fill out that form now. But here are a few questions to get you started.
These are just great questions to ask yourself in your business in general to start to see where there are places for improvement and to start developing solutions. So here are the questions, what’s slowing me down during the day or is a source of friction? The second one is, when do I find myself frustrated with my business? And the last one is, I know I want this thing in my business to change, but why can't I make it happen?
Think about what comes up for you with those, and then go click the link in the show notes and submit your form. Once again, once I receive your form, I'll record a personalized video for you with mindset, actionable strategies, and whatever I think would be most supportive of you. You'll get to experience the power of coaching and having individualized support just like my Out Of Overwhelm clients.
And speaking of Out Of Overwhelm, there are still a few spots available in this intimate program and I'd love to have you join us. If you're interested in more information or want to schedule a consultation with me, you can note that in your form that you submit with your question, or head to the other link in the show notes, which is the Out Of Overwhelm program page where you can get all of the details.
I really want you to consider how taking a couple of minutes to go to that link, submitting your question and taking action on what I share with you could really change everything. I'm so looking forward to working with you in this way and I can't wait to start seeing your questions come in.
And one last thing, if you've been enjoying the podcast, please take a moment to write a review and give a rating. This podcast is something I love to do and it's also part of my mission to uplift the design industry to create businesses that really support the lifestyle you want to live and be financially compensated in a way that allows you to do just that.
When you leave a rating and review, that tells the trusty algorithm you're paying attention and others should too. It really helps so much and it only takes a couple of minutes. It'll make my day and you could be the reason another designer gets to pursue a life and business they love.
In the next episode I'm going to be diving into the idea of trading dollars for hours. So you can know if you're doing it, why you should stop, and how to make money from value, not time. It's going to be a good one. And until then I'm wishing you a beautiful week. I'll talk to you in the next episode.
I’m going to make the bold assumption that you enjoyed today’s topic. Let’s make sure you never miss an episode; follow the show now wherever you listen to your podcasts. If you haven’t already, I would really appreciate it if you’d make the time to leave me a rating and review. This is how I know what you’re loving so I can share more of it.
And it’s also how you can help others find The Interior Design Business CEO. As a thank you for leaving a rating and review, I want to send you a little midweek pick-me-up in the mail. Simply screenshot your review and send me a message on Instagram, @DesiCreswell. I’ll talk to you next week.
Thanks for joining me for this week’s episode of The Interior Design Business CEO. If you want more tips, tools and strategies visit www.desicreswell.com. And if you’re ready to take what you’ve learned on the podcast to the next level, I would love for you to check out my signature group coaching program, Out of Overwhelm.
Enjoy the Show?
Don’t miss an episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Google Podcasts.