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Focus on One Project

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This past weekend, I took my goddaughter, Lexi, shopping for her birthday. It didn't go well. Our first mistake was going to the mall. After three department stores and two specialty stores, we were still empty handed and exhausted. It was a simple case of visual overload and too many choices. I guess one of the reasons I love QVC is they make it so simple by editing the choices for me! Their buyers do all the hard work. I can enjoy the shopping experience instead.

As a designer, I can remember feeling overwhelmed by choices when I first began my career. How on earth do you find your way to the perfect sofa when there are thousands to choose from? Fabric — so many samples!?!

Eventually, after a lot of practice, it began to make sense. But first, I had to gain the knowledge of all the manufacturers' products, then narrow them down by price, comfort, etc. That gave me the ability to know what the best options were for each client based on style, needs, and budget, and narrowed the choices to a reasonable few.

It turns out that through that process, I managed to find the magic formula — focus. According to Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget, it's important to have a specific decorating project in mind in order to be creative. Vague ideas can turn your creativity into a malaise that paralyzes your creativity. So, instead of saying the entire house needs redecorating, focus on small, doable projects to build your confidence and sense of style.

In many ways, our brains are like computers. They really can’t think of that many things in parallel. Often, I'm complimented on my ability to multitask, but the truth is I'm good at time management. I'm a detail scheduler. When writing a book, I commit to 2,000 words a day — no matter what. When working on projects around my home, I focus on a specific area or room. Some days, I focus on work in my office, like designing clients’ floor plans or paying bills. Other days, my focus may be the kitchen — trying new recipes or getting the summer tomatoes cooked and stored for the winter. This gives me a sense of freedom to ignore the rest and allows me to truly accomplish what's most important for the day.

It turns out that working this way is the most logical. The more thought we dedicate to a project, the more likely it is to be completed. As I learned when I was a young designer, it takes time for our brains to gather the relevant information for a project. The second step for me is accepting the fact that my best work comes when I focus on one thing at a time until it's complete. When I find myself being pulled into other directions with random thoughts, I take a short walk and get myself back on track.

Creating a home that's uniquely designed for you and your family is a thoughtful process that requires commitment to the evolving plan. Design is about your own way of seeing the world. Personal style includes everything that you touch and see. Your home should tell the story of your life. That means that completing your design will take a lifetime of building and believing in your own style.

So, trust your artistic impulses. Invest in a few home-decorating magazines. Tear out the pages that you find most appealing, then analyze the details: