Many people think of Interior Design as an 'easy' career or talent to have. While it's true that there may be a lot of people with an eye for design, there are also other skills needed to expand on just a natural eye for color or furnishings. There are a lot of skills needed to be a designer, but we wanted to share 3 of our top skills that we feel are crucial to being a successful designer.
#1 Spatial Awareness and Function
A true designer has the ability to walk into a space and envision all of it's potential. Whether that's an empty space, existing, or a new build on a set of plans. The ability to see a space or drawing and visualize the end goal is a special skill to have. Often designers are hired because the client doesn't have the ability to envision their space any other way. Along the same lines of spatial awareness is function. How is the design going to function? How will people navigate the design? These are questions to take into consideration when working on a project. The functionality is just as (if not more) important than the aesthetics.
#2 Budget and Time Management
Almost every project has a budget and deadline. Given the extent of the project they usually change in the process because there are always things that come up that delay the project and/or add to the cost. BUT with all that aside it is super important to keep budget and timeline in mind and plan accordingly. It's also important to have an understanding of what the scope of a project is, so that you can properly inform clients with realistic budgets and timelines.
#3 Communication
People skills and communication are huge in the design industry. As a designer, it's never just us, there are ALWAYS other people involved on a project. Clients, contractors, sub-contractors, architects, manufacturers, and the list goes on. We are constantly communicating with others so we can't stress enough how important it is to understand how to communicate with each individual. A lot of times the designer takes on a project manager role which puts them in a position to coordinate everyone and make sure each person and component is on the same page and taken care of. It is especially important to listen to others as well, especially your client.
As we mentioned, there are a million other skills that come with being a designer, and all of them take time to learn. We still learn new ways to better ourselves and our work every day! Hopefully these top 3 skills help you guys, whether you're looking to be a designer, you are a designer, or maybe we just gave you a better look into more of what we do! You can also get a better look at what we do by following us over on our Instagram @naomiewertinteriors (see what we did there)...... ;) What kind of skills do you use in your line of work? Let us know in the comments! Have a great week everyone!
XO
NWI
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