Episode 82: How to Outsource in Your Design Business & Wow Your Clients with Theresa Gresham

podcast

Show Notes

My next guest is Theresa Gresham, a rendering artist and CAD drafter with formal interior design training and the owner of Theresa G Design. She provides show-stopping virtual design services for busy interior designers. Theresa has found that working with a virtual design assistant can increase profitability, add value to your design process, and relieve stress.

In this episode, Theresa and I chat about the process of outsourcing 3D renderings and CAD drawings, how she collaborates with other interior designers, and tips when working with a virtual design assistant for the first time.

To learn more about Theresa and her services, visit www.theresagdesign.com and find her @TheresaGDesign on both Instagram and Facebook.

Go to www.theresagdesign.com/gift for her FREE guide on How to Successfully Work with a Rendering Artist: 5 Invaluable Tips for a Seamless Experience & Highest Level Results for you and your Clients.

Text UPDATES to 214-380-1969 for all our DFCM updates.

About Michelle

Michelle Lynne began her interior design career after spending more than two decades working in Corporate America. She began in the home staging arena and has since built a successful, award-winning, full-service interior design firm, employing talented designers and serving clients across the country.

In the summer of 2018, Michelle began focusing on a big gap she saw missing in the interior design industry: teaching interior designers how to run the business of an interior design business. She now engages in private coaching and leads an in-depth, 12-month group coaching program, both options focus on teaching designers profitable processes, systems, strategies, and mindset needed to run a streamlined, profitable interior design firm.

Her motto is simple: we rise by lifting others.

Connect with Michelle

To stay in touch with Michelle, please follow her on Instagram and join our Free Facebook Community!

Have ideas or suggestions or want to be considered as a guest on the show? Email me!

Podcast edited and managed by Haili Murch LLC.

If you are interested in starting a podcast or you are currently a podcaster needing help managing or relaunching your podcast, you may email Haili Murch at [email protected] or you can click here to book a call: https://calendly.com/hailimurch/podcast-discovery-call

Transcript

Michelle Lynne: Welcome to Designed for the Creative Mind, a podcast for interior designers and creative entrepreneurs to run their business with purpose, efficiency, and passion. Because, while every design is different, the process should remain the same. Prepare yourself for some good conversations with amazing guests, a dash of Jesus and a touch of the woowoo, and probably a swear word or two. If you're ready to stop trading your time for money and enjoy your interior design business, you are in the right place. I'm your host, Michelle Lynne.

Michelle Lynne: Well, hello everybody. Welcome back to the Designed for the Creative Mind podcast. I want to introduce my first, my first guest today, like I have multiples, but my guest today is Theresa G. Theresa G Design. Her name is Theresa Gresham, and her design company, Theresa G Design was born amidst the pandemic chaos, when she realized the huge need for her expertise on a virtual level. Theresa's passion is helping interior designers de-stress and enhance their business with stunning presentation content. Many designers have beautiful design concepts in their head, but as you know, sometimes we struggle with conveying that vision to our clients in an efficient manner that it keeps business ahead of the curve. So Theresa, as a CAD drafter and 3D rendering artists, swoops in and provides her busy interior design clients with state of the art technical drawings and presentation content that wows clients and gets designs approved faster. So prior to opening her virtual design business, Theresa earned a bachelor's degree in interior design and has worked with various design firms that have specialized in everything from luxury yachts and aircraft to high-end homes and restaurants. As of today, Theresa has assisted over 40 interior designers nationwide. So whoa, that's a mouthful. Thank you, Theresa for being here.

Theresa Gresham: Thank you so much for having me. It's so good to be here.

Michelle Lynne: Oh my gosh, that's a heck of a background. That's exciting. And I've got to tell you, just straight out, I have a badass design team and thankfully they do their renderings and so forth. But if I didn't have Debbie and Megan and now Sarah and just this group of individuals, I would 190,000,000% be outsourcing all of my, all of my renderings and drawings and stuff like that, because who is who has the time?

Theresa Gresham: Exactly. And it's, it is, it's a full-time job. A lot of the designers come to me, and a lot of them have learned it in school and maybe didn't go to school and have tried to learn it online. But it takes so much time and I'm doing it every day, so it's so much faster for me, you know, and it just saves time and money outsourcing.

Michelle Lynne: Absolutely. And that's one of the big tenets that I preach is outsource what you're not good at. You know, most designers, we suck at accounting, so that's the first thing that should go. But I think renderings, even though it's fun, and we enjoy doing it, and for some it's part of the creative process. But if it takes you three times longer to do it, why not outsource it to somebody like you who can just crank it out?

Theresa Gresham: Exactly. And I've actually come up with 3D collaboration for those clients who do like to design in 3D to work together in 3D. I do all the technical side, and then we get on a collaboration call and do revisions in real time. So they're able to still create in 3D but they don't have to worry about all the technical side of it.

Michelle Lynne: That's genius, because that's been the pushback that I've heard more often is that, you know what, I would love to outsource it, but I come up with some ideas while I'm doing it.

Theresa Gresham: Exactly.

Michelle Lynne: So yeah, you can just throw the floor plan down, get all of the technical aspects hammered out. And then we could hop on a call and say no, I think, let's, why don't we try it over here? Why don't we try it over there? And then they also probably get the benefit of your insight and your experience.

Theresa Gresham: Exactly. So 3D collaboration, I help with space planning, with millwork, if they need design help, if they need furniture plans laid out, you know, maybe they just want three living room plans. Can you just pop those in? And they're like, I like this one, let's change it this way. You know, it just saves so much time.

Michelle Lynne: That's genius that you have that collaboration aspect. And it's not just one and done. Here you go, hope you like it. And then you're gonna have to pay $99 million for the next version if you don't.

Theresa Gresham: Exactly. And I think, as a Gemini especially, I love that collaboration, that like people. So working virtually, I always do my discovery calls on Google Meet, face-to-face. I love being around people. So I still like to keep that open communication and like we're working in the same office.

Michelle Lynne: Oh, that's very cool. Yeah, so it's virtual, but it's still very personal.

Theresa Gresham: Exactly.

Michelle Lynne: So what do you suggest, let's just talk to individuals who have never outsourced before and maybe they haven't even put their hands into a program. Okay, but they're like sitting back thinking, oh, I really wish I could blah, blah, blah, you know, present this to my client and so forth. Where do you suggest that they level-up their design presentations and wow the clients early on in this design process? Like what advice would you give to those individuals?

Theresa Gresham: Definitely reaching out to a rendering artist. I think the best place to start is a Facebook group finding maybe a comment where someone's been recommended. There's your social proof right there. You can look into their portfolios, their testimonials, and doing a discovery call. Getting on a call with them, meeting them, and just seeing the process because once they see the process, they kind of see how easy it actually is. And I just worked with a newer designer, and I met her through my business coaching group. And she, it was her first time using renderings, and she was doing more of a modern project, which was outside of her kind of comfort zone.

Michelle Lynne: Yeah.

Theresa Gresham: So she hired me to do the rendering. And she was just like, she was so happy. The clients were literally blown out of the water. She said, my clients, I've never seen anything like it. I sold everything, like she was so excited. And that just made me feel so good. I'm so happy that I could help her in that way.

Michelle Lynne: Yeah, and you touched on it, because it really does help sell the design.

Theresa Gresham: It does. Especially in this day, and age, everything, especially I think the pandemic really sent everything to that virtual level. So you know, high-tech, everything's on TV, HGTV, you know, everyone has seen all those cool 3D visualizations. They want to see that. It doesn't have to be for every client, some clients a mood board and some fabrics, done. But for some clients, they need to see it, you know?

Michelle Lynne: And that's a great question, I mean, that's a great point. Because what we do at ML Interiors Group is we have a questionnaire that we send to them early on in the process. And we literally ask them, do you need to see things in, you know, in three dimensional or do you need to, like how's your visualization? So we dig into that a little bit so we know what we're going to need to prepare for the design presentation.

Theresa Gresham: That's genius.

Michelle Lynne: Yeah, some clients don't. They're just like, no, just give me this old mood board or whatever, because we go through it in other some steps along the way to signing the contract. And it's just really allowed us, but I will tell you that we don't offer any renovations without the 3D renderings. Because you can tell them a kitchen, and this is what it's going to look like. But it just doesn't always connect the dots.

Theresa Gresham: It doesn't. And it's hard, especially someone that's not in the industry. You know, we're trained to think that way and to see things that way. But if they're not in the industry,

Michelle Lynne: Yeah. And it just definitely, I love hearing the fact that it just helped your client's clients make their decisions that much more quickly.

Theresa Gresham: Yeah, and they love it. I mean, they get so excited, especially when there's long lead times on things. I had one client that they did the renderings, and it was more so they wanted to show a couple of cool lamps and a couple finishing pieces. This wonderful chandelier. But it was really just to kind of keep the clients excited because things were taking so long.

Michelle Lynne: Yeah, that makes sense. That makes sense. It does. It just really uplevels the excitement, because it's like, look, this is exactly what you're gonna have. It's worth waiting for.

Theresa Gresham: Yep. This is coming.

Michelle Lynne: Exactly. Now, what programs are you using? What systems?

Theresa Gresham: So, I use a lot of different programs. I learned AutoCAD in school, graduated back in 2008. So that was when like, we just kind of started getting into SketchUp. But if you saw some of my old SketchUp stuff it was pretty hilarious.

Michelle Lynne: We've all grown. We've all grown. Thank the Lord. We don't stay where we start.

Theresa Gresham: Yeah, exactly. I do still use AutoCAD for some clients. I use Chief Architect now, which has been a game changer for my 3D collaboration, just because revisions are so much faster, so I can do them in real time with clients. And then I use SketchUp and Enscape from my photorealistic renderings and Photoshop for most of my stuff.

Michelle Lynne: Oh, that's fantastic. So yeah, you just layer things on layers and layers and make it look finished.

Theresa Gresham: Yeah, I just had, one of the clients, actually the most recent client that had the very modern project, they had these hilarious, kind of spooky, statues. It was like a boy like in the corner and like a girl, they looked horrifying, but they wanted to see them in the rendering. There was no way, I mean, like, I model things in 3D, but there was no way I was modeling those things. So actually, I did it with Photoshop. I was like, yes, we can get it in there. It's gonna have to be a Photoshop thing.

Michelle Lynne: So I can delete it later.

Theresa Gresham: Definitely.

Michelle Lynne: So did they end up using them in the?

Theresa Gresham: Yeah, they kept them. Yeah, they had them in their house and they just really, I think that helped sell it seeing their pieces.

Michelle Lynne: Yes. and there's no accounting for, yeah. But okay. so that's also one of the things that I love to talk about is like, every client has such different tastes and different styles. You know, to be able to accommodate that and to be able to drop their items into it, whether we like them or not, you know, it just allows us to work with them and make them the most acceptable.

Theresa Gresham: Yep.

Michelle Lynne: And I think you're right, it does close the, it seals the deal faster.

Theresa Gresham: Yeah. And that's one thing, some of my clients don't like to add the accessories into the 3D renderings. But a lot of the times, like, if you have like, a photo of your clients, and you can add that in a frame somewhere, it adds so much. And I've had clients that are like, oh my gosh, that's our picture. They're so excited.

Michelle Lynne: Yeah, and what we do is so personal. You know, if we eliminate the personal aspect of it, it's very cold. So throwing some of those small details in when you can definitely makes it feel like you heard them.

Theresa Gresham: Exactly. It's their home, you know, they want to make, it they want to feel at home. So they see these renderings. Like yes, I can see this.

Michelle Lynne: Well and heck, yeah. It's like, if I was doing the renderings, I'd be like, oh, I don't have time, I'm not gonna put that in there. But if you're doing the renderings, I'm like, here's five pictures, go ahead and drop them all in here. Here's some vases. Please, finish this out. So Theresa, do you have design clients of your own or do you just work for designers?

Theresa Gresham: I just work for designer. So when I did lose my job when the pandemic first hit and I started my own business, I was thinking about starting and doing like e-design, because I'd done a little bit of that when I was on maternity leave. But I realized it's just not my strength, the sales side, that like front-facing interior design side, has never been my strength. And that's okay. My passion lies behind the scenes. And that's where I'm at. And this is what I love.

Michelle Lynne: Good for you for identifying that. Because so many times, we're just like, this is the only path and I'm gonna make it work. And then you're just banging your head up against the wall. And life sucks.

Theresa Gresham: I was there for a while. I did like a little, I kind of left the country for a while. I lived in New Zealand and Australia about four years, and I kind of stepped out of the interior design industry a little bit. Because I was like, you know, I'm just not, I worked for different interior designers. I'm like, I just, I don't feel like I can do that part of it.

Michelle Lynne: Right.

Theresa Gresham: And I kind of got discouraged by it. But it's so amazing how things kind of turned around. I'm like, no, my job is important. This is my place in this industry. And it's an important, you know, it's important to have So, I'm happy that I found that and I've kind of come to that realization, like there's a spot for everybody.

Michelle Lynne: And it's so true. And oftentimes we just look at what other people are doing and think that that's what we're supposed to do. It's so important that we listen to our gut. We call it our, I call it my birdie, my little birdie. You know, when it starts chirping and saying no, that's not quite right. Or, yes, yes. Let's keep doing that. It's really tapping into yourself and not your surroundings to follow your calling. It's also probably what makes you really good at your job because you love it and you know you're where you're supposed to be.

Theresa Gresham: Yeah, it's my passion. And the fact that I wake up, and I did a little post on this on Instagram. Like, you know, Mondays, I used to dread Mondays, and now it's like, I love Mondays. Because this is what I love doing, you know, I love that feeling.

Michelle Lynne: It goes back to what they've always said, find something you love, and you'll never work a day in your life. And people are like, oh, that's bull. Well, you know what, sometimes it is work. But 99% of the time, it's just like, this is awesome. I mean, we're not laying on the beach in Fiji.

Theresa Gresham: But we can, you know? But it's fulfilling. And I get so much joy seeing my clients that, you know, I've had clients say you've lifted the weight off my shoulders. I'm so happy I found you. And that just makes me feel so good. And then they're more confident in their work and their beautiful designs. And I love it.

Michelle Lynne: Yeah. So you are also changing people's lives, kind of from one step out.

Theresa Gresham: I feel like they're changing mine at the same time. So it's like this, and that's what I was saying about this industry. I love this industry. Women, you know, men too, but we're working mostly with women.

Michelle Lynne: Women lifting women.

Theresa Gresham: Lifting each other up, and I love it.

Michelle Lynne: Yeah, I do too. I think that's really cool. And it's fun, part of the fun of my podcast is like, I get to meet such cool badass women mostly. And it's just fun to learn all about those options. So speaking of options, what is the process? Sometimes I get so excited I go down a bunny trail. But let's just say, you know, the world ends, and I don't have my team and I had to outsource. What would be the process?

Theresa Gresham: So definitely once you find your rendering artist you want to do a discovery call. I always start with a discovery call no matter what. And it's always a video call. I want to meet you, I want to see your face, I want you to see me, we go over what your goals are,

Michelle Lynne: I'm gonna interrupt you real quick because if they do see you, they see what I see right now, is this beautiful rendering that you have as your screen on Zoom. So, you know, it's like you put your money where your mouth is. Look at it, this is what I can do for you.

Theresa Gresham: So I do, sometimes I do 3D collaboration calls and then a client asks me to jump on with their clients and do like a walkthrough of their home. I've had the clients be like, oh, you have such a beautiful home. I'm like, no, this is not real. It's so awesome.

Michelle Lynne: Yes exactly. So for those of you listening, I'm sorry, you can't see this beautiful kitchen behind Theresa. But it's just one of the benefits of being able to use your work to sell it. So okay, again. So you have a discovery call, and it should be face-to-face.

Theresa Gresham: Definitely. I love the face-to-face. I mean, not every rendering artist probably does that. But that's for me, I like to meet, you know, my prospective clients. And really find out how we can work together. Each rendering artist is going to be different with either flat-rate or hourly, or how they work. I've come up with kind of different services over the years and offerings based on what I've seen my clients like. So I do offer flat-rate renderings so that you can incorporate that and budget it in. I work hourly with some clients. I do my 3D collaboration, you know, where we can actually collaborate together, design together in 3D. And then for clients that maybe it's a last-minute project, like maybe you had somebody sick, you can't get a hold of your rendering artist, you need this rendering by end of week. I offer VIP Experience that I hold spots during the month. Those VIP Experience Days. Let's knock it out in one day. Just me and you, work together, let's get it done.

Michelle Lynne: Wow. Yeah. So obviously, you are much faster than the average Joe or Jane, for that matter. But it stands true. It's like this is where your expertise is.

Theresa Gresham: Yeah, and it's definitely when you're working with a rendering artist, just a couple like tips. It's definitely the communication part is I think, especially on that virtual level, it's so huge.

Michelle Lynne: Wait, wait, wait, you mean, you don't read minds? Hold on just a second, Theresa, let's back up a second.

Theresa Gresham: I can to a certain degree. No, but I mean, really. I mean, especially, you know, when designers are like well, what do you need from me? Everything. Give me everything. No. You know, I give them like a shared Dropbox folder. It's like your architectural drawings if those are there, your dimensions, give me site photos, your inspiration photos, specifications, you want to be able to give your rendering artist links to product pages. Because most of us will actually model things so everything is to scale and modeled, depending on what artists you work with. So we go to the website, you know, we find the image, we model it exactly to scale, we want to see exactly what the textures look like. If you have a fabric, I go to the website, I take that image, I make it into a seamless texture and make sure the repeat is perfect on that sofa.

Michelle Lynne: And that just sounds so, like if I was sitting here thinking there's no way she's gonna get everything that I would get. You do.

Theresa Gresham: And I do have a spreadsheet that I've created, a Google sheet, that has like everything I would need. So it's just one easy place. If you have your own system, share it with me. Perfect. But for those clients that are like, I don't know what she needs. It's all right there. Just plug it all in, send it to me, I'll take care of it.

Michelle Lynne: Oh, amen, that we're gonna have to recreate the wheel every time.

Theresa Gresham: Exactly.

Michelle Lynne: And I bet you if you have repeat clients, it's helpful because they already know what to expect. And they can start dropping things into that shared folder as soon as they start scheming.

Theresa Gresham: Exactly. Yeah. And I love my repeat clients.

Michelle Lynne: Amen. Yeah, right? Now, do you have a team Theresa, or is it just you?

Theresa Gresham: So it's funny, you know, talking about outsourcing. I'm working with my business coach now is like, you have to outsource what you don't like. I've hired, recently hired a social media manager and let me tell you, it was the best decision for me. She's on my team. She's actually in Canada. She's absolutely wonderful. And yes, I have my accountant. I have my social media. I do have another artist, actually one of your prior guests, Kelly Fridline.

Michelle Lynne: Yes.

Theresa Gresham: She's one of my mentors. So when she was talking about her mentees, I was one of the first.

Michelle Lynne: Oh, I love that. Yes, yes, yes. I was gonna ask you about that offline.

Theresa Gresham: Yeah. So she actually introduced me to some amazing colleagues in the industry. So I outsource sometimes if I have too many 3D models, and they're like, really crazy, Jodi Best does some incredible 3D modeling for me. So she's another one that, you know, helps me out.

Michelle Lynne: Oh, that's fantastic. Yeah. So you practice Is what you teach? Oh, that's good. Yeah, that makes such a difference, though, because I'm not sure how your business flow is, but it kind of ebbs and flows. And sometimes you just have to take what's coming at you instead of turning it away. So having that assistance allows you to manage it.

Theresa Gresham: Yeah, definitely.

Michelle Lynne: Oh, very cool. So I love the fact that we can still be involved in the process, because like I said a few moments ago, that's where I hear a lot of people saying, I don't know if I can outsource it, because, you know, this is what I come up with. But if I was a one-woman show, and I think the benefit is, if I'm a solopreneur, and I spend so much time doing the renderings, because and the floor plans, and the elevations, and all the things, I'm not as good at it as you would be. So I'm spending more time doing what's not making me money, where the money is actually like presenting the design and getting more business. Because as a solopreneur, we are the marketing department, sales department, so forth. What would you say are some of the tips, like what would take away the fear or the hesitation of reaching out to a virtual design assistant for the first time?

Theresa Gresham: I think finding one that will work with you. So I did have a client that recently reached out. And she likes to add in the finishes and things in her model. But getting it built, getting the cabinetry built, getting the architecture built, takes her so long. So we're going to be working back and forth where I build it all and get all the cabinetry and everything and then I sent her a file, and she can add in her details that she wants, it doesn't take her forever. So there are ways you can work back and forth. And again, that 3D collaboration, I think will ease you in to being, you know, you can slowly give up. So once you see how fast it goes when you give it over, but you don't have to all of a sudden, just like okay, here you go. You know, you can work back and forth with somebody and kind of ease into it.

Michelle Lynne: That makes sense. Because when Debbie and Megan were learning, we use Chief Architect, they would go back and forth between each other. It's nothing different other than the fact that you're not technically on quote, unquote, our payroll.

Theresa Gresham: Yeah. And I actually will share files. So if someone works in Chief, and they want to share back and forth, I have no problem with that. Yeah.

Michelle Lynne: I'm thinking about my own team right now. Can you hear the wheels turning? Can you hear that on the podcast? Does my headset capture that? How do I talk to Debbie and Megan about letting go of some control? Ha ha ha.

Theresa Gresham: It's all about finding someone to meet you, you know where you're at and kind of, you know, yeah.

Michelle Lynne: And I also think that, well, we've always said, as a team at ML Interiors Group, I don't know how individuals do it by themselves. Like, even just the design, because we bounce so many ideas off of each other as a team. It's like, hey, have you thought about this, or, hey, I saw this on Instagram, whatever. It's like, it continues to elevate the team. We used to joke, it's like buy one, get two free. But now you would be that person that a solo practitioner could bounce ideas off of without the investment of a quote, unquote, team. But you're on the team, it's just not as a heavy of overhead.

Theresa Gresham: It's per project. Exactly. And because I do have that degree, a lot of the designers I work with, didn't go to school for it. And they're amazing designers, but it's nice when I'm doing a 3D rendering, I'm like, actually, we're gonna have to raise this chandelier up just so it's actually at seven feet in its proper height. I just want to make sure that, you know, that's noted. And they love it. They're like, thank you so much.

Michelle Lynne: Absolutely, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Wow, I love this, Theresa. I think that you have this little gold mine, just sitting right there for designers. It's like, come over here, let me give you some gold, you know, take it to your client.

Theresa Gresham: And it is. When their clients first see it, I've never had a client come back and say my clients didn't like it, nothing sold. It's literally always opposite. You've changed the way I do business. I have a higher rate of acceptance. My clients are so happy, like the excitement that comes out of it is so awesome.

Michelle Lynne: Well, and it elevates the industry. Because so often we are looked at as, you know, we're gonna go fluff some pillows and pick some paint. And then the client also doesn't see that same level of professionalism, and therefore they don't treat the designer as professional. You know, you see that all the time on forums on Facebook. Oh, my client did this. They did that, blah, blah, blah. And it's because oftentimes we're showing up less than and your service allows us to show up as a professional and say, boom, this is what I can bring you.

Theresa Gresham: Yeah, even the CAD drawings. I've had one of my designer clients over in California, she has come back to me and said, the guys on site are so excited about our elevations. They say, like, you know, they're so professional. I'm like, yeah, because you're a professional.

Michelle Lynne: Absolutely, yes. Now, for those of you guys listening, I would also suggest that you take some of these outsourced drawings and put them into your sales process so you can show your prospective clients, what you can deliver. And hey, you know, what else they could do? Is they could design something with you, even if it's not for a client, if they're just baby designers starting off and say, this is what I, here's a bathroom that I designed, here's a bedroom that I designed.

Theresa Gresham: I think you just read my mind. I was literally just gonna say that.

Michelle Lynne: Yeah, because there's so many designers that they haven't had the opportunity to create something for a paid client. But if they create something with you, they still designed it.

Theresa Gresham: Or they, you know, have a portfolio from an old job that they can't share. And it's so, you know, they're building their website, and they're like, what am I'm gonna do? And we do, I also do the video like walkthroughs, like with some music. Those on your webpage?

Michelle Lynne: Shut the front door, really?

Theresa Gresham: They look amazing. Yeah.

Michelle Lynne: Oh, I love that. Yeah. And the video itself is just good for SEO and all the things.

Theresa Gresham: Exactly. There's so many things you can do with 3D visualization in this industry. And I really do think it's a game changer.

Michelle Lynne: I do too. And girl, I could sit here and talk to you for like another 85,000 minutes about it, because I'm so excited. But what I want to do is have our next segment, which is a quick Q&A session to get to know you a little bit better.

Theresa Gresham: Okay, awesome.

Michelle Lynne: Just on a completely different level. And then at the end, we'll share all your contact information and so forth so that the audience can like join in in all this goodness. So here we go. Nothing's off the table. Dun dun dun. We'll start off easily. What's your favorite childhood memory?

Theresa Gresham: Oh, favorite childhood memory? Dancing with the cassette player.

Michelle Lynne: Yes. What was your favorite subject in school?

Theresa Gresham: In school? It was, oh, that's a tough one. Art definitely. But I also liked things like geometry, which now I see why because I'm using that.

Michelle Lynne: There you go. It's that side of the brain. What is your biggest failure, and how did you learn from that experience? Or what did you learn from that experience?

Theresa Gresham: My biggest failure was not to trust myself sooner and to trust that intuition sooner. But, you know, failing is just a way of getting past that and moving on.

Michelle Lynne: You fail forward.

Theresa Gresham: Exactly. Exactly.

Michelle Lynne: I think it's also how you frame failure. You know, because if you live there, and you're like, I'm a failure, no, you're not a failure, you made a mistake.

Theresa Gresham: Yep.

Michelle Lynne: Awesome. What is one thing people would be surprised to know about you?

Theresa Gresham: That I moved to Australia with a one-way ticket and no real plan to start life for a while in a different country.

Michelle Lynne: There you go. That's adventurous.

Theresa Gresham: Now, as a single mom, I'm like, there's no way I'd do anything like that.

Michelle Lynne: Hey, guys, I'll see you later. I'm leaving the country.

Theresa Gresham: Peace.

Michelle Lynne: The other side of the world. That's amazing. Okay, innie belly button or outie belly button?

Theresa Gresham: So it was an innie. And now after my daughter, it's an outie.

Michelle Lynne: So both. When was the last time you laughed so hard you almost peed yourself?

Theresa Gresham: Probably yesterday. My daughter is a character.

Michelle Lynne: Oh, that's fun. How old is she?

Theresa Gresham: Four.

Michelle Lynne: Oh my gosh. Mine is too.

Theresa Gresham: Oh, awesome.

Michelle Lynne: Such a crazy age.

Theresa Gresham: I love it. It's so like all over the place. But yeah, definitely hilarious.

Michelle Lynne: Oh, my husband and I just look at her because every day she changes.

Theresa Gresham: Every day.

Michelle Lynne: And it's just like, where did this little person come from?

Theresa Gresham: Exactly. And there's always a surprise, like, you think you're prepared. One day you're like, yeah, I've got this and the next day like nope, nope.

Michelle Lynne: It just pivoted. What's her birthday?

Theresa Gresham: June 2, 1985.

Michelle Lynne: 1985? Wait, wait, wait, how old is she?

Theresa Gresham: Oh, I thought you said mine. My daughter's the same age as me.

Michelle Lynne: I'm not the best at math.

Theresa Gresham: Her's is August 2, 2018.

Michelle Lynne: Gotcha. Gotcha. My daughter Genevieve's is June 13.

Theresa Gresham: Okay, so she's a Gemini, there we go.

Michelle Lynne: Yeah. So funny that yeah, so they're about the same age. Too bad you weren't closer. We could have them run around.

Theresa Gresham: Oh, fun.

Michelle Lynne: All right. So Theresa, if you could be remembered for one thing, what would it be?

Theresa Gresham: Someone that inspires someone else.

Michelle Lynne: Love that. That'll be good for your daughter too. And what does your morning routine look like?

Theresa Gresham: So waking up, we wake up at 5:30 now, get my daughter ready for school, make her breakfast, take her to school and then coming back, trying to get into the five-minute meditation and then get into work, because I have until 3pm to get my day through.

Michelle Lynne: There you go. Yeah, you definitely have to be very intentional. Do you have any tattoos?

Theresa Gresham: I do. I have a lot of tattoos. Which was something I always kind of hid, like in my professional world. But now I'm like, you know, it's my art. I'm an artist. This is artwork that other artists have done, and I love it.

Michelle Lynne: Absolutely. And I was gonna say, so you've got the right-brain and the left-brain firing. That geometry thing, that ol' geometry thing. What is your biggest pet peeve?

Theresa Gresham: Wet pant legs. So I'm five feet tall and I swear my pants are always too long. And if there's a puddle and they get wet, forget it.

Michelle Lynne: That would do it.

Theresa Gresham: It's crazy.

Michelle Lynne: What is your favorite book?

Theresa Gresham: So I'm a very visual person. So I don't really read books, I watch movies and my all-time favorite would have to be Princess Bride.

Michelle Lynne: You know what, that is a classic that I have never freaking seen.

Theresa Gresham: You've got to. It is fantastic.

Michelle Lynne: I hear that so often. And in fact, some really good friends of our family. Like The Princess Bride is just a whole family favorite. They've got three kids. It's like they all love it. Blah, blah, blah. We've never seen it.

Theresa Gresham: It's so classic. As you wish. You've got to see it. It's so good.

Michelle Lynne: Well, Genevieve is getting old enough. And we might be able to watch it in the next couple of years.

Theresa Gresham: It's really good.

Michelle Lynne: So Theresa, thank you so much for being on the show today. That was so much fun. And I know the audience loved like, this was just eye-opening and fantastic. And it's just so refreshing to hear how easy it is, how easy it is. Tell our audience, how can they connect with you? Where can they find you? Like, all the things because they might just be rushing down the door.

Theresa Gresham: Well, I do have a little gift to share. It's How to Successfully Work with a Rendering Artist. And it gives you five tips when you're first starting out to work with somebody, you know, what to look for and how to approach it.

Michelle Lynne: Love that.

Theresa Gresham: You can find that on my website. So it's, I'll spell it out because my name is spelled with that secret H, so www.theresagdesign.com/gift.

Michelle Lynne: Perfect. And I'll make sure that we get that into the show notes. Because that would be great to download and just use because whether they use you or they use another rendering artist, it's all about the fit. Like, who do you get along with? And it's the same thing with our, you know, our clients, they might talk to two or three designers, and they hire who they trust and like the most.

Theresa Gresham: Yeah, you get on the call, and you say, you know what? Your style or something, maybe something about me they don't like, I can recommend other colleagues that, I mean, actually, so and so will be perfect for you.

Michelle Lynne: Yes. I love hearing that. And it's just, I mean, I always tell the designers, there's enough ugly houses out there to go around.

Theresa Gresham: I've heard you say that. I love it.

Michelle Lynne: But, you know, the next tier, it affects you too.

Theresa Gresham: Exactly.

Michelle Lynne: Okay, so theresagdesign.com/gift. And then what about your social handles?

Theresa Gresham: Yep. So it's Theresa G Design all around. Facebook, Instagram, I made it easy.

Michelle Lynne: Oh, rock on. Lucky you, you got them all. Very cool. All right, well, I'll make sure that all of those are listed in the show notes so that our audience can reference those. And for those of you who can benefit from even more resources surrounding the business of running your interior design business, join the growing community on my Facebook private group. It's called the Interior Designers Business Launchpad. I go live there once a week with some mini trainings. And then we also hold some badass five-day free workshops in there a handful of times over the course of the year. So come join us over there. And I guess until next time, thanks again, Rachel. Oh wait, I called you Rachel. Hold on. You look just like my friend Rachel. Thanks again, Theresa.

Theresa Gresham: Thanks so much. This has been so much fun.

Michelle Lynne: It's good to talk to you.

Theresa Gresham: You too. Thank you.

Michelle Lynne: Hey, y'all. If you love the show and find it useful, I would really appreciate it if you would share with your friends and followers. And if you like what you're hearing, want to put a face with a name and get even more business advice, then join me in my Facebook group, the Interior Designers Business Launchpad. Yeah, I know it's Facebook, but just come on in for the training and then leave without scrolling your feed. It's fun. I promise you'll enjoy it. And finally, I hear it's good for business to get ratings on your podcast. So please drop yours on whatever platform you use to listen to this. We're all about community over competition. So let's work on elevating our industry, one designer at a time. See you next time.

Back to the Blog