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And about that whole belief 
triad that really helps you 

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unlock what needs to happen 
during that sales process. 

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When you are making a 
presentation to a client about 

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your services, is what's going 
through their mind is not is 

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Rebecca Worth $40,000? 
They're not thinking that I'm 

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not going to be thinking that. 
What I'm going to be thinking 

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when I'm going to make an 
investment like that is am I, 

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Miriam, Worth spending $40,000 
to get this job done? 

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Is my time worth it? 
Am I worth it? 

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I, the customer. 
And that's more of an extension 

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on believing in your customer. 
Because if you're over here 

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rattling away about why your 
services are so worth it, blah, 

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blah, blah, blah, blah, you're 
talking about yourself, blah, 

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blah, blah. 
And they're over here thinking, 

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yeah, but I don't know if I 
should spend that on myself. 

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You're now listening to design. 
Curious, a place where you. 

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Creative One are here to learn 
about. 

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What it really? 
Is like to be an interior 

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designer and I'm your host and 
mentor. 

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Rebecca Ward. 
If you're worried about how to 

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succeed in a creative. 
Career. 

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If you're ready to learn your 
next steps to become an interior

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designer, and if you want the 
satisfaction of doing something,

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you. 
Love every day you. 

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Are in the right place. 
Grab a coffee, a notebook, and 

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let's dig into today's episode. 
Hello and welcome to episode 188

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of Design Curious Podcast. 
Today on the podcast, I have 

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Marian Schulman. 
She is a luxury. 

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Market messaging and pricing 
strategist for creative 

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entrepreneurs. 
She's also the. 

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Author of Art Preneur the. 
Step by step guide. 

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To making a sustainable living 
from your creativity and she's. 

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The host of the. 
Inspiration Place podcast. 

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Which is. 
Top 1% globally with features in

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Forbes, Entrepreneur, Igniting 
Creativity and Where Women 

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Create Miriam helps creative 
entrepreneurs position their 

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work as premium and reassuringly
expensive. 

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So that they. 
Attract clients who value. 

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Taste. 
Certainty and execution, not 

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discounts. 
So I think you're going to enjoy

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the conversation with Miriam 
talking all about. 

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Creative Careers. 
And all that's. 

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Involved with that so. 
Let's get into it. 

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Hi Miriam, welcome to Design 
Curious podcast. 

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It's great to have you on today.
Well, thanks for having me, 

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Rebecca. 
It's such an honor to be here. 

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Yes, and I'm very excited to 
talk with you because you have 

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such an important message for 
creatives, artists, interior 

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designers, which is applied 
arts. 

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So why don't you tell us? 
First of all, I know you have a 

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lot of things going on and we'll
talk all about that too. 

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But first of all, how did you 
get into this position where 

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you're at where you can help 
people with their mindset? 

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OK, so I'm going to try to make 
the long story shorter. 

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So I always wanted to be an 
artist, like many people who are

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listening right now. 
But I was told you couldn't make

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a living that way, and I 
believed them. 

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So I took the practical route. 
Sound familiar? 

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And I went to work for Wall 
Street, not exactly creative, 

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but lots of money. 
And after 911 happened, I knew I

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couldn't go back to that world. 
And that's when I quit my job. 

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I was pregnant with my second 
child. 

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I still didn't believe I could 
make a living from my art 

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though, so I was painting on the
side. 

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I took a job at a gym as applies
instructor, but while working 

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with the gym, they were teaching
me how to sell personal training

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packages. 
And that's when I had my aha 

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moment because I saw that what 
they were teaching me I could 

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use to sell anything, including 
my art or as we're going to talk

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about today, including interior 
design services because sales is

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just sales now. 
That was over 25 years ago and 

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about 20/19/2018, 2018 is when I
started my podcast and people 

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said, Miriam, would you show me 
how to do this? 

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But within a year of starting my
podcast, I also started a 

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coaching program. 
So I've been coaching other 

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artists for about the last six 
years as well. 

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Great. 
So what's the name of your 

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podcast so we can check it out? 
The Inspiration Place, Ben. 

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And I like that. 
So wherever you're listening to 

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Design Curious, you'll be able 
to find the inspiration. 

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Place. 
Wonderful. 

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Great. 
We'll put a link to that too so 

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people can check that out. 
So you've been coaching and 

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podcasting now for many years? 
Yeah. 26 now. 

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Yeah, now we've like started 
really diving into YouTube, 

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which I'm really enjoying that 
community though 'cause as you 

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know, we're back with a podcast,
you don't necessarily get the 

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feedback. 
And on YouTube I can talk to my 

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audience, so I find that super 
fun and I can show them pictures

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of what we're talking about. 
Really. 

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Fun. 
So once you kind of walk through

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maybe what are the main hang ups
that you're seeing creatives 

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struggle with as they are trying
to approach a passion career, 

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you know, OK. 
You know, it's the same whether 

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we're talking about visual 
artists like that. 

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I work with interior decorators 
and really, to be quite frank, 

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most other beginning 
entrepreneurs as well. 

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The same things come up over and
over again. 

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I think the biggest hurdle to 
get over is that cheaper is 

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easier to sell. 
It is not. 

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That's a myth. 
Do you want to go there first? 

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Yes, let's do that because I 
think there's a lot to uncover 

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there. 
Oh yeah. 

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OK, so there's really two things
that will help people understand

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why cheaper is not easier to 
sell. 

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The first thing is that if 
you're talking about a product, 

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let's say a loaf of bread, now 
some people think, oh, if I 

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price it less, maybe they'll 
want mine more. 

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Well, if you're talking about 
Wonder Bread versus Petridge 

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Farm, yeah, maybe if one is 
cheaper, you might be more 

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inclined to buy it. 
But if you're bringing a loaf of

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bread over to a dinner party, 
you're probably not going to 

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want to bring the loaf of bread 
you bought at the supermarket. 

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For what? 
What? 

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What do you think? 
A loaf? 

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I don't know what a loaf of 
bread costs like. 6 bucks anyway

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it's. 
Going to be cheaper at a 

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supermarket than if you go to a 
bakery. 

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Like a bakery, it's probably 20 
bucks, right? 

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But you're not thinking, oh, but
I really want that cheap Wonder 

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Bread. 
No, you're going to the bakery. 

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You're spending that because you
don't want to look foolish. 

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You want to present. 
You want an experience. 

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It tastes better. 
It's a better thing. 

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But there's lots of examples 
like that in our lives where 

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we're not comparing the prices 
of two things to make a 

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decision. 
Like you would never say no, no,

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no. 
I really should bring over the 

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loaf of Wonder Bread instead of,
you know, going to the bakery. 

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Yeah, you're just not OK. 
So like, you know, maybe for the

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class mom, you might bring the 
Entenmann's into slaving all 

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day. 
That's you know. 

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Like the whole Nother podcast? 
Yeah, OK. 

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But if there's other places too,
like if you're hiring a 

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babysitter, are you looking for 
the cheapest babysitter? 

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No, no you're not. 
You're not saying right, Right, 

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right. 
Or your fur baby. 

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If your fur baby needs some sort
of expensive surgery, your vet 

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says it's going to be $2000. 
You're not going to go look for 

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someone who could do for a 
$97.00. 

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So we do that. 
A lot of times in our 

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businesses. 
We think people are going to 

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make a decision based on price. 
They're not going to trust you 

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as much if you're so much lower 
than everybody else. 

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It's like wine. 
They're going to assume the more

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expensive wine is better. 
That's mindset shift number one 

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about cheaper is not easier to 
sell. 

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Yeah. 
And I think also what we run up 

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against designers often, 
especially when you're starting 

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out, you're trying to get more 
clients and maybe you're having 

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a slump and the first thing you 
think is like, oh, I'm too 

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expensive, I need to lower my 
prices, you know? 

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No, no. 
OK, so that's the first thing. 

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But the second thing, and this 
is less about how much you're 

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charging, but how you're 
presenting your services. 

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So I'm going to make this very 
applicable to interior designer 

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and decorators. 
People are looking for the 

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biggest transformation. 
So interior decorators are 

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saying, I'm, I charge whatever 
it is, $60.00 an hour, $150.00 

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an hour. 
That is not as appealing 

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necessarily as somebody who's 
going to say for $3000, I'm 

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going to give you a design plan 
that covers all these things 

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because people are looking for 
what's going to give them the 

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biggest transformation. 
So even though it's $3000 

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versus, well, could I get away 
with just a couple of hours, 

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They don't know what they're 
going to get for those few 

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hours. 
Right. 

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Yes. 
So to make this a little clearer

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for especially for people who 
are in like my type of world, 

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physical products and I always 
like to use the furniture 

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example. 
So it's so funny that I'm here 

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today. 
So artists like to think, oh, so

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it's easier to sell a $400.00 
small painting than it is to 

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sell a painting for $5000. 
And so I say to them, is it 

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because if somebody had an empty
living room, they're probably 

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going to buy the $5000 sofa 
before they buy the $400.00 end 

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table. 
So again, they're not making a 

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decision based on, oh, this is 
5000 versus $400.00. 

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They're saying what is going to 
make the biggest impact right 

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now and a piece of art that goes
over that sofa, even if it's a 

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few $1000, they rather have that
and spend money on that than a 

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$400.00 painting that goes in 
their bathroom. 

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Right. 
Yeah, That's a good point. 

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Really good. 
Yeah. 

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And often times the consumer is 
making more of an emotional 

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decision than just a logical one
too. 

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So it's appealing to that. 
Like you said, the $3000 gets 

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them the transformation. 
Like that's what they're wanting

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to feel at the end of it, right?
They have that kind of guarantee

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that that's going to happen. 
Exactly. 

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And so, you know, maybe and I'm 
making numbers up because that's

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not my. 
World. 

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But like, maybe it's $3000 for a
design package for one room. 

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Is it 10 or $15,000? 
Are you going to do my whole 

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house for me? 
Well, I'd much rather do that, 

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you know, because I'm going to 
get everything. 

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So if you got to think what's 
going to give them the biggest 

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transformation, don't be afraid 
to offer that. 

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So one thing I want to jump to 
that I talk about in my book is 

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the belief triad. 
Can we talk about the belief 

201
00:11:05,400 --> 00:11:07,440
triad 'cause this is really 
important. 

202
00:11:07,960 --> 00:11:12,040
OK, so the belief triad, there's
three things. 

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One is belief in yourself. 
We've heard that everyone is 

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coming. 
The podcast has probably said 

205
00:11:17,360 --> 00:11:20,560
you have to believe in yourself 
and you have to believe in your 

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art or your skills, your design.
The third part that I never 

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00:11:26,120 --> 00:11:28,440
heard anybody else talk about, 
so This is why I wrote about an 

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00:11:28,440 --> 00:11:30,600
entrepreneur is belief in your 
customer. 

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00:11:31,200 --> 00:11:33,440
Now this is what it looks like, 
yes. 

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00:11:33,720 --> 00:11:38,120
So remember the scene in Pretty 
Woman where Julia Roberts goes 

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to Rodeo Dr. and those mean 
sales people won't wait on her 

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00:11:44,760 --> 00:11:46,760
because they don't think she has
the money. 

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And we all think we're not that 
mean salesperson. 

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But every time we're judging our
customer by thinking, oh, they 

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won't go for $15,000 and don't 
you don't even discuss that with

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00:11:56,680 --> 00:11:58,760
them. 
You know, whatever that big 

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package is, you don't offer that
big transformation. 

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00:12:02,320 --> 00:12:04,160
You are acting like a mean 
salesperson. 

219
00:12:04,720 --> 00:12:08,520
You're not believing in the 
customer, so you have to believe

220
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in the customer more than they 
do in themselves. 

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00:12:11,960 --> 00:12:16,680
And so that is really part of 
that whole pricing trilogy is 1 

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00:12:16,680 --> 00:12:19,960
understanding that people think 
more expensive is better. 

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People want the bigger 
transformation and they want you

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to believe in them. 
Yeah, that's an interesting 

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00:12:29,160 --> 00:12:31,520
approach. 
I hadn't heard that before, So I

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like that. 
Yeah, believe in the customer 

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and let them make the decision 
too. 

228
00:12:35,880 --> 00:12:39,840
I was like what they can afford 
and like you know, or show them 

229
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more than what they they think 
and let them explore it, but not

230
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like making that judgement ahead
of time. 

231
00:12:45,320 --> 00:12:49,400
For them, don't be judgy, don't 
be like the mean sales people, 

232
00:12:49,400 --> 00:12:51,920
like let them see everything 
you've got. 

233
00:12:53,280 --> 00:12:56,560
I like that. 
OK, so we're going to find this 

234
00:12:56,560 --> 00:12:59,520
in your book. 
It's called Art Preneur. 

235
00:12:59,600 --> 00:13:02,640
Art preneur. 
Yes, and I'm not here to sell 

236
00:13:02,640 --> 00:13:04,480
books to you today because you 
can get it at your local 

237
00:13:04,480 --> 00:13:07,160
library. 
Honestly, it was it's Hush like 

238
00:13:07,160 --> 00:13:09,560
Harper Collins. 
You can get it from your 

239
00:13:09,560 --> 00:13:10,560
library. 
You can get the. 

240
00:13:10,560 --> 00:13:14,440
E-book Awesome, cool. 
All right, So what? 

241
00:13:14,440 --> 00:13:17,640
What are some other pitfalls 
that we find with? 

242
00:13:17,640 --> 00:13:22,400
Creatives OK, so staying on that
same vein about trusting our 

243
00:13:22,400 --> 00:13:25,480
customer. 
One thing that and about that 

244
00:13:25,480 --> 00:13:30,120
whole belief triad that really 
helps you unlock what needs to 

245
00:13:30,120 --> 00:13:31,920
happen during that sales 
process. 

246
00:13:31,920 --> 00:13:36,520
When you are making a 
presentation to a client about 

247
00:13:36,520 --> 00:13:41,840
your services is what's going 
through their mind is not is 

248
00:13:41,840 --> 00:13:45,000
Rebecca worth Rebecca, can you 
give me some real numbers? 

249
00:13:45,000 --> 00:13:46,840
I'm not just pulling out fake 
numbers from a hat. 

250
00:13:46,840 --> 00:13:50,360
What would be like a a number 
that somebody would charge for a

251
00:13:50,360 --> 00:13:53,240
design package? 
Most average ones are about 

252
00:13:53,240 --> 00:13:58,200
40,000 for OK the I do yeah. 
OK so I was way off all. 

253
00:13:59,720 --> 00:14:02,400
Right. 
So let's say the customer is not

254
00:14:02,400 --> 00:14:06,280
thinking, is Rebecca worth 
$40,000? 

255
00:14:06,920 --> 00:14:08,920
They're not thinking that I'm 
not going to be thinking that. 

256
00:14:09,080 --> 00:14:11,360
What I'm going to be thinking 
when I'm going to make an 

257
00:14:11,360 --> 00:14:18,440
investment like that is, am I, 
Miriam, worth spending $40,000 

258
00:14:18,600 --> 00:14:21,600
to get this job done? 
Is my time worth it? 

259
00:14:22,240 --> 00:14:24,720
Am I worth it? 
I the customer? 

260
00:14:25,760 --> 00:14:29,000
And that's more of an extension 
on believing in your customer, 

261
00:14:29,240 --> 00:14:32,480
'cause if you're over here 
rattling away about why your 

262
00:14:32,480 --> 00:14:36,040
services are so worth it, blah, 
blah, blah, blah, blah, you're 

263
00:14:36,040 --> 00:14:37,320
talking about yourself, blah, 
blah, blah. 

264
00:14:37,560 --> 00:14:43,200
And they're over here thinking, 
yeah, but I don't know if, if, 

265
00:14:43,520 --> 00:14:45,800
you know, I should spend that on
myself. 

266
00:14:46,080 --> 00:14:47,760
Yeah. 
'Cause it's a. 

267
00:14:47,760 --> 00:14:49,840
Point like. 
I hadn't thought of it from the 

268
00:14:49,960 --> 00:14:52,920
client's perspective of like 
they're spending that money on 

269
00:14:52,920 --> 00:14:54,280
themselves. 
I mean, obviously we're 

270
00:14:54,280 --> 00:14:57,520
improving their space and 
everything, but it is a choice. 

271
00:14:57,520 --> 00:14:59,760
Like you would like if you're 
going to get a massage or 

272
00:14:59,760 --> 00:15:03,960
something and you went like the 
full package of like $600.00 or 

273
00:15:04,120 --> 00:15:07,560
whatever it is, you know, you're
like, I deserve this. 

274
00:15:07,760 --> 00:15:09,720
This is worth my time. 
It's going to make me feel 

275
00:15:09,720 --> 00:15:11,080
better. 
It's going to improve, you know,

276
00:15:11,080 --> 00:15:14,240
like all the things that just 
thinking about myself and not 

277
00:15:14,240 --> 00:15:17,400
really like the service 
provider, you know. 

278
00:15:18,080 --> 00:15:20,680
Exactly. 
And it's not always even the 

279
00:15:20,680 --> 00:15:24,840
exact words that you say. 
So I do have that in our 

280
00:15:24,840 --> 00:15:26,880
preneur. 
I have an overcoming objections 

281
00:15:26,880 --> 00:15:29,600
chart where I say this is what 
the client is saying, but this 

282
00:15:29,600 --> 00:15:31,720
is actually what might be going 
through their mind. 

283
00:15:32,400 --> 00:15:34,760
And then I give you some like 
ideas and scripts of how to get 

284
00:15:34,760 --> 00:15:36,600
over it. 
But it's not even the exact 

285
00:15:36,600 --> 00:15:40,080
words. 
If you have that attitude, that 

286
00:15:40,080 --> 00:15:44,640
energy when you're having those 
conversations with them about 

287
00:15:44,640 --> 00:15:49,160
how they and you're feeling good
about them and you love your 

288
00:15:49,160 --> 00:15:53,200
buyer, you love that client and 
you just want this for them 

289
00:15:53,200 --> 00:15:57,360
because you love them so much, 
that's going to come across. 

290
00:15:57,920 --> 00:15:59,800
Yeah, yeah, for sure. 
Yeah. 

291
00:15:59,800 --> 00:16:02,960
Like you're in it to help them. 
Yeah. 

292
00:16:02,960 --> 00:16:07,600
So that's what you're selling? 
Yes, so and so a couple of other

293
00:16:07,600 --> 00:16:09,480
examples that will bring this 
home. 

294
00:16:09,920 --> 00:16:12,520
Nike, when you look at 
commercials, they're not selling

295
00:16:12,520 --> 00:16:15,600
sneakers, they're selling 
motivation. 

296
00:16:16,800 --> 00:16:18,240
Just do it. 
Right. 

297
00:16:18,240 --> 00:16:19,680
That's what they're actually 
selling. 

298
00:16:20,000 --> 00:16:22,800
Yeah, right. 
The hair care. 

299
00:16:23,120 --> 00:16:25,960
L'Oreal, they got the slogan. 
They got this right a long time 

300
00:16:25,960 --> 00:16:28,080
ago. 
Their main competitor was 

301
00:16:28,080 --> 00:16:31,480
Clairol. 
Clairol's hair color slogan was 

302
00:16:31,480 --> 00:16:33,320
like, oh, does she or doesn't 
she? 

303
00:16:33,720 --> 00:16:38,160
And L'Oreal knew they were more 
expensive, so that's when they 

304
00:16:38,160 --> 00:16:39,560
came out. 
I'm worth it. 

305
00:16:39,720 --> 00:16:42,440
Yeah, I like that. 
Yeah. 

306
00:16:42,440 --> 00:16:48,240
So it's less talking about like 
Nike's not saying we make shoes 

307
00:16:48,240 --> 00:16:51,680
that last forever or, you know, 
like we make them the best shoe 

308
00:16:51,680 --> 00:16:53,880
around. 
They're not even talking about 

309
00:16:53,880 --> 00:16:56,360
the product. 
They're not talking about the 

310
00:16:56,360 --> 00:16:59,560
product, they're just selling 
motivation. 

311
00:16:59,560 --> 00:17:05,000
And that's what a lot of people 
do wrong is if you're selling a 

312
00:17:05,000 --> 00:17:07,760
trip to Hawaii, don't tell them 
how many people fit on the 

313
00:17:07,760 --> 00:17:12,760
plane. 
But that's what we do, you know,

314
00:17:12,760 --> 00:17:16,240
we end up doing that like, oh, 
well, with this, you know, 

315
00:17:16,240 --> 00:17:18,640
package you get, blah, blah, 
blah, blah, blah. 

316
00:17:18,640 --> 00:17:23,240
No, no, no, sell them on Hawaii.
How amazing Hawaii is, how warm 

317
00:17:23,240 --> 00:17:26,000
it is in Hawaii. 
You know how good they're going 

318
00:17:26,000 --> 00:17:29,920
to feel in Hawaii. 
Yeah, the dream, yeah. 

319
00:17:29,920 --> 00:17:32,360
I don't know why. 
Why is there that disconnect 

320
00:17:32,360 --> 00:17:36,840
between cause like creatives can
envision and dream and like have

321
00:17:36,840 --> 00:17:40,400
these great ideas, but then when
it comes to getting someone to 

322
00:17:40,400 --> 00:17:44,720
purchase that from them, like 
all of a sudden it's all bottled

323
00:17:44,720 --> 00:17:47,160
up and we like, you know, say 
the wrong thing. 

324
00:17:48,040 --> 00:17:51,160
So in our I'm going to get a 
little woo for a moment. 

325
00:17:51,160 --> 00:17:54,000
Is that OK? 
All right, in our soul we have 

326
00:17:54,000 --> 00:17:57,960
like 4 components and half of it
is like is the creative side. 

327
00:17:57,960 --> 00:18:00,360
And that is concerned about the 
how and the what. 

328
00:18:00,840 --> 00:18:04,520
And as creatives we live in that
how and what. 

329
00:18:05,720 --> 00:18:08,000
The other half is The Who and 
the why. 

330
00:18:08,680 --> 00:18:11,920
But here's the key difference. 
So I want the listeners to hear 

331
00:18:11,920 --> 00:18:14,520
me. 
It's not your why, it's not I 

332
00:18:14,520 --> 00:18:17,200
love designing, it's your 
customers. 

333
00:18:17,200 --> 00:18:20,080
Why? 
Why do they want this? 

334
00:18:20,760 --> 00:18:21,920
That's what you have to tap 
into. 

335
00:18:21,920 --> 00:18:25,480
That's what Nike got right. 
Nike knows that it's really hard

336
00:18:25,480 --> 00:18:27,360
to motivate yourself to run. 
Yeah. 

337
00:18:28,560 --> 00:18:30,160
No matter how good your sneakers
are. 

338
00:18:30,440 --> 00:18:34,720
Right. 
OK, I love that. 

339
00:18:35,520 --> 00:18:37,320
Really good. 
Thanks, Miriam. 

340
00:18:38,160 --> 00:18:41,960
So I think there's a lot to be 
learned from you. 

341
00:18:42,080 --> 00:18:47,040
And so let's share where 
listeners can find you. 

342
00:18:47,040 --> 00:18:50,280
Where do you like to hang out? 
Well, I'm really having a lot of

343
00:18:50,280 --> 00:18:54,680
fun on YouTube now as I said, so
I'm the inspiration place there 

344
00:18:55,080 --> 00:19:00,280
and I would love to know what 
the designers in the community 

345
00:19:00,280 --> 00:19:03,080
think about like my I know this 
is not coming out till April, 

346
00:19:03,480 --> 00:19:07,760
but I posted videos earlier in 
the year about 2026 design 

347
00:19:07,760 --> 00:19:11,480
trends and how they affect the 
art market and what collectors 

348
00:19:11,480 --> 00:19:13,440
are wanting right now. 
I would love for your community 

349
00:19:13,440 --> 00:19:16,760
to weigh in and if you disagree 
with me, I love that even more. 

350
00:19:16,760 --> 00:19:20,720
I I welcome all the opinions, so
if you like what you heard 

351
00:19:20,720 --> 00:19:23,600
today, come find me over on the 
Inspirational Place on YouTube. 

352
00:19:24,120 --> 00:19:28,200
Yeah, I love placing art in 
clients homes, like getting 

353
00:19:28,240 --> 00:19:32,840
some, you know, not reproduced 
art, but reproduced art is fine 

354
00:19:32,880 --> 00:19:35,800
too. 
But like, you know, custom art, 

355
00:19:35,800 --> 00:19:39,960
one of the kinds just to tangent
into that area. 

356
00:19:39,960 --> 00:19:43,320
Like do you work with your 
artist to like reach out to 

357
00:19:43,320 --> 00:19:47,840
interior designers to place art 
or do they usually reach out to 

358
00:19:47,840 --> 00:19:49,920
more of the end user? 
Yeah, so. 

359
00:19:49,920 --> 00:19:52,040
There's a mixture within my 
community. 

360
00:19:52,040 --> 00:19:57,880
I do have some artists who do 
have relationships with interior

361
00:19:57,880 --> 00:20:00,520
decorators. 
One artist who does digital work

362
00:20:00,520 --> 00:20:03,680
and she reproduces it on metal 
and she has some really great 

363
00:20:03,680 --> 00:20:06,920
relationships. 
Many of my artists who are doing

364
00:20:06,920 --> 00:20:10,720
a more original work, they're 
forming a relationship more with

365
00:20:10,720 --> 00:20:13,560
the collectors than they are 
with interior decorators. 

366
00:20:13,560 --> 00:20:17,920
It's like a bigger investment. 
So with a, with a interior 

367
00:20:17,920 --> 00:20:21,400
designer, unless you know, it's 
like that's going to be the same

368
00:20:21,480 --> 00:20:23,560
aesthetic over and over again, 
so. 

369
00:20:25,200 --> 00:20:26,920
Yeah, interesting. 
Yeah. 

370
00:20:26,920 --> 00:20:30,280
And I think that there's a lot 
of designers and decorators who 

371
00:20:30,720 --> 00:20:35,520
also like to do art, you know, 
like as their their pastimes, 

372
00:20:35,520 --> 00:20:37,720
like they'll find other 
creative. 

373
00:20:37,720 --> 00:20:40,720
I'm always encouraging desires 
to do like other creative 

374
00:20:41,240 --> 00:20:46,000
outlets in order to spark 
inspiration for the applied arts

375
00:20:46,000 --> 00:20:49,320
of the interiors. 
And so I think there's a lot of 

376
00:20:49,320 --> 00:20:52,520
good crossover there for artist 
application. 

377
00:20:52,520 --> 00:20:56,920
So definitely going to check out
your book Art Preneur, and I 

378
00:20:56,920 --> 00:20:58,960
love what you had to say. 
Is there anything else you want 

379
00:20:58,960 --> 00:21:02,720
to share with listeners who are 
up and coming designers, new 

380
00:21:02,720 --> 00:21:07,280
entrepreneurs, career shifters 
about this, the sales? 

381
00:21:07,680 --> 00:21:11,640
Yeah, yeah. 
Especially somebody who is maybe

382
00:21:11,760 --> 00:21:16,320
thinking about transitioning 
from a full time job to doing 

383
00:21:16,320 --> 00:21:19,360
something on your own. 
A lot of times when we're 

384
00:21:19,360 --> 00:21:22,160
thinking about making a leap 
like that, we're looking at what

385
00:21:22,160 --> 00:21:26,120
the risks of of making a change,
but there's also risks of 

386
00:21:26,120 --> 00:21:30,320
staying where you are. 
So our brains have evolved for 

387
00:21:30,360 --> 00:21:36,120
survival, not goal achievement. 
So our brain does not want us to

388
00:21:36,120 --> 00:21:37,960
leave The Cave and get eaten by 
a tiger. 

389
00:21:38,320 --> 00:21:40,720
But don't forget there are 
snakes in The Cave too. 

390
00:21:41,640 --> 00:21:44,160
And any woman who has worked in 
corporate knows exactly what I'm

391
00:21:44,160 --> 00:21:44,800
talking. 
About but. 

392
00:21:45,560 --> 00:21:49,040
But just know whenever you feel 
uncomfortable, whether that's 

393
00:21:49,160 --> 00:21:54,080
raising your prices, asking for 
a sale, making an offer for like

394
00:21:54,080 --> 00:21:57,960
your biggest package, whatever 
that thing is, that your brain 

395
00:21:57,960 --> 00:22:00,320
will come up with all kinds of 
reasons why it's a terrible 

396
00:22:00,320 --> 00:22:01,920
idea. 
And you should never, ever do 

397
00:22:01,920 --> 00:22:04,520
this. 
And the more creative you are 

398
00:22:04,760 --> 00:22:06,960
and the smarter you are, the 
better you are coming up with 

399
00:22:06,960 --> 00:22:08,880
these stories about why it's a 
bad idea. 

400
00:22:08,880 --> 00:22:12,440
Now, notice I didn't say excuses
because it does not feel like an

401
00:22:12,440 --> 00:22:14,360
excuse. 
It feels real to you. 

402
00:22:14,640 --> 00:22:18,200
But just know that's your 
brain's way of keeping you safe,

403
00:22:19,520 --> 00:22:21,240
and that's at the risk of your 
dreams. 

404
00:22:21,880 --> 00:22:27,200
Yeah, being an entrepreneur is a
lot of risk taking and stepping 

405
00:22:27,200 --> 00:22:30,840
out into new territory. 
Being uncomfortable. 

406
00:22:30,840 --> 00:22:33,840
Yes. 
So having to get comfortable 

407
00:22:33,840 --> 00:22:37,640
with that uncomfortableness. 
Yeah, Yeah. 

408
00:22:38,480 --> 00:22:39,680
Awesome. 
I love that. 

409
00:22:39,680 --> 00:22:42,680
Miriam, thank you so much for 
coming on today and sharing. 

410
00:22:42,680 --> 00:22:46,640
And I'm definitely going to 
include links to you so that 

411
00:22:46,640 --> 00:22:52,000
people can find you and check 
you out and weigh in on your 

412
00:22:52,360 --> 00:22:55,320
takes on the decorating 
direction for 26. 

413
00:22:55,320 --> 00:22:57,440
So we'll see what we have to 
say. 

414
00:22:58,240 --> 00:23:01,000
Yeah, and I love your designs. 
I was looking at your Instagram 

415
00:23:01,000 --> 00:23:04,280
page right before going live. 
I love your soft like Gray blue 

416
00:23:04,280 --> 00:23:05,560
palette. 
It's really. 

417
00:23:06,040 --> 00:23:07,440
Spoke to me. 
It's beautiful. 

418
00:23:07,800 --> 00:23:09,640
Yeah, blue is one of my 
favorites. 

419
00:23:09,640 --> 00:23:13,800
And so I think I get a lot of 
clients who also like blue. 

420
00:23:13,800 --> 00:23:18,320
And so it's just a self 
perpetuating circle of like a 

421
00:23:18,320 --> 00:23:22,720
lot of blue in My Portfolio. 
But I love all color, not afraid

422
00:23:22,720 --> 00:23:25,160
of it to incorporate it, but not
like it. 

423
00:23:25,880 --> 00:23:28,680
I think that my approach to it 
in my design is a little bit 

424
00:23:28,680 --> 00:23:31,560
different than some. 
It's not a maximalist color, but

425
00:23:31,560 --> 00:23:34,280
it's definitely there and 
throughout all of the designs. 

426
00:23:34,280 --> 00:23:37,320
So yeah, have fun. 
Well, thank you, Miriam. 

427
00:23:37,720 --> 00:23:40,440
It's great talking with you and 
we'll we'll talk soon. 

428
00:23:41,040 --> 00:23:42,480
OK. 
Thank you for having me. 

429
00:23:49,640 --> 00:23:52,000
So if you'd like to reach out 
with Miriam or listen to her 

430
00:23:52,000 --> 00:23:53,480
podcast. 
Or get her book. 

431
00:23:53,480 --> 00:23:57,720
We have links for you in the 
show notes to find that and. 

432
00:23:57,720 --> 00:24:01,280
Don't forget that if. 
You would like some help getting

433
00:24:01,280 --> 00:24:03,160
into the career of interior 
design? 

434
00:24:03,160 --> 00:24:07,040
I have my design mentor. 
Available to you as. 

435
00:24:07,040 --> 00:24:10,280
An online mentorship platform. 
There's some learning modules in

436
00:24:10,280 --> 00:24:14,120
there, but then you can also 
schedule one-on-one time with me

437
00:24:14,120 --> 00:24:15,840
to. 
Help you with it, whatever 

438
00:24:15,840 --> 00:24:19,280
specific. 
Issue or learning that you want 

439
00:24:19,280 --> 00:24:21,000
to. 
Have for the career. 

440
00:24:21,480 --> 00:24:25,160
So that's my design mentor, and 
then we're going to have another

441
00:24:25,160 --> 00:24:29,440
boot camp coming up in July and 
August. 

442
00:24:29,440 --> 00:24:33,680
So we have the summer session 
and the winter one we had 

443
00:24:33,680 --> 00:24:35,400
earlier. 
This year was so successful, I'd

444
00:24:35,400 --> 00:24:37,480
love for you. 
To get in there, if you're 

445
00:24:37,480 --> 00:24:39,920
thinking about starting your 
business, we can get you 

446
00:24:39,920 --> 00:24:44,960
launched in eight weeks and it's
just the one of the most useful 

447
00:24:44,960 --> 00:24:47,000
things you can do I'm holding 
your hand the entire. 

448
00:24:47,000 --> 00:24:49,200
Way so. 
You're not in it alone, and 

449
00:24:49,200 --> 00:24:53,120
you've got other people in the 
class to go compare notes and 

450
00:24:53,120 --> 00:24:55,240
kind of create a community for. 
You as you're all. 

451
00:24:55,240 --> 00:24:58,000
Starting your businesses. 
Together, which is great. 

452
00:24:58,520 --> 00:25:00,920
OK, you can find all that 
information in the show notes. 

453
00:25:01,200 --> 00:25:03,320
Next week I'll have another. 
Great episode for. 

454
00:25:03,320 --> 00:25:05,400
You and until then. 
Stay creative. 

455
00:25:07,000 --> 00:25:10,040
Thanks for listening. 
If you love this episode, please

456
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leave a rating and a review. 
This helps me reach. 

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Other curious creatives like 
you. 

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If you have a topic request or 
would like to contact me. 

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Simply head. 
Over to my website 

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arworddesign.com or e-mail me at
podcast@arworddesign.com.

