A Single Woman in Business
Boy, am I glad I got rid of all the blonde in my hair. Whew! Sure, blondes have more fun but I don't have time for fun much these days. I am all business and the need to be taken seriously in an almost completely male-dominated business is of the utmost importance to me.
Men design furniture. Men sell furniture. Men own the furniture companies and factories. They supervise, paint, upholster and slipcover. And fugghetabout when I am involved in a construction project. I'm surrounded. It's an ambush! Cover me! I'm goin' in. I love and absolutely adore men so I really don't mind, however, men don't design with women in mind. They can't. How could they? How many successful women are out there with lines of tidy whities or suit jackets? Razors or nose hair trimmers? We would never try to perfect those items. So why is it that men design things like stoves, cars, sofas and kitchen tables that can't be properly cleaned? WHYYYYYYYYY?!?!
In an attempt to remedy this situation on my end, I am taking this furniture business by the reigns and I plan on eventually developing my own line of furniture but for now, my main source of income comes from selling other people's gorgeous designs (I only sell things that I 1,000,000% have seen, touched, felt and believe in, by the way). My furniture website, www.discountdesignerfurnishings.com has been doing amazingly well and I am very blessed; so well, in fact that I am selling furniture nationwide to the masses and I need to expand into a showroom with office space. And the place I am opening up in Cold Spring Harbor, NY will be AWESOME!
75 Main St in Cold Spring Harbor is called The 1790 House. It is apparently one of the most haunted buildings on Long Island, so ghost hunters come on over!
75 Main St in Cold Spring Harbor is called The 1790 House. It is apparently one of the most haunted buildings on Long Island, so ghost hunters come on over!
I just opened my fourth singularly owned and operated business and I am a single mom. My accountant says in the extremely near future I will be the highest grossing sole proprietorship/client he has (with no employees and almost no overhead). This is what he says and knock on...I'm surrounded by fluffy pillows right now so there is no wood to knock on but I've never been the superstitious type. I have opened umbrellas inside the house hundreds of times. I live on the edge that way. Oh, yeah! My accountant is right. First of all I am equally talented a designer as my fancy dancy North Shore competition but secondly I am less expensive. I mean really, really less expensive. Designers typically charge retail for furniture and some even add an additional 20% on top as a finder's fee. Me? Never. I give 20%-70% off on my furniture. How do I do it? Volume!! I have been selling out of my house for 2 years now and I sell more furniture than the local stores. Word of mouth is just starting to work and my phone number is becoming a coveted secret. Some of my clients won't give my name out because they don't want their friends to know they can afford to hire an interior designer. I'm serious. This has happened to me many times.
Anywho, it's hard to be a single mom and it's hard to be a creative person and a business person all at once. I very often feel like I am 3 or 4 people throughout the day when I have to switch hats. And no, I'm not clinically insane, this is all figurative, of course. My only enemy is time. Unless Prince Charming hires me to design his living room I just may be able to dance with him at the ball. I've had to do a lot of Home Depot runs lately for clients and I do apply a fresh layer of lip gloss before entering The Big H, but everyone shopping there always seems to be married and most have very large bellies. Sorry, guys. :-)
Despite the singleness, everything else is going extremely well. My daughter is happy! She actually had me buy her a t-shirt that says, "Happy Camper" in big letters. It was a long haul after her dad and I ended our relationship but she finally understands that she has two parents who love her deeply and we work together to raise the most amazing child we can. She is turning out to be a truly wonderful person and I couldn't be more proud.
My life is incredible at times and this time, shortly before my 40th birthday, is no exception. So many exciting things are happening. My website, my showroom, my numerous offers to be on TV. It's wild! I have been approached three times in a year to have the opportunity to have my own design show. With my acting and performing experience I would be perfect for that! I don't have my own show yet but something is in the cards for me. The universe is giving me many gifts and I am graciously accepting them. The Universe is bountiful and abundant.
Speaking of bountiful, I am always working with multiple clients at one time and I am so grateful for every client that comes into my life. I cherish every project and give it my all. Some projects, as you may imagine, involve designing one room and some a whole house. I have three dogs and two cats. How do I get it all done? That's the question I am asked most often. My days are measured in seconds. I don't ever do one thing at a time. I am one of the best multi-taskers one could meet. I apply makeup in the car. I enjoy "fine dining" at local gas stations; thank goodness they now sell things like apples and hard-boiled eggs. I pay extra for full-serve so while my gas is pumping I can run in and grab something healthy to eat. I live in my car. I run places. I wear flip-flops as much as possible (not the toxic kind). I study traffic patterns and know short-cuts. I always keep floss in my purse. Haven't watched TV in 3 years. Pop culture and current events elude me but I do know where to get the coolest coffee tables! I rush through every part of my day except when it comes to my family and my clients, though things like laundry and cooking have been completely removed from the back burner. That pan was about to burst into flames. Had to be done.
I go, I do, I run. I am a woman of action. If there is something not working, I change it. I can't stand when people complain about something when there is a solution. I'm much more of a guy in that way. You have a problem? Stop yer whining already. Let's fix it!
Anyway, with all the running and doing, I started having heart palpitations. Then I woke up one morning three weeks ago and couldn't move my left arm. I had excruciating pain and thought I was having a heart attack. Very long story and a few specialists later, I was diagnosed with stress. My wonderful doctor told me to get a babysitter and sip some gin and tonics. What a prescription! I much prefer dirty martinis but the point was well taken. It is now day two of the new, more relaxed me and I feel so much better. I've never been much of a drinker but yesterday I enjoyed a margarita and today a glass of red wine. I breathed more and took my time with daily activities when feasible. Life should have a balance and I am seeking that right now. It is a process, for sure. Writing has always been something I really enjoy, so here I am. I am putting it out there into the universe that I will work smarter, not harder and I will find time and money to do things I enjoy. I am also tossing it out there that I will meet a wonderful person who cares for me as much as I do him.
And I will dream about that tonight. Oh, it's 3:36 AM already so tonight has passed. Client meeting at 10:30. Family party at 1. Have to get a card, pick up cat food, research furniture, optimize the new site, create two purchase orders, attend a mini-golf event. Ok, okaaaay. Got that all out. Exhale. So now I can rest peacefully and it will all get done in due time. And maybe Monday will be a manicure day.
My mind wanders...There are so many things I want to do in this life; most of which involve money, hence the working-my-butt-off (though I wish I could do that literally). I want to build a house. I want to live in California. I want to see Africa, Asia and all of the parts of Europe I have never explored. I want to see where my family is from in Scilla, Italy. I want to go to St. Barth's and sprinkle my Uncle David's ashes in the ocean there, as was his request when he passed suddenly and too soon at age 40. I want to go to Brazil, see the rainforest and then help save it. I want to swim with dolphins; rent a helicopter and rescue drowning polar bears. And my daughter should accompany me on every trip. Take it from someone who has seen a lot of the world; it's amazing, eye-opening, thrilling and everyone should have the opportunity to do it. It breeds tolerance, increases awareness, grows knowledge, wisdom and a greater sense of humanity. So important!
I just opened my fourth singularly owned and operated business and I am a single mom. My accountant says in the extremely near future I will be the highest grossing sole proprietorship/client he has (with no employees and almost no overhead). I will soon be a millionaire, says he and knock on...I'm surrounded by fluffy pillows right now so there is no wood to knock on but I've never been the superstitious type. I have opened umbrellas inside the house hundreds of times. I live on the edge that way. Oh, yeah!
It's hard to be single but it's even more frustrating to not have the time to leave the house, office or client meeting to be able to meet someone. Unless Prince Charming hires me to design his living room I just may be alone forever. I've had to do a lot of Home Depot runs lately for clients and I do apply a fresh layer of lip gloss before entering The Big H, but everyone shopping there always seems to be married and most have very large bellies. Sorry, guys. :-)
Despite the singleness, everything else is going extremely well. My daughter is happy! She actually had me buy her a t-shirt that says, "Happy Camper" in big letters. It was a long haul after her dad and I ended our relationship but she finally understands that she has two parents who love her deeply and we work together to raise the most amazing child we can. She is turning out to be a truly wonderful person and I couldn't be more proud.
My life is incredible at times and this time, shortly before my 40th birthday, is no exception. So many exciting things are happening. I have been approached three times in a year to have the opportunity to have my own design show on TV. With my acting and performing training and experience I would be perfect for that! I don't have my own show yet but something is in the cards for me. The universe is giving me many gifts and I am graciously accepting them.
In addition to my interior design business, I also have a furniture website, an Amazon store and I will have a beautiful showroom opening in July of 2012. I am always working with multiple clients at one time, some projects involve designing one room and some a whole house. I have three dogs and two cats. How do I get it all done? That's the question I am asked most often. My days are measured in seconds. I don't ever do one thing at a time. I am one of the best multi-taskers one could meet. I apply makeup in the car. I enjoy "fine dining" at local gas stations; thank goodness they now sell things like apples and hard-boiled eggs. I pay extra for full-serve so while my gas is pumping I can run in and grab something healthy to eat. I live in my car. I run places. I wear flip-flops as much as possible (not the toxic kind). I study traffic patterns and know short-cuts. I always keep floss in my purse. Haven't watched TV in 3 years. Pop culture and current events elude me but I do know where to get the coolest coffee tables! I rush through every part of my day except when it comes to my family and my clients, though things like laundry and cooking have been completely removed from the back burner. That pan was about to burst into flames. Had to be done.
I go, I do, I run. I am a woman of action. If there is something not working, I change it. I can't stand when people complain about something when there is a solution. I'm much more of a guy in that way. You have a problem? Stop yer whining already. Let's fix it!
Anyway, with all the running and doing, I started having heart palpitations. Then I woke up one morning three weeks ago and couldn't move my left arm. I had excruciating pain and thought I was having a heart attack. Very long story and a few specialists later, I was diagnosed with stress. My wonderful doctor told me to get a babysitter and sip some gin and tonics. What a prescription! I much prefer dirty martinis but the point was well taken. It is now day two of the new, more relaxed me and I feel so much better. I've never been much of a drinker but yesterday I enjoyed a margarita and today a glass of red wine. I breathed more and took my time with daily activities when feasible. Life should have a balance and I am seeking that right now. It is a process, for sure. Writing has always been something I really enjoy, so here I am. I am putting it out there into the universe that I will work smarter, not harder and I will find time and money to do things I enjoy. I am also tossing it out there that I will meet a wonderful person who cares for me as much as I do him.
Anyway, with all the running and doing, I started having heart palpitations. Then I woke up one morning three weeks ago and couldn't move my left arm. I had excruciating pain and thought I was having a heart attack. Very long story and a few specialists later, I was diagnosed with stress. My wonderful doctor told me to get a babysitter and sip some gin and tonics. What a prescription! I much prefer dirty martinis but the point was well taken. It is now day two of the new, more relaxed me and I feel so much better. I've never been much of a drinker but yesterday I enjoyed a margarita and today a glass of red wine. I breathed more and took my time with daily activities when feasible. Life should have a balance and I am seeking that right now. It is a process, for sure. Writing has always been something I really enjoy, so here I am. I am putting it out there into the universe that I will work smarter, not harder and I will find time and money to do things I enjoy. I am also tossing it out there that I will meet a wonderful person who cares for me as much as I do him.
And I will dream about that tonight. Oh, it's 3:36 AM already so tonight has passed. Client meeting at 10:30. Family party at 1. Have to get a card, pick up cat food, research furniture, optimize the new site, create two purchase orders, attend a mini-golf event. Ok, okaaaay. Got that all out. Exhale. So now I can rest peacefully and it will all get done in due time. And maybe Monday will be a manicure day.
