A RECIPE FOR TEAMWORK

We’ve all heard the saying “too many cooks in the kitchen spoils the broth”. Although an extra set of hands is always a welcome resource, too many can sometimes steer a project off course. The interior design field certainly isn’t exempted from this contingency. As an interior designer, I have to constantly keep tabs on myriad professionals that are part of each project I take on. From mechanical engineers to architects to contractors, we’re all focused on executing a project with precision and integrity.

Fortunately, I’ve been in the industry long enough to have tested out some approaches that I think help to streamline almost any project involving multiple contributors. Over the years, I have realized that you can extract order out of chaos, without having to invite conflict or confusion with your colleagues. No, I’m not talking about sprinkling fairy dust over everything and hoping for the best. Instead, it has everything to do with self-awareness and discipline.  I have prioritized two main factors that I believe will help navigate the team through a project effectively and also help guarantee a successful outcome.

Firstly, it all starts with communication. If you’re find yourself faced with similar predicaments as me, exercising and improving your communication skills will have a significant impact on getting the team to work together cohesively. Secondly, working proactively and encouraging your team to follow suit saves time, unnecessary stress, and money. A proactive attitude highlights the need to plan ahead and inject organization into your work schedule. I mean, there’s nothing better than having a team that is energetic, productive, and gels together seamlessly.  Moving on, both of these boil down to transparency and how well it is maintained throughout the stages of the workflow.  It might sound easier said than done, but I find that using these factors and approaches consciously and diligently greatly improves success rates. If anything, you can take me as living, breathing example of the process.

All of this reminds me of an African proverb I came across once. It read, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together”. Suffice it to say that in all my years of experience, the latter has always determined a project’s success.