Did you know that your own personal experiences can help you niche down and speak authentically to the interior design market you serve? It’s all about really understanding their needs and who better understands them is one of their own.
Today’s special guest, Kricia Palmer, is a doctor turned interior designer and life coach who left clinical medicine to pursue her Interior Design degree. Through her business, House Calls for Physicians, she now helps other busy women physicians create inspiring, mindful homes, so they can kick back, relax, and enjoy life’s moments in them.
She also has a course where she teaches women physicians how to be designers and design their homes for themselves. So if you want to learn how to niche down & serve your tribe, grow, and pivot your interior design business to work for you, check out her episode.
Why you’ve got to check out today’s episode
- Find out ways you can turn Facebook community membership into your course launchpad
- Discover how her internship helped her build her own interior design business
- Learn three (3) tips on how to switch careers with ease
About the Guest:
Kricia Palmer is a physician, interior designer, and certified life coach. By creating intentionally designed spaces, she helps busy women physicians make coming home the most enjoyable part of their day. She left pediatric allergy and immunology after practicing for several years to pursue her creative passion by becoming an interior designer. With all the knowledge and experience she gained as a physician, she is now empowering women doctors to put themselves first. Additionally, she is creating a more mindful work environment for them.
She has also discovered how many other physicians crave creative outlets in the past few years. As part of her signature course, Design Academy, she not only offers 1:1 design services, but she teaches interior design as well. Through her business, House Calls for Physicians, Kricia has become known as the interior designer for women physicians and has created magazine-worthy spaces that offer inspiration from busy lives for clients across the country. Besides creating drawings and fabric samples, she enjoys spending time with her family, working at F45, dancing, reading, and experimenting with acrylics.
Connect with Kricia Palmer:
Website: www.housecallsforphysicians.com
Instagram: @kriciapalmermd
Facebook Group: @housecallsforphysicians
TikTok: @kriciapalmer333
Check out these episode highlights
02:14 – Working as a physician and the reason why she left medicine
02:46 – Growing up artistic and creative, her dreams when she was younger, and finally deciding to take a different career path
04:34 – Who inspired her to pursue medicine
05:33 – The long road to finishing her interior design degree
6:29 – Her Internship with Tobi Fairley and creating her own interior design business
8:15 – The fun and not-so-much-fun sides of running an interior design business
10:10 – How she turned helping women physicians with interior design and decor on Facebook Groups into an online course for everyone
12:41 – Her main two pieces of advice for those interested in interior design as a career
- Decide whether you want to do it full-time (replace your main source of income) or part-time (side gig or for enjoyment). Why? Because it’s different when you’re doing something for fun versus if you’re really trying to make money and you’re running a business.
- Start doing it. Ask a family member or a friend and just get your feet wet. You can charge them, not charge them, it doesn’t matter but actually start going through the process and doing it and see if you really like it. Why? Because a lot of people glamorize the designer job – glamorous, fun, and games. While a lot of it is not. It’s like with any job; there’s always that other side of it. The only way you can really know is just by getting your feet wet and taking action and starting designing for your friends.
NOTE: If Residential Interior Design is your main focus, you don’t have to go back and get a degree. You can. It totally depends on you. Kricia chose to, but you don’t have to. You can learn design. There are all sorts of courses. There’s her course. AND there are a lot of amazing designers that are self-taught.
16:37 – The advantage of being a physician doing interior design and how her services nurture women physicians with their wellness
18:50 – Using her home as a testing ground for different products
19:36 – Three tips on how to switch careers with ease
- It’s never too late to change paths. You’re never too old. She feels like she’s only getting started even though she’s almost in her 50s. Why? She chose her family, her kids are about to leave for college, and now it’s time for her to really work on her business.
- Create your own path. We often get wrapped up in thinking there’s one right path or one right way to do things or a certain order. If you’re someone from a non-business background and have no clue what you’re doing, realize that there’s no set path that you have to find and take for yourself.
- Continue taking action by figuring out what needs to be done next, then do it. There’s no right or wrong way; it’s just creating and finding out what works for you.
21:11 – All about the next best thing for her and her business: The Design Doctor Podcast
Free Resource
- Check out Tobi Fairley’s membership here
Thanks for listening. If you love this episode, please leave a rating and a review. This helps me reach other curious creatives like you. If you have a topic request or would like to contact me, email me at [email protected]