Creative Genius Podcast

Gail Doby & Erin Weir
  • 4.6 (10)
  • ENTREPRENEURSHIP
  • UPDATED WEEKLY
Creative Genius Podcast

Two good friends who also happen to be the two co-founders of a creative consultancy for designers, Gail Doby and Erin Weir share how their long and enduring friendship impacts the way they inspire each other and work through whatever life and business challenges come their way. In their own honest musings, and also in their open conversations with speakers, authors, and influencers, they further their own journey as friends and founders, causing us to further our own journeys, too.

  1. FEB 18

    How to Build a Strong Team Culture That Drives Success (Sean Glaze)

    Why do some teams thrive while others struggle despite having talented individuals? The answer is often team culture. A strong, well-defined culture can make or break an organization, affecting not just performance but also employee engagement, accountability, and overall job satisfaction. But how do you create that kind of culture in your own business, and leverage it for business success? In this episode of the Creative Genius Podcast, Gail Doby talks with team-building expert and leadership coach Sean Glaze. Sean shares his insights on what it takes to cultivate a winning culture, drawing from his experience as a basketball coach and now as a speaker and consultant. His practical, no-nonsense approach helps leaders build environments where their teams can thrive. Sean Glaze started this path as a basketball coach, using culture to lead several programs to new heights of success. With two decades of experience creating stronger cultures in locker rooms, Sean is now a team-building speaker and works with organizations to solve their team issues. He earned his Bachelors Degree in English at Georgia Southern University then a Masters and Specialist Degrees from Jacksonville State University. He has written several books, some of which are linked in the resources below. What You’ll Learn in This Episode: The Five Pillars of a GREAT Team Culture – Sean explains his "GREAT" acronym, which breaks down the essential components of a strong workplace culture: Goals, Relationships, Expectations, Accountability, and Thankfulness. Why Talent Alone Isn’t Enough – Strategy and skills matter, but without the right cultural foundation, even the best employees will struggle to perform at their highest level. The Role of Leadership in Shaping Culture – Leaders set the tone, and Sean dives into how you behavior, communication, and decision-making can either strengthen or weaken your culture. How to Hold Your Team Accountable Without Conflict – Many leaders struggle with enforcing accountability. Sean provides a framework for setting expectations and maintaining high standards in a way that fosters trust and respect. Common Hiring Mistakes That Hurt Culture – Learn how to identify candidates who align with your company’s values and why hiring for culture fit is just as important as technical skills. How to Engage and Retain Your Best Employees – Employee loyalty isn’t just about paychecks. Sean shares the key "loyalty anchors" that keep top talent committed to your organization. Sean also discusses why founders and business owners need to reflect on their leadership style and ask themselves, “What part of my leadership led to that response or that behavior?” This question that can be a game-changer for those looking to improve team dynamics and performance. If you're a business owner, manager, or team leader looking to create a more engaged, high-performing workplace, this episode is packed with actionable insights you won’t want to miss. If you're listening on your favorite podcast platform, view the full shownotes here: https://thepearlcollective.com/s13e1-shownotes Resources Mentioned in This Episode: Sean Glaze’s Books: Rapid Teamwork – A guide to building a more cohesive and productive team. Staying Coachable – A roadmap for personal and professional growth through continuous learning and adaptability. Sean Glaze’s Website: Great Results Team Building For more leadership tips and strategies, follow Sean on LinkedIn.

    49 min

  2. FEB 4

    Getting Published in Today’s Media-Rich Market (Kelly Peterson)

    Not that long ago, interior designers who wanted to get their projects or profiles published had just a few options—mainly newspapers and magazines. Today, the digital revolution has created a plethora of new media hungry for content. How to decide where and what to publish with whom? In this episode, Gail talks with publishing and public relations expert Kelly Peterson. Kelly has over 40 years of experience in advertising sales and marketing initiatives. Among other publications, she worked at Meredith Publishing on Better Homes and Gardens. Having retired from the Hearst Corporation after 22 years, she now serves as a consultant and public speaker. Gail asked Kelly which is better for interior designers, to get published in print or in digital media. Kelly said it depended on what goals the designer had for their business and for getting published. Digital media are very effective for building brand awareness and engaging with prospective clients. Print media is where you want to be to show off your design talents and expertise, as well as to gain prestige as a top designer. Kelly provided a step-by-step approach to getting published, in whatever medium. Decide the audience you want to target and what your business goals are in targeting them. Do your research to find out which are the publications or media outlets that serve that audience. Which are likely to be the best fit for your purposes and your designs? Determine what you want to include in your pitch, such as a project, a story, advice, product review, images, etc. Choose 3 to 5 outlets to pursue. Review their media kit, if they have one. Find out who to contact regarding submitting materials. Start following them to see what kind of content they are looking for. Decide how you are going to engage with them. Develop a relationship over a period of time. Contact them multiple times, at least five or more, periodically. Don’t be discouraged if you get no response right away or have your pitches rejected at first. Persistence pays off. Kelly also shared her insights into what editors want from a pitch, how to submit, and when it is worthwhile for a designer or design firm to hire a publicist. For all the details, listen to the entire podcast. If you're listening on your favorite podcast platform, view the full shownotes here: https://thepearlcollective.com/s12e10-shownotes Mentioned in This Podcast If you would like to connect with Kelly, you will find her on LinkedIn, or you can send her an email at kpeterson@hiptmktng.com. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZTsHa-d7Lg Episode Transcript Note: Transcript is created automatically and may contain errors. Click to show transcript Welcome to the Creative Genius Podcast, Kelly. So great to have you. Thank you, Gail. It's delightful to be here. I really appreciate it. Well, I'm looking forward to our conversation. Everybody talks to me about PR all the time. And before we do that, let's talk about how you got into the industry and how long you've been doing all of this. You know, I got into the industry actually kind of out of a habit stance in that as a child, I'm severely dyslexic and was actually back in the sixties when you were dyslexic, you were put with mentally retarded children and then had to work my way out of that back into mainstream school. And when I was in high school, I started selling ad space for the choir directory.

    36 min

  3. JAN 28

    AI and the Future of Interior Design (Douglas Robb)

    Artificial intelligence (AI) is still in its infancy. But already its impact is being seen in how people work, create content, search for information, and interact online. Only a fraction of the interior design industry is currently using AI on a regular basis. In the not-too-distant future, however, AI will be integrated into almost everything designers and their clients do. In this episode, Gail talks with Douglas Robb, creator of Interior DesignHer and founder and editor of Interior Design Toronto. Douglas also assists his wife Nicole with her interior design business, Robb and Company, based in Toronto, Ontario. He is the host of the podcast The Interior DesignHer Podcast. Gail, who uses an AI tool called Granola almost daily, was interested in how Douglas was using AI in his and his wife’s businesses. Douglas said he is still learning how to use AI and how to get the best results from it. At present he mostly uses it for searching information, content creation (text and visual), and to work out ideas. Douglas mentioned several AI-driven online tools he currently uses on a regular basis: Chat GBT, Claude, Dall-E (an image-generator program), Perplexity, Gemini, and a third iteration of Google’s image generator called Imagen 3. They are all free and fairly easy to use for those who want to begin exploring what AI can do for them. In order to help interior designers more quickly become accustomed to using AI, Douglas has created a guide on how to prompt an AI program on design-related topics. He recommends for beginners to spend some time having a conversation with the AI interface, playing with images and image generation, and creating some basic content, perhaps for a blog. Gradually, he said, you will learn to fine tune your prompts to get better quality results. Gail asked Douglas how he envisioned AI being used in the interior design industry in the future. On the business side, he said, it will allow designers to operate faster, cheaper, better and more efficiently. On the design side, it will enhance designers’ ability to present design concepts, generate images and plans, and present their design ideas to clients with more visual impact. He added that what AI won’t do is replace creativity, the relationships designers develop with their clients and suppliers, and the level of caring that goes into their projects. “Creatives are positioned to succeed fantastically with AI,” he said. Designers who want to stay competitive need to become comfortable with using AI in their businesses and design work. Gail and Douglas also talked about the benefits of podcasting. For that and more, listen to the entire podcast. If you're listening on your favorite podcast platform, view the full shownotes here: https://thepearlcollective.com/s12e9-shownotes Mentioned in This Podcast To learn more about Interior DesignHer, which aims to help interior designers build better businesses, and the many resources it offers, including The Interior DesignHer podcast, go to the firm’s website at www.interiordesignher.com. For additional resources and advice on improving your interior design business, check out Interior Design Toronto at www.interiordesign.to. The site includes a directory of recommended interior design products. For information about Robb and Company, which specializes in residential design and decoration, go to the firm’s website at www.robbandcompany.com. Douglas mentioned several AI-driven programs he currently uses: ChatGPT Claude Dall-E

    33 min

  4. JAN 21

    Practices for Personal Growth and Happiness (Mike Agugliaro)

    What are you struggling with at the moment? A business issue? A design issue? A personal issue? Whatever the matter, rather than struggle alone, seek out advice from someone who can help you resolve it. You will learn something new, gain a new perspective, and be able to return to a more balanced, productive state of mind. In this episode, Gail talks with Mike Agugliaro, founder of FuDog Group, an online firm focused on accelerating personal growth and mind growth. After starting, growing and selling several businesses, Mike decided to draw upon his own life and growth experiences to pursue his aim of helping others to remove suffering and to have life, business and wealth by design. A self-made entrepreneur, Mike told Gail that he discovered early on that the way to resolve issues he was confronting, either personal or in his business, was to formulate a question about that issue and then ask it of someone smarter about the subject than he was. Be persistent and seek out the best experts you can find. Don’t let yourself get distracted by other matters until you get the issue resolved. “If you ask the right question of the right people, the life that you desire is not that far away,” he said. Learn from someone else and get back to happiness as quickly as possible. Gail asked Mike what his definition of success was. He replied that for him success is not what you achieve or acquire, rather it is a mental state. “Success is getting to the point of no matter what you want or what you desire, you can sit in a state of grace and be excited to be alive.” From his years of experience coaching people, Mike said he has found two major reasons why people are struggling needlessly. Often, most of their pain and suffering is either old trauma, guilt and shame that they are still living with. They need to work toward letting go and living in the present. Also, a lot of people are struggling in their mind because they see only the downside when things go wrong. They should consider the upside of the downside. What is the opportunity being presented to them? During the wide-ranging conversation, Mike and Gail also talked about the difference between knowledge and wisdom, what to consider when selling a business, and the importance of maintaining balance in your life in all things. For those insights and more, listen to the entire podcast. If you're listening on your favorite podcast platform, view the full shownotes here: https://thepearlcollective.com/s12e8-shownotes Mentioned in This Podcast To learn more about Mike and the services offered by the FuDog Group, go to the firm’s website at fudoggroup.com. Mike mentioned his book, Mind Power: The 17 Secrets Of Using Your Thoughts To Powerfully Accelerate Every Area Of Life. It’s available from online booksellers. Mike also recommended two books: Three Feet from Gold: Turn Your Obstacles into Opportunities! Think and Grow Rich by Sharon L. Lechter and Greg S. Reid. Acres of Diamonds by Russell Conwell. Both are available from online booksellers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9R1HM5dE1xc Episode Transcript Note: Transcript is created automatically and may contain errors. Click to show transcript Mike, welcome to the Creative Genius podcast. I've been looking to our conversation for quite a while and you are up on the East Coast and hopefully safe from all the hurricane issues that are going on. Yeah, very safe and excited to be here, Gail. Well, it's our pleasure. So thanks for being here. I was thinking back, you and I met, my gosh, 2015.

    46 min

  5. JAN 14

    How Builders and Interior Designers Can Work Together (Brad Leavitt)

    When builders and interior designers work together, magic happens. A well-built and well-designed home is a win-win for the builder and the homeowner. If you've never worked on a new construction project, you may be wondering how to tap into the high-end luxury home market. Start by educating yourself about what a builder needs and the value you bring as a designer. In this episode, Gail talks with Brad Leavitt, president of AFT Construction in Scottsdale, Arizona. Founded in 2013, AFT Construction specializes in custom luxury homes. A key selling point for their properties is their meticulous attention to detail in every aspect of the home. Given that some designers have found some high-end luxury clients have become more demanding and more difficult to work with post-pandemic, Gail asked Brad what his experience has been with this type of client. Brad said that by and large their clients tend to be collaborative, but there are some who are very demanding and want to be in control of the project. He attributed some of that to the fact that projects nowadays take longer to complete and at a higher cost. Clients want to be sure the end result lives up to their expectations. Gail asked Brad if his firm works with interior designers. Brad replied absolutely. “I won’t do a project unless there’s an interior designer,” he said. “There’s a value the designer brings to the look of the home, to the feel of the home.” Usually it is the client who hires the designer, but Brad said his company has also sought out designers to work on projects. For designers who are interested in working on new construction projects, Brad said they should start by building a relationship with the builder over a period of time. This could involve some face-to-face meetings and sharing some tips or industry information as a way of demonstrating your value. Get to know what the builder’s pain points are and how you can alleviate them. Brad also talked about some of the technology he has introduced into his firm to streamline processes, improve document control, and facilitate coordination between the builder, designer and architect working on a project. He has found QR codes to be especially effective. Wrapping up, Brad offered three pieces of advice he received when he was younger and which have guided him throughout his career: Generosity precedes prosperity. Chase experience, not money. Leave things better because you were there. For more details and insights, listen to the entire podcast. If you're listening on your favorite podcast platform, view the full shownotes here: https://thepearlcollective.com/s12e7-shownotes Mentioned in This Podcast For more information about Brad and ATF Construction, go to the firm’s website at www.aftconstruction.com. Brad mentioned a construction management software his firm uses, called Buildertrend. Among other functions, the software can produce the QR codes his firm uses for document control. Another construction management software Brad mentioned is Bluebeam. Bluebeam helps construction teams connect office and field through an easily accessible single source of information that can be updated on the fly. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uK9PqNg-6UE Episode Transcript Note: Transcript is created automatically and may contain errors. Click to show transcript Welcome to the Creative Genius podcast, Brad. I am so excited to have this conversation with you today.

    38 min

  6. JAN 7

    Business Insights from an Interior Design Veteran (Katie Decker-Erickson)

    You don’t last 20-plus years in the interior design industry without learning a few valuable lessons along the way. While every interior design firm is unique, the principles of sound business management and marketing still apply. You can learn them the hard way, or you can learn them from others who’ve learned the hard way. The latter path is less of a steep and bumpy road to long-term growth and success. In this episode, Gail talks with Katie Decker-Erickson, principal with Color Works Design, a company she founded in 2007. Although she started out focused solely on designing with color, clients kept asking her to include an ever-increasing number of interior design services. After working in residential design for several years, she came to realize she preferred commercial projects. Today, with a team of between 15 and 20, her firm specializes in hospitality, senior living, university facilities and housing, and multifamily housing. Gail asked Katie what are some of the lessons she’s learned over the years about how to operate and market her business. Katie said first and foremost, you have to let go and be comfortable delegating work to others. To grow, she said, you need a vision and a team to execute on that vision. “It’s all about letting go to the right person for the right reason. You can’t do it all on your own.” Furthermore, she said, “Figure out who is your target market and go hard. If you’re trying to be everything to everyone, you’re nothing to no one.” Take care of the clients you have, she added. They can become clients for life. Also, take care of your team and they will stay with you over the years. Your business should not become a burden. “Your business should work for you, not you work for it.” Do some self-introspection, she advised. Figure out where is your happy place—i.e., what fulfills you and gives you joy—and pursue that. Let others do the other stuff.  Over the years, Katie and her firm have experienced some good times and some not-so-good times. Just accept that these are normal business cycles. “Don’t be afraid to let your business expand and contract,” she said. Gail and Katie also talked about how AI might impact the interior design industry and how Katie is using it now in her firm. They also discussed the importance of curating your firm’s culture. For those insights and more, listen to the entire podcast. If you're listening on your favorite podcast platform, view the full shownotes here: https://thepearlcollective.com/s12e6-shownotes Mentioned in This Podcast For more information about Katie and her firm, go the website at colorworks.coach. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ogr-1u_8e8I Episode Transcript Note: Transcript is created automatically and may contain errors. Click to show transcript Welcome to the podcast, Katie. I have a special guest today, Katie Decker Erickson, and I am so excited to have a conversation with you today. You and I had a good chat not too long ago and you've been doing interior design for a while now and I'd love to know about how you got into it. That's so kind of you, Gail. I'm so honored to be here. And yeah, I don't know a while that's like a kind way of saying someone is seasoned, right? Which is code for old. And we're now at the age where we're giving back in our industry. Yeah. You know, it's funny. My journey to design was very unique. it wasn't traditional. Like I woke up my junior year of high school and decided I should do interior design. And that is what I love. And I'm going to go pursue that in college. I actually didn't come to interior design until I w...

    46 min

  7. 12/17/2024

    The Secret to Drama-Free Projects (Janine Aurichio)

    Interior design is demanding work, involving thousands of detailed decisions, project challenges and competing personalities. That can give rise to a lot of friction and stress. While you can’t eliminate every stressor, you can minimize them by establishing good project management practices and cultivating mental fitness. In this episode, Gail talks with mental fitness coach Janine Aurichio. A self-titled “Joy Master,” Janine offers an approach she calls Life Styling that trains interior designers to build the capacity to respond to life’s challenges with a positive mindset rather than getting stressed or upset for breakthrough results in their life and business. “I believe our true nature and essence is joy,” she says. Gail asked Janine why she chose to focus on working with designers. She said that after working in the industry for twenty years she has come to admire what designers do and bring to the world. “What they do is part science and part magic,” she said, adding “beauty is my core value.” Janine said that from what she’s seen in her practice the biggest challenges for many designers are twofold. They have an internal challenge of maintaining command over their mind and mindset, in part because they have many demands on themselves and many distractions. In addition, they have an external challenge because they lack or do not utilize a well-oiled process for managing their projects and other aspects of their business operations. “Good project management leads to more and better projects, more profit and more peace of mind,” she explained. It should be core to every interior design business. As well, Janine identified what she sees as the three biggest mistakes designers make when managing their projects. A major one is that they think of the client as the center of the project rather than of the project itself. They are afraid to communicate truth to the client for fear of being reprimanded or even fired. They don’t have a plan for executing the project, or they have one but don’t follow it. Janine went on to talk about how designers can better deal with their internal challenges by learning to manage their mindset. She described a four-step process that she teaches to rewire negative ways of thinking in order to develop positive intelligence. The goal, she said, is to achieve mental fitness, which she defined as your capacity to handle life’s challenges with a positive response or mindset. Gail and Janine also discussed why good project management is so crucial to the success of a design business, the major types of “saboteurs” that contribute to negative thinking, and the steps designers can take to improve their mental fitness and boost creative flow. Get all the details by listening to the entire podcast. If you're listening on your favorite podcast platform, view the full shownotes here: https://thepearlcollective.com/s12e5-shownotes Mentioned in This Podcast Download the Drama-Free Projects Guide PDF here: https://www.yes2yum.com/drama-free You'll also find other resources that Janine mentioned on the podcast on her website. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdo1KPg4GJw Episode Transcript Note: Transcript is created automatically and may contain errors. Click to show transcript Today we have Janine Arricchio on our podcast and her superpower is managing design projects. And her zone of genius is the inside job of managing your mindset for peak performance, thriving relationships, and maximizing happiness. And today we're going to explore the outside in and inside out ways of creating drama-free...

    30 min

  8. 12/10/2024

    Podcasting to Build Your Interior Design Business (Nicole Lashae Ben)

    It seems like everyone nowadays has a podcast. So why not you? Although one might argue that there are far too many podcasts, they are extremely popular ways of consuming information. Like blogs and videos, different podcasts attract different audiences, offering something for everyone. That makes them a great medium for marketing and building brand awareness if you tap into the right niche. In this episode, Gail talks with Nicole Lashae Ben, CEO and founder of Thrive in Design, a web-based firm that specializes in empowering exceptional design-focused brands to tell their stories through impactful product launches and podcasts. A seasoned expert in the interior design industry with over 17 years of experience working in firms and with manufacturers, Nicole found her true calling in helping interior design firms and product companies boost brand awareness and revenue by telling their unique stories. Gail asked Nicole why interior designers might want to consider podcasting. She said, “You should be podcasting if you want to establish yourself as an expert and authority in whatever it is that you are doing.” Podcasts are an effective way of building brand awareness, broadening audience reach, and giving value to clients and prospective clients. Before diving into podcasting, advised Nicole, think about who the audience is that you’re trying to attract and what your goal is in attracting them. “Your podcast is a marketing tool, a sales tool,” she said. “Think about what call to action you want people to take as result of listening to the podcast.” Whether you choose a video or only an audio format, realize that producing a podcast takes a fair amount of time and resources. You have to develop topics or themes for your individual podcasts. You need to identify, invite and schedule time with guest participants. You have to record and edit the podcast. Once in its final form, you have to upload the podcast to the various platforms that distribute podcasts. Usually, this requires a team of support and technical folks to make it manageable. However, the results can be quite rewarding. Nicole also talked about what kind of content to develop for your podcast, how to get the most from your investment by repurposing your content in various ways, and some of the tools she uses to prepare and distribute her podcast. For all that and more, listen to the entire podcast. If you're listening on your favorite podcast platform, view the full shownotes here: https://thepearlcollective.com/s12e4-shownotes Mentioned in This Podcast For more information about Nicole and Thrive in Design, go to the firm’s website at www.thriveindesign.co. Gail and Nicole mentioned Zoom and several other software programs useful for podcasters: Klap - This is an app used to create short videos from longer videos for use on TikTok, Instagram and other social media platforms. More information at klap.app. Riverside - This is an online studio for high-quality podcast and video recording and editing. You can use it for live video events as well as for editing text, audio and video. More information at riverside.fm. Garage Band - This is Apple’s video editing app. It comes standard on Apple smartphones, tablets and computers. Pod Bean - This is an app for recording, editing, publishing and distributing podcasts. More information at www.podbean.com. Izotope - This is an audio mixing and mastering software. More information at www.izotope.com. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbX4CeNkQW8 Episode Transcript

    33 min
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Ratings & Reviews

4.6
out of 5
10 Ratings

About

Two good friends who also happen to be the two co-founders of a creative consultancy for designers, Gail Doby and Erin Weir share how their long and enduring friendship impacts the way they inspire each other and work through whatever life and business challenges come their way. In their own honest musings, and also in their open conversations with speakers, authors, and influencers, they further their own journey as friends and founders, causing us to further our own journeys, too.

Information

  • Creator
    Gail Doby & Erin Weir
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2025
  • Episodes
    121
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © All Rights Reserved - Pearl Collective
  • Show Website
    Creative Genius Podcast

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