The Interconnection Between Courage & Design

The dominant emotion that drives many interior design decisions is fear. Fear of getting it wrong, fear of wasting money, fear of impacting the resale value of your home, fear that you will tire of something bold and unique that really expresses your taste. This leads people to go for the safest option—something they do not hate but certainly do not love. It is like inviting for dinner someone who has good manners but nothing to say. Or, akin to buying an outfit that nobody will say anything bad about— but will not say it looks fabulous either. Interiors that are terribly polite might feel safe, but they suck the energy out of us.

Fear is the arch-enemy of exceptional design. Fear flourishes through poor information and lack of confidence—and it gains traction because of the money at stake. Fear also thrives under time pressure, with many poor decisions made in haste. To cite just one example, the builder asks you for a decision about tiles, but the ones you love have a long lead time, so you make a conservative choice, thinking, ‘It will do.’ So many bad design decisions are made because people choose what they do not hate instead of what they love.

Stunning interior design requires courage. It takes boldness. Just as actors and musicians experience performance anxiety, I experience (and in fact relish) the fear that comes when I start a new design project. And just like every artist or creator who has ever lived, I realise that this is a vital part of the process. I do not seek to minimise the fear, nor do I allow it to hinder or influence my decisions. Instead, I use that initial spark of anxiety as a kind of alchemic catalyst to achieve an incredible outcome for our clients. Once we start to gather knowledge— plan, play, and experiment—the fear of only a little time ago transforms into inspiration, excitement, curiosity, and engagement. This is the heady cocktail called ‘creativity’ that has driven visionary artists since time began, and these same qualities are always in the room when we are creating a space that is exceptionally outstanding.

This requires a bit of bravado, of not caring what other’s think and doing something which you love. Being too focused on other’s opinions will hinder you from taking risks and ultimately achieving something you love. Focus on doing what makes you happy to ensure that your home reflects who you are, not what is deemed to be good taste in someone else’s opinion.

Interior designers will help you avoid making costly mistakes and encourage you to take risks. Their job is ensure that everything integrates to achieve a brilliant result. A great designer will introduce you to concepts, layouts, furniture, objects, materials, colours, textures, and fittings and fixtures you may never have contemplated or perhaps were never even aware of. This is something I love about my job: seeing a client’s reaction to a world of unexpected and exciting possibilities opening up before them. Focus fearlessly on what makes you happy —what energises and inspires you— and your home will have the power to elevate life from the mundane to the sublime.

Kate Challis