🌟 What is Hothouse?
Hothouse is an interior design business accelerator, designed to help you grow your business faster through collaboration, intentional action, and goal-setting. Each month, we focus on strengthening a key area of professional performance, tracking progress as we go.
⏳ February Intentions and Focus
As ever, this month we’re setting goals, building new habits, and using accountability to drive progress. Members are using Hothouse to focus on:
✔ Exam studies
✔ Social media posting & content creation
✔ Business development
✔ Website building & launches
✔ Blogging and writing
February’s core focus is Time Management, delivered in four structured weekly lessons, each building on the last to help develop strong, effective time habits.
Hothouse is about learning by doing, and together, we’re already seeing results!
📌 Join Us! It’s Free
👉 Click here to join Hothouse on Facebook.
Or search ‘Hothouse - Excellence in Interior Design Business’ on Facebook.
Know someone who would benefit? Please share this newsletter with them—everyone’s welcome!
🎓 New Designers’ Meeting – Key Takeaways
On Wednesday, we held our latest New Designers’ Meeting, and chatted about some crucial business topics, including:
✔ Trade accounts
✔ Contracts
✔ Web development
✔ Marketing materials & brand identity
✔ Professional photography & styling
✔ Impostor syndrome
👉 Missed it live? Watch the replay here.
⏳ It’s the Middle of the Month Already! How Are Your Goals Going?
February is flying by! How are your goals progressing? Need a bit of a push?
💡 Post in the group if you need a motivation boost because this is exactly what we’re here for! It isn't too late to set modest goals for February, so join in and feel the power of public accountability.
⏰ Time Management – Building Strong Habits
This month, we’re diving into time management with a structured four-part approach:
✔ Week One – Two Life-Changing Perspectives on Time
Two powerful mindset shifts that will transform how you use your time.
✔ Week Two – Systems That Bring Time into Line
Practical tools: to-do lists, time-blocking, non-negotiables, and work sprints.
✔ Week Three – Prioritisation Mastery (Coming next week!)
How to logically rank the demands on your time. A place for everything, and everything in its place.
✔ Week Four – Big Picture Time Control (Final week!)
Not just time, but your entire business. How strategic planning translates into daily habits.
Time management isn’t just about squeezing more into your day, it’s about taking control, working smarter, and focusing on what truly matters.
🛠 Governing Values – Defining Your Decision-Making Framework
Time Management isn’t just about productivity - it’s about aligning your time with what truly matters to you.
Earlier this month, we introduced Governing Values, a concept that helps you prioritise effectively and make smarter business decisions.
👉 This week, I wrote a blog post diving deeper into this topic, sharing my own values and tips on how to define yours.
📖 Read it here.
📲 Coming in March – Social Media Marketing!
Social media is a top concern among Hothouse members. It eats up time, and many designers feel it isn’t delivering the results they want
🎯 In March, we’ll be tackling this head-on with three live sessions to help us all (me included!) bring our social media under control. More details soon!
📌 Pinterest – Get Ready Now!
📅 Save the date: Wednesday 7th May at 1:30PM (UK)
Pinterest for Interior Designers – A live webinar with Kat Dooney of Stripe Social.
Why am I telling you so early? Because we want you to start building your Pinterest Business account NOW.
Goal: Pin one image per day.
By May, you’ll have a great starting library, ready to turn Pinterest into a traffic-driving machine.
✔ Pinterest content is evergreen - it doesn’t disappear like Instagram posts.
✔ Many designers report that Pinterest brings them far more website traffic than Instagram!
✔ It’s easy and quick - no captions, no fancy transitions, just pure visual inspiration.
👉 Kat has also been working on her Governing Values - check them out on her website!
📌 My Week in Hothouse
This week has been slow for me... although, I'm celebrating improvements in time management and organisation :-)
I believe the work we’ll do in March on social media strategy will unlock more growth and visibility.
📍 Thinking ahead, my goal for March needs to be: Automate the majority of my social media posting. And I'm hoping that many of you will join me.
Why? Because automating repetitive tasks = more time for creativity and client work.
✔ In a couple of weeks I'll be moving onto Meta Ads Version 2. I’m learning a lot from real-world testing, I'm looking forward to implementing my next campaign, and will share what I'm learning when it all becomes a bit clearer.
📢 Share Your Goals for February!
🚀 If you haven't already done it: post your goals in the ‘FEBRUARY GOALS & TARGETS’ thread in the group!
Making your goals public = increased accountability & higher success rates!
📅 Dates for the Month
📅 Friday 28th February @ 9:15AM (UK) – Bootcampers’ Board Meeting.
📅 Monday 3rd March @ 6:30PM (UK) – Live Wrap-Up for February & March Kick-Off!
🎓 Recipe For Success Bootcamp Returns – April & May 2025!
🚀 Recipe for Success Bootcamp is back this spring! The dates are 22 April - 22 May. Live classes are on Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 10am - 11.30am, and our one-to-ones are scheduled at mutually convenient times - I'm very flexible.
Who is it for?
🔹 Interior designers with 3+ years running their own practice.
What’s included?
🔹 Five one-to-one strategy sessions with me.
🔹 A deep dive into your business, branding, and services.
🔹 Focus on how interior design practice is evolving, and how you need to change to elevate your business and ensure its on-going success and growth
🔹 A clear business & marketing plan for 2025 and beyond.
🔹 New & existing revenue streams mapped out.
🔹 AND: Exclusive monthly Board Meetings live, with your fellow Bootcamp graduates for the rest of the year, keeping you on target to those all-imporant goals.
✨ SPECIAL OFFER launching later this month! If you’d like to chat about whether Bootcamp is right for you, just let me know!
✨ Final Thought
The good intentions of January have faded for most people...but we are NOT most people.
We are entering the phase where resilience and consistency matter most. This is exciting!
💡 We now have the opportunity to set ourselves apart.
💡 This is where we prove we can follow through.
💡 This is where we build the momentum for a powerful, successful year!
As I hinted in the title of this week's newsletter, we are now entering levels of commitment that will set our businesses apart.
Let’s keep going, one step at a time.
🤝 Let’s Grow the Group Together!
If you know an interior designer who would benefit from Hothouse, invite them in!
👉 Click here to join the Hothouse Facebook Group.
The more of us working towards success, the better
Warmly,
Julia
Founder, Hothouse
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