Conversations with the Inspiring Liz Gaffney

Today we’d like to introduce you to Liz Gaffney.

Liz, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My love for interior design first presented itself at a young age, but it wasn’t until decades later and many chapters filled with lots of life experience that I would finally start my own business. Looking back at my journey, a few consistent themes are what I attribute to being where I am today…

The first is adaptability. I have moved residences upwards of 20x in my life. All for good, and often in pursuit of great opportunities, but moving has been an ever-present reality. Each one has required me to hone my flexibility, embrace the unknown, and create my own understanding of what it truly means to “feel at home”. These lessons have been fundamental for being able to authentically connect with my clients.

The second is identity. As a result of my moves, aka a curiosity for the world and a love for challenging myself, I often found myself in places that were entirely unfamiliar. (For example, going to college in California at 18, not knowing anyone, nearly 3,000 miles from home.) Lessons I have learned from the experience of having to recreate my identity – forge new relationships, establish a reputation, build community, etc. – equipped me to handle the immense vulnerability that comes with starting your own business.

The third (and final theme, for brevity sake!) is an unwavering love for learning. Unconventional learning, I would add. As a creative at heart, I’ve never loved structure, but having an insatiable desire to grow as a human, discover my potential, and figure out how to live my best life, I have been led to countless resources that have helped fuel my courage. Without a willingness to learn and put myself in situations that test my tenacity, I may never have taken the leap to follow my entrepreneurial dreams.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Generally speaking, the journey has been smooth. I attribute that to a business model with little overhead, and a very supportive husband who has believed in me from day one.

That said, the journey has been incredibly tumultuous from a personal/emotional/growth standpoint. I’m an ambitious person by nature, so when setting out to launch my business, I established some pretty insane goals (namely financial targets I wanted to hit) very early on. They say shoot for the moon and land in the stars, but in hindsight I shot WAY past the moon and landed what felt like 2 centimeters from where I started.

The way I internalized the “failure” of not having met my “goals” was crippling – it sabotaged my productivity for months, made me question my capabilities and want to give up and crawl into a hole. But I didn’t give up and I have worked tirelessly at combating my self-limiting beliefs, fears of “not being good enough”, imposter syndrome – ALL the things – and this alone has been some of the most valuable work I’ve done in my life to date.

Thankfully these days, we have millions of free resources at our fingertips to combat these negative thought patterns. So my advice to anyone out there up against a mindset that isn’t benefiting them, tap into motivational videos, podcasts, articles, etc… there are so many tools out there to help you through these things and the strides you will make from tackling these internal roadblocks is invaluable… and essential for your longer-term success.

What should we know about Liz Gaffney Design? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I am a Denver-based Interior Designer & Decorator, offering a variety of in-person and virtual design consulting services. I also write a blog, which allows me to delve into a wider range of design-related topics.

I take a very client-centric approach to design. I believe each individual is incredibly unique, as is their space, and creating a space that reflects their identity can be deeply personal. My #1 goal is to establish a strong working relationship with each of my clients – creating a rapport free of judgment, where we both feel safe to explore even the most outlandish ideas to bring their true one-of-a-kind taste and aesthetic to life.

I would say what sets me apart is, well, me! I love people and I have a passion for enhancing others’ well-being – design is my vehicle for helping improve lives. I am most proud of the relationships I’ve built; I’ve reconnected with so many people from past chapters of my life and being able to impact their lives in this newer capacity has been incredibly rewarding.

Who do you look up to? How have they inspired you?
Oh wow, too many to count or list out! Strong women have always played a very significant and important role in my life. I have spent countless hours surrounded by friends I consider sisters, learning from my wonderfully eclectic blend of aunts, looking up to my sister, developing camaraderie among female colleagues every place I’ve worked, etc. I feel unbelievably blessed to have so many strong female role models… but I also believe EVERYONE has a story or nugget of wisdom from their own unique experience that can help enrich another’s life… so I very much value my many male role models too!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.lizgaffneydesign.com
• Email: info@lizgaffneydesign.com
• Instagram: @lizgaffneydesign
• Facebook: @lizgaffneydesign

Image Credit:
Copyright (C) 2020 Liz Gaffney Design.

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