We recently had the chance to connect with Jessica Nakata and have shared our conversation below.
Jessica, a huge thanks to you for investing the time to share your wisdom with those who are seeking it. We think it’s so important for us to share stories with our neighbors, friends and community because knowledge multiples when we share with each other. Let’s jump in: What battle are you avoiding?
I think we all fight the battle of feeling like we are doing enough in comparison to others we see on social media. For me, the abundance of Designers on these platforms has grown exponentially. No longer do Designers rely on print ads etc, now it is important to also have a presence on social media.
This is also where one can show their recent as well as in progress projects which is a benefit of this medium. However, when you are posting along the Designers who have brand recognition that are “casually” putting their work on these platforms it can feel like your voice can get lost.
I try to remain authentic, and to realize that my clients are not hiring me and I am not establishing long term professional relationships based on what I post.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’ve wanted to be an Interior Designer since I remodeled my dollhouses as a kid in New York. I work with my wonderful clients on their residential design projects and my services run the gamut. I work with clients and architects on projects from the ground up, with contractors when renovating and /or remodeling and when clients move into a new home and need direction and execution of their vision.
I have been lucky enough to work with my clients while in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and now Denver however I work with clients on their projects all over the country.
Many of my clients are those that I have known for years. We have worked on many projects together and I have been lucky enough to cultivate and then continue successful working relationships.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: What part of you has served its purpose and must now be released?
As a female business owner, I always felt like I had to not only be busy and working on my company or at least project the idea that I was incredibly busy. When I was 23, and just starting out in Design in Los Angeles it was all about the hustle. I worked very hard to find the right entrance for me, into the design space and that was with a very well known Designer with celebrity clients. Glamorous, it was not. Instead of being able to get close to that Designer and learn from them I was instead in back folding samples in the sample room.Certainly, that I how you start, but I was hungry to learn and be exposed to everything I could be.
I soon realized this was not moving at the pace ion which I had wanted, and left to work for a very small boutique firm which consisted of the Designer/owner and myself. Unlike the last experience, this new position threw me directly into the fire. I worked very long days learning the business. I shopped for clients, worked on layouts, did the customer billing as well as worked as a liaison with all of the subcontractors. I was underpaid and certainly under appreciated but that was how I figured I would be fully immersed in the field. I stayed 9 years which left me feeling ready for a new adventure.
From there, I opened a home design retail store while also working on building my high end residential firm. Needless to say, more grind. All of this hustling was worth it and also necessary at that point in my life. It was about building.
It almost felt like a badge of honor to be working this hard, sacrificing other aspects of my life to achieve the goal I had always had in mind; to be a (working) Interior Designer.
There has been so much work from that point to now, however what I have realized with maturity (I.e age) is that you do not get a badge for working hard and sacrificing other aspects of your life. The life balance ratio is very important and makes both life and work not only more meaningful., but more successful. I had to let go of the notion that I had to project non stop motion and productivity for others to take me seriously and think I am successful in my field.
What’s something you changed your mind about after failing hard?
I think there is something that I have changed my mind about however it wasn’t after failing, it was after not acknowledging my worth.
When I was younger, and growing my business I had the opportunity to work on a large project with a contractor I had not worked with before. I was relatively green and inexperienced but had confidence in my Design ability but perhaps had not put all of the puzzle pieces together to be able to exhibit that confidence. I wanted to make the contractor happy, the client happy and finish the project feeling proud.
From the beginning, the contractor was condescending and at times dismissive and verbally abusive. I would be talked down to at site meetings, called at all hours of the day into night and spoken to with very little respect. At the time, I didn’t know how to separate his experience with his lack of professionalism. I did not know how to stay my ground and ask to be treated like a professional. I certainly did not have the confidence to put my job at risk and walk away.
I successfully finished that project and it is one of the projects I am most proud of even though it was completed over 17 years ago. Never again did I allow myself to be put in a position like that. While I have not come in contact with anyone in my industry who was exactly like that since, there have certainly been times that I was not treated as professionally as I should have been and in those times I had the confidence to change the direction.
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. Is the public version of you the real you?
One thing I always tell my clients is that I am going to be honest and tell them the truth. I am confident in what I do, and will tell a client what I really think of any part of the design process. I am not afraid to speak my mind in a meeting, or disagree with a subcontractor or even a client (respectfully). I would say the “working” me is as real as I am. In social situation, I tend to be more reserved however Design is so much of who I am, I am always confident in my opinion, even if the opinion changes. I also feel like I am my clients liaison and speaking up either to them or for them is may responsibility.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. When do you feel most at peace?
I am most at peace when I am spending time with my Family, and when my teenager is happy and will hang out with me. Parents, you get it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://theblkdor.com
- Instagram: theblackdoorinteriordesign
