Seam

Thanks to for inviting me to speak at the Regenerative Design Summit 2022! It was an awesome couple of days full of good people and energizing conversations.

Companies can create a lasting legacy of responsibility and stewardship. This is usually only possible when sustainability is at the core of their corporate culture. Companies do not have to solely spend their time planting trees for this cultural priority to manifest. Planting trees is awesome, but any company in any industry can frame their culture to incorporate sustainability, long term thinking, and corporate responsibility.

I am returning to my normal work schedule after attending the Regenerative Design Summit in Chattanooga, TN this past week. I feel refreshed and energized after meeting some really cool people working in the building industry and beyond to create positive impacts for communities and the environment.

https://seamdesignteam.com/creating-a-culture-of-sustainability/

Creating a Culture of Inclusion:

In this series, we have covered how design affects a company’s image and the well being of its employees and clients. The concept of inclusion is one that is woven into a company’s day to day operations and long term planning. Inclusion goes hand in hand with image and well being. We’ll explore the intersection of these three concepts in this post. Image, well being, and inclusion are major components of a strategic design plan for any company’s office. 🏦🏗️⛪️🕌🏤🏡🏙️🏥

https://buff.ly/3OIVlz9

Creating Your Image 📷

The first post in this series covered how to create a sense of well-being in your office. Well-being is in some ways invisible, but image is all about what is visible. You want your image to portray your company’s success as well as the value you bring to your industry. Your physical office space can speak volumes to your clients in terms of who you are as a company. So, a smart design approach is essential. 😎

The approach to your image can involve your internal team as well as external design consultants. You may not make major changes, or you may undergo an extensive renovation or even move office locations. All of these decisions have real impacts on the public’s perception of your team, your company culture, and ultimately, your bottom line. 🤑

https://buff.ly/38pNMhs

From wildflowers to red dirt to thunderstorms, I'm constantly in awe of what nature brings to us here in Oklahoma. We have rich natural resources, amazing views, and different weather events sometimes in the same day!

Being proud of where we come from goes hand in hand with protecting our environment. 🌍🌎🌏

👀 Have you considered the way your office impacts your employees and guests recently?

Check out the new blog post for ideas. This post will specifically explore office spaces and their ability to provide any occupants with a sense of well being both physically and psychologically. This sense may not seem measurable, but there are major efforts underway by thought leaders in this industry to make them so. There are a multitude of factors that affect well being including design, layout, quality, color, light, access, visibility, and so on.

https://seamdesignteam.com/office-environment-series-well-being/

💡📰✅With everything we need to get done in a day, it can seem cumbersome to add in an hour or two of learning. We can find ourselves getting out of the habit of learning new information once we finish formal schooling, and now it probably seems like a drag. Most of us were good at learning lessons from our teachers, studying, and passing tests with enough skill that we could graduate. Once we are in a career stage of our lives, we may have to re-learn how to learn. Just like we did as students, we can find ways to make learning fun. This time around, the knowledge we earn can help us advance in our careers and hopefully earn more 💲 in the process. Continuing our education allows us to stay relevant.

https://buff.ly/3fQC6Vd

How I Got Started 🙋
I took a Housing and Home Furnishings class in high school and loved it. I realized that I could have an impact on interior environments and the way people feel in and interact with the places in which they work, shop, play, and live. I knew what career I wanted from a young age, and I want to continue designing healthy, fun, and beautiful interior spaces. A million lucky breaks later, I am working in an industry and career I love.

How did you find your start?

I hope the new year is off to a great start for you and your team! 😁

Inside Design with Kandrac and Kole 2021 - A Year in Review:
https://buff.ly/3pWOadl

#2022

Is it Christmas yet? ⛄️ I hope you are able to enjoy some time off with family and friends this holiday season.

New Blog Post on The Thread! 📝

https://buff.ly/3ptFSrT

👏 Solid Gold Advice from Powerful Women
I heard an approach recently on a podcast with Brené Brown and Oprah, two powerhouses in the world of solving “people problems”. They advised that instead of asking someone, “what is wrong with you?”, ask, “what happened to you?”. Instead of getting frustrated and wondering what is wrong with someone or an organization, ask and seek to understand what happened to them instead. Understanding more about someone’s past experiences, triumphs, and trauma will help you be a better colleague, boss, friend, etc.

Of course there are more gentle ways to ask “what happened to you?”. When developing a relationship with someone, there are ways to approach deeper ends of conversations like, “what is an experience that shapes the way you think today?” or “what part of your identity defines you?” 💗👂💗 Listen and let the quality connection begin.

What I'm Reading: Duct Tape Marketing by John Jantsch

An amazing read, especially heading into a new year when companies are reevaluating their approach to marketing and sales. The ideas and strategies Jantsch lays out are actionable and realistic for all overworked and overwhelmed small business owners (You know who you are 🙋). 😀 🤔 😎

The Season of Giving 💞
A genuine and fool-proof way to give back while practicing corporate social responsibility is for a corporation to get involved in its local community. Many corporations employ local workers, pay local taxes, and impact local environments in their respective locations. To contribute to local communities, corporations can offer employee volunteer hours, get involved in chambers of commerce and industry-related events. Local sustainability efforts are also prime opportunities for corporations to make a positive impact. These efforts can include improving recycling efforts, sustainability education, and encouraging carpooling and public transportation.

I looooove alternative color schemes for Christmas decorations. Which one is your favorite?

❄️Blue and Silver
⛄️White Rustic
🌟Gold
🎄Traditional Green and Red

Lumber prices may be scary right now, but don't let it keep you down! Enjoy the Halloween weekend and fall weather. 🍁

I just happen to be my own boss, employee, janitor, IT support, and secretary. 😅 Even so, the word solopreneur doesn't recognize that I have a wonderful professional and personal network from which I can draw support and motivation. Without their encouragement, I would be reconsidering my choice to work on my own.

So, how much will my project cost? 🤑🤑🤑 I get asked this a lot when I talk with people about new projects they are interested in starting. This is usually after they have briefly described their idea to me, so their question lacks some vital information. The major indicator of cost is the scope of the project, meaning, what a team of architects, designers, engineers, builders, and/or tradespeople would actually be doing to a new building or renovation project plus all the materials required.

This new blog post can help you wrap your head around the costs that go into building projects both small and large. There are a lot of nuances when it comes to budgeting for specific projects, so this is just a general guide.

https://buff.ly/3aLrlRm

So excited to see inclusion and contributions of Native people across industries this year and into the future.

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📲⌨️🖱️Work Models and Finding What “Works” Best 🏙️🏚️🏦

This topic is a part of many of my conversations these days. I have friends and colleagues working via in-person, remote and hybrid models. There are even some that are transitioning to fully in-person from being fully remote and are experiencing mixed feelings about the return to office life. I am fully remote but travel to meetings and networking events several times a week. Before the pandemic, I worked in an office Monday through Friday, and the change of pace and scenery has been wonderful for me. It took time to adjust and build my self-discipline to work at home and accomplish tasks. Being remote has given me the flexibility and autonomy I needed to develop a routine and checks and balances system for my work and home life, since they now often intersect.

Your company culture and approach to work models is important in talent attraction, employee retention, and employee productivity. Start the conversation with your employees, managers, and leaders about the work model that’s best for your team.

Check out the new blog post on The Thread: https://buff.ly/3FoLs5W

Our local and global communities continue to battle with the COVID-19 pandemic and its accompanying moments of loss but also discovery.

What the Fitwel Viral Response Module (VRM) does is enhance our experience within its certified buildings and reduce the spread of viruses.

Check out the blog for more! https://buff.ly/3F6SlJ2

What a read 😍📖 This behind the scenes look into the lives of the POTUS, FLOTUS, and the dedicated team of Secret Service was so interesting and surprisingly emotional.

Hill's perspective covers environmental design, travel logistics, workplace dynamics, and a lot of topics that are just as relevant and in some ways, vastly different, today as they were in the early 1960s.

New Blog Post on the Thread! https://buff.ly/2VCc2GG

I recently made my first out-of-state business trip since 2019! 😎😎😎 I wanted to write this post, since revisiting business travel and learning new ways to stay safe, healthy, and productive in 2021.

As school starts and students of all ages embark on a new year of learning, think about ways you can give back to our future generations in big and small ways. Internships, college and career prep, and mentorships are great ways to further student success. Let's use our resources as business owners to help create the best future workforce of business operators, managers, and owners possible 😎 👏 🎓 🏙️ 📝

https://buff.ly/3y5vFEp

Just checked off “be on a podcast” from my bucket list. Big thanks to .tulsa for interviewing me for his podcast. What a fun experience. Give it a listen, and check out Austin’s conversations with cool Tulsans doing big things!

https://thisistulsa.buzzsprout.com/1754485/9039495-14-this-is-lillie-keener-of-seam-design