Now is the perfect time to think about the coming year. In the interest of hoping for the best but preparing for the worst, I’m reviewing some of my favorite tactics for design business management. From goal setting and time blocking to mindful unplugging, here are six strategies to set you up for a successful 2025.

1. ADVANCED TIME MANAGEMENT

If you fully track your time (all time, including admin and emails), you also need to categorize how you spend it. I create a spreadsheet with the typical categories of tasks I’m responsible for during the year and the number of hours devoted to each. I delegate more tasks to others every year, so I start with the biggest chunks of time I’d like to regain. For example, if you spend 1,200 hours on billable time, 300 on marketing, and 400 each on emails,finance, and hiring and managing your team (and another 200 on work-related activities you may not always track), what can you delegate or outsource to others?

2. MASTER YOUR SCHEDULE

I plan for personal time off before my team books any other appointments on the calendar. I take six weeks of sabbatical from the Saturday before Thanksgiving until January 2. You’re reading this as I’m taking that annual break. I also schedule at least three to four additional weeks of vacation per year.

Next, my admin adds events and markets to the calendar. After that, all regular activities, like planning meetings, leadership meetings, direct-report meetings, quarterly and annual reviews, and the yearly kickoff are added to the calendar. Mondays and Fridays are blocked, meaning there are no meetings. Those are project-focused days. Once this structure is complete, your admin can schedule client and other meetings.

3. LOOK BACK TO LOOK AHEAD

Take the time to assess the work you’ve completed and consider how the year has been for you and your team—what worked, what didn’t work, and what you’d like to see improve. That meeting is also a good time to review the resources you want to find or add for the year (things like software, books or classes). And, of course, looking back helps you plan your budget for the new year, including new hires, salary increases and bonuses.

4. THINK THEMATICALLY

Reflect on what your team accomplished for the year prior. Plan for your annual kickoff. Select a theme for the year. In 2024, my firm’s theme was “Client Love,” and last year it was “Kaizen,” a Japanese business concept meaning continuous improvement.

5. SET YOUR VISION

Set three key goals for the year. Identify projects that need to be completed to improve the business. Who needs to be involved? What does “done” look like? When should the projects be finished? What mentoring do I need to provide for the team? How do I prepare for succession? (It doesn’t matter what your age is—you’re going to leave at some point, so be sure to plan how you’re going to exit your business.)

6. TAKE SOME YOU TIME

This is my favorite time to dive into self-improvement books, clean the closets, organize for the year and read fun books. I also include some disconnected time—no Slack or email—so I can recharge my brain.

Many design firms close between Christmas and New Year’s, and to me, that’s the perfect time to consider what’s next and celebrate the wins. I encourage you to consider at least a few of these activities as we turn the page to 2025.

For insights and analysis on how designers across the country run their firms, download the 2023 Interior Design Business Survey report, presented by Pearl Collective, Interior Talent and Business of Home.

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Gail Doby is co-founder of Pearl Collective (formerly Gail Doby Coaching & Consulting), an interior design business consultancy that helps designers, architects and other creatives increase their profitability. Doby ran her own design firm in Denver for nearly 20 years and has a degree in finance and banking. Since 2008, she has been helping designers scale their businesses profitably and reach financial freedom. As a coach, mentor and business transformation specialist, she shares innovative ways to overcome the roadblocks, challenges and detours creative entrepreneurs face. She is also the bestselling author of Business Breakthrough: Your Creative Value Blueprint to Get Paid What You’re Worth. Her goal is to empower design industry clients to differentiate themselves, drive measurable results, achieve business projections, and create personal satisfaction through game-changing strategies and business practices.