Meet Erica Murphy

We were lucky to catch up with Erica Murphy recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Erica, thank you for being such a positive, uplifting person. We’ve noticed that so many of the successful folks we’ve had the good fortune of connecting with have high levels of optimism and so we’d love to hear about your optimism and where you think it comes from.

I believe my optimism comes from my faith in God and supportive friends to surround me with positivity, its what keeps me going. I’m going to be honest, staying optimistic can be hard at times, but when I catch myself thinking negatively, I allow myself to feel those feelings, journal it out, pray about it and let it go. What good is it to be pessimistic and think worst case scenario? I’m learning to think best case scenarios and be hopeful and confident about the future. Daily affirmations help me stay optimistic about my life. Setting boundaries on what I consume on social media helps a lot too, its so easy to get discouraged when you see what everyone else is doing and not focusing on the positive progress you’ve made in your own journey. It is a challenge to stay optimistic, but I am going to remain intentional about speaking life into the things I am pursuing!

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I am a certified Interior Decorator and Owner of Erica L. Murphy Interiors, LLC, specializing in Virtual Interior Design and Consulting Services. My company now offers shoppable mood boards where you can shop the exclusive home decor items from my custom ELM mood boards. I believe what sets me apart from others is my virtual design services and I am working on launching a fully curated home decor and furnishings catalog on my website’s shop page, sign up for deets! https://www.elm-interiors.com/shop. When you hire me as your Interior Decorator, you’ll be working directly with me to create an atmosphere within your home that aligns with your personal style. My virtual services are great for those who need an Interior Decorator’s expertise. My E-design service is completely virtual by providing you with a full 2D visual design of your space, and shop links are provided where you can purchase the items from your E-design. The virtual service is to get you started on transforming your space with a visual mood board. You can visit my website, elm-interiors.com, to learn more about each service and book with me. My mission is to live out my gifts and purpose in what I am called to do through my business.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

Three qualities that are the most impactful for me is to: Invest in yourself, Learn from the experienced, Study your craft. Those are three qualities, I believe, will always be ongoing throughout your journey. Invest in yourself by signing up for a conference in your industry, signing up for an online course (some of them are free!). When I started planning to expand my business, I had to make sure the foundation of my business was up to par for this next phase. Meaning, I had to do my research, find out what it takes to register a business, what affiliations should I join to expand my network. Those are things to invest in that will increase your knowledge and skillset. Secondly, learn from the experienced. The best decision I have made on this journey this far was to get a Mentor. My mentor has been such a blessing in my life by teaching me the ropes, providing resources and knowledge from her experience as an Interior Designer for over 10 years. It is important to get around those who are doing what you aspire to do, I believe that is the best way to learn. And the third quality is to study your craft. Whatever your skillset may be, invest in yourself to learn more about your craft. I decided to obtain a professional certification in my field as a certified Interior Decorator. It is my goal to continue studying my craft to help me level up. Fall in love with learning your craft on a different level. The overall message here is: Never stop investing in yourself, never stop learning from those more experienced, never stop studying your craft.

Who has been most helpful in helping you overcome challenges or build and develop the essential skills, qualities or knowledge you needed to be successful?

The person that has been the most helpful is my Interior Designer Mentor. She has been instrumental in helping me with the expansion of my business services. She has been an Interior Designer for over 10 years. In starting a business, it was my goal to do something outside of my comfort zone and one of those things was to shoot my shot, professionally, by attempting to make a connection. So, I sent her a DM on Instagram asking if she would to meet me for lunch. I knew I needed to hear from an experienced designer on what it’s like in this industry. I was blown away by her willingness to help me and from then on, she has been my Mentor to help me with the expansion of by business. She has been the most helpful by sharing resources, knowledge, experiences and connections. I couldn’t be more grateful for her. In this competitive industry, it’s rare to find a connection that are willingly serving others that are coming up. I truly believe that we measure success by how many are successful next to you.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.elm-interiors.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elminteriors_/
• Other: https://www.elm-interiors.com/shop

Image Credits

All Photography by: Terica B Photo IG: @tericabphoto