We recently connected with Casey Smith and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Casey, thank you for joining us today and sharing your experiences and acquired wisdom with us. Burnout is a huge topic these days and so we’d love to kick things off by discussing your thoughts on overcoming or avoiding burnout
The holiday season, October – December, has always been a busy time for us. Back in 2020, between furniture delays and limited availability at big box stores, we were the busiest we have ever been. We had an influx of orders and were determined to push our limits. That resulted in us pumping out five tables, three benches, twenty three chairs, four hutches, one barn door, two side tables and a side sleeper all before Christmas. Almost a dozen deliveries, thirty-nine pieces of furniture in twenty-three days. Our final delivery of the year was on December 23rd, just in time for Christmas Eve. We made five stops that day on 30 minutes of sleep. We were on the road that last day from 10AM to 12AM. I remember driving home after we made our last stop just completely exhausted, mentally, physically. It had been dark for seven hours at that point, it was bitterly cold outside, I rolled down the windows and blasted the radio just to keep myself awake and get us home.
We learned a lot during the winter of 2020. We found out just how hard we could push ourselves. We felt true exhaustion. We decided that moving forward, we would no longer strive to mass produce custom furniture. Instead, we would take on fewer, more specialized projects with a longer turnaround time to ensure each and every detail is up to our standard. Giving ourselves time to make mistakes, rework designs and go the extra mile kept the fire that is our creativity burning.
It can be so difficult to strike a balance as a small business owner. You’re compelled to dedicate as much time and energy as possible to growing your business. But what exactly does that mean? For a long time, I thought it meant making sales, answering emails and building. That’s it. The truth is, there’s so much more to it. Although you might feel guilty for it initially, you have to give yourself time away, give your mind space to breathe. If you’re always so deep in the day-to-day productivity, the work that seems obvious because of its financial gain, you’ll lose perspective. It’s when you step back that you revitalize your thought process and you remind yourself of the work you actually want to be doing. In doing that, you breathe new life into your creativity, your purpose and you avoid burnout.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Path Design specializes in designing and building custom furniture. We are best known for our hardwood dining tables, hardwood dining tables. From the start, there have been two very important cornerstones of our build process. First, to create exactly what our client wants, how they want it, from the best sustainable materials available. Second, to create an environment that brings people together. The idea that something that Brandon and I created will act as the gathering place for friends and family alike to share meals, stories and create lasting memories is incredibly fulfilling. It is our way of leaving little bits of us behind. It is our legacy.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Setting out to start and operate your own business is a journey like no other. More often than not, you’re thrown into experiences you never could have prepared for and you find yourself learning bits and pieces along the way. Looking back, three important qualities to have as a business owner are optimism, adaptability and a strong work ethic.
The beginnings of any business are small. You’ll likely face some adversity at one time or another and it’s important to keep your head high and keep moving forward. You have to maintain a certain level of optimism and belief in yourself that your ideas are valid and will work if you do.
Owning and operating a business is not always very linear. You’ll likely find yourself wearing a handful of hats, singlehandedly juggling the responsibilities of a team of people. While this might be overwhelming at times, you must adapt. Learning and understanding every aspect of your business, even the smallest tasks, will only benefit you.
I’ve seen a lot of people on the internet joke about giving up their 9 to 5 to start a business and now they work 24/7. It’s funny, but true. You’re constantly thinking of ways to improve your business, there’s always something you could be doing in addition to the any actual work you have. It’s a lot to take on and a strong work ethic is necessary.
How can folks who want to work with you connect?
We are always looking for friends to collaborate with! We’ve taken on projects ranging from custom dining table builds to full-on camper renovations. Collaborating with fellow like-minded creatives provides the perfect environment for innovative design and lasting relationships. Our goal through it all is to create something special that is both artistic and functional.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.pathdesign.us
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pathdesignco/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pathdesignco
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/casey-smith-40653b27a/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0svuml9VtfPvZdBS5kAfyQ
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/pathdesignco
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@pathdesignco
Image Credits
Path Design
