Meet Tetiana Denysenko

We were lucky to catch up with Tetiana Denysenko recently and have shared our conversation below.

Tetiana, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

The importance of understanding your recognition and how important it is to have the opportunity to realize it, I felt most acutely when circumstances developed in such a way that for some time I was deprived of the opportunity to do what I love – to create interiors for my clients. At that moment, I realized that self-determination of your purpose and the opportunity to realize it is incredible happiness, your driving force, your inner engine, a goal that fills life with meaning and becomes the meaning of life. This is a force that not only gives the joy of development, awareness of your usefulness to others, it is a force that gives us energy and supports us in the most difficult moments of our lives. This happened to me a couple of years ago at a fairly mature age. Until that moment, I was simply happy that I was doing what I love, which gives me so much pleasure! I did not realize how vital it was for me. My personal story collapsed after the full-scale military invasion of Russia on the territory of my homeland, Ukraine.I am very grateful to my relatives who sheltered me on the other side of the world, here in the USA. Having recovered a little from the shock of what was happening and having tried myself in many areas that were available to me during the first period of forced emigration, I came to the conclusion that the only thing that can rekindle life in me is my same beloved work in the field of interior design. For me, this is an inexhaustible source of strength, energy, passion, craving for constant learning, knowledge, the desire to improve, this is a source of joy and pleasure from the fact that you become useful to people, help them solve their specific problems … It is worth listening to such signals inside yourself. Whether you are a singer, a driver, a store consultant, a mentor, a teacher, a doctor, a public figure, a cook, a fitness trainer – your passion for your business, love and enthusiasm bring a lot of benefits to society. When you are passionate about your business, devote an unregulated amount of time to it, this cannot but bear certain fruits. We immediately notice and distinguish people who are passionate about their profession. Personally, I always admire people who are lucky enough to find their calling. After all, from their activities we receive positive emotions, inspiration, a desire to learn purposefulness, hard work.

It often happens that we initially ignore the signals that show us how we can be happy in ourselves and be useful to society. Because sometimes it seems to us not prestigious enough, not in demand enough and many other “not enough” .. But there are many circumstances and prerequisites for a certain life path for each of us. In my case, since childhood, I was head over heels in creative activities: I loved sketchbooks, pencils, paints, drawings, endless drawings, all kinds of construction sets, crafts and the like. My father is an artist, many relatives on his side are very talented people, my grandmother on my mother’s side knew how to sew – this also became my favorite hobby. In fact, everything was extremely clear to me at that time))). But youthful egoism and adventurism whispered in my ear that it would be nice to go to college to study economics – it was incredibly fashionable in the 90s. I liked this study so much that I ended up getting a Master’s degree in Economics with honors and even managed to collect material for writing a dissertation for a PhD in Economics. As a postgraduate student, I also taught for a year at one of the most prestigious universities in the country. I really enjoyed working with students. Student youth are very inspiring and charge you with energy, optimism and an open outlook on the world. But I was never able to defend my dissertation for a PhD in Economics, because at that time I gave preference to another calling – motherhood, which happened twice in a row.
A little later, when the children grew up, I asked myself what kind of activity I could do now? I loved marketing, I really loved teaching, but… I really missed the emotions that I got from being creative as a child, everything that surrounded me at that time. I remembered the words of my father, who, perhaps, really wanted and hoped that after school I would enter the art department, but still did not interfere with my decision to get an economic education. I was a little upset by my conclusions and that time was lost… but I am 33 and I am again on the threshold of an educational institution. This time a creative educational institution. As a result, having received a bachelor’s degree as an interior designer, I accepted this path of mine and concluded that this is how it should have happened. Economic education did not interfere, it strengthened me in my work as an interior designer, enriched me with valuable knowledge. This is how it should have happened… Thus, since 2010 I have been doing my favorite thing -I create interiors.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

So, creating interiors is what I live for, what I dedicate my life to with great desire. I love absolutely all stages: the first acquaintance with the space (whether it is an old space requiring innovation or a new building), analysis of this space, identification of hidden possibilities, determination of its potential. Then careful analytical work on understanding how the space will be used, what needs of clients it should satisfy, how to make it as useful, functional and aesthetically attractive as possible. Then the practical part – creation of a concept, necessary drawings, search and combination of all necessary finishing materials, plumbing fixtures and equipment, furniture, lighting, textiles, decor. Also an integral and very favorite part is the author’s supervision of all work on the construction site. This is necessary so that individual works by different specialists who have, basically, information only regarding their area of ​​work and, each of them, although they have, but still not a deep and not complete understanding of the overall picture and general tasks, the final overall result in the smallest details. Even a client who works very closely with a designer does not know all the details. The designer, as the author of the overall concept, who thought through all its components, is the only bearer of this information. The designer, in close interaction with each link of specialists who work on the project, keeps and monitors the main line of implementation, if necessary, adjusting one or another point, coordinating this with both specialists and the client. Since repair is a very multi-tasking process that often requires timely adjustments.
Due to the fact that I am engaged not only in the creation of the concept, but also in its mandatory implementation – this gives valuable practical experience. And since this happens day after day – the store of knowledge certainly cannot be compared with a person who may have bought a home for the fifth time or is investing in real estate with the subsequent purpose of selling or renting it out and wants to do it all himself. I have 15 years of practical experience and more than a hundred completed projects, endless training seminars from manufacturers of products (paints, ceramic tiles, plumbing, lighting, furniture, fabrics, etc., visiting these factories, understanding the intricacies of the technical features of materials and products), practical experience in using all these materials and products. Constant daily interest, training and practice, the desire to improve our skills turn us into specialists and professionals in the field in which our interest lies. This experience allows us to use significantly higher quality and at the same time more optimal and profitable solutions for the client and avoid costly mistakes. Understanding this benefit and advantage for my clients brings me even more joy and satisfaction in my work. I would like potential clients to understand that contacting a designer is not expensive, on the contrary, it is very beneficial for you!!!

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?

Life is not always easy, not always sunny, not always what we would like happens, each of us can have moments with difficult situations. But the most valuable thing in a person for me is decency, reliability, high moral principles and values. People with such qualities are real diamonds of society, an endless example to follow. To know such people, to be friends with them, to live, to work with them is a great happiness. I admire such people. If each of us strived for this, no matter what surprises life brings us, if this was the main requirement of each of us to ourselves every day, with each of our steps, with each of our words, our communities would certainly become even more beautiful. Each of us should work diligently in this direction. With such demands on ourselves, all our professional skills become a hundred times more valuable.

Is there a particular challenge you are currently facing?

Mmm… Most likely, this will be a conversation about what excites me a lot and what I see as my purpose. I am very happy when I see the wonderful completed projects of my colleagues. At the same time, everyone who is looking for housing to rent or looking for an apartment, a house to buy is faced with a huge number of “self-made fresh repairs” that are either too outdated morally, or are repeated from project to project and it seems to you that hundreds, thousands of photos of these objects are all the same: they are absolutely the same, boring and unattractive – but at the same time, a certain budget was spent on all this in any case. It makes me sad to look at all this. It seems to me that a potential client does not deserve such ignoring of the idea of ​​​​how he will feel in this interior. After all, the surrounding space has a huge psychological impact on who is there or lives there. Residential or commercial space carries a very important role for society – it is obliged to positively influence the people who are in it, evoke positive emotions, fill with strength, inspire, form a good mood. And this is the direct responsibility of those who create these spaces. It would be very useful to involve professionals in the process of interior design. After all, a professional can make even the most budget projects more functional and aesthetically much more attractive. I hear many annoying responses from people who are offered houses or apartments or public spaces in which the issues of caring for the client, his impressions of the surrounding environment are completely ignored. We are obliged to try to change this situation as much as each of us can. For the benefit of each individual, for the benefit of society as a whole. We must create thoughtful, aesthetically attractive spaces so that they serve as long as possible both morally and functionally, thereby pursuing a very urgent task of preserving and saving the Earth’s resources. As a professional in the industry, I consider it my duty to promote the ideas of sustainable design in society, promoting the recognition of reasonable, thoughtful consumption.

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Image Credits

Serhii Savchenko

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