1๐๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐บ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐๐ผ ๐๐๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ฑ ๐จ๐ป๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐๐ - 2 ๐๐ฟ๐๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ผ๐ป๐ ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐๐ผ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ป ๐๐ก
In 2003, I was working full-time at Phones4U on Kensington High Street.
Remember them? ๐ฑ
I had just finished my A-levels and was at a crossroads:
Should I dive into full-time work or take a leap of faith and apply to university? ๐ค
During the quieter moments at the store, I often found myself thinking:
๐๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ด ๐ช๐ต... ๐ด๐ฆ๐ญ๐ญ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฑ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ด?
Six weeks into the job, I knew it wasnโt my future. I needed something more, so I started reviewing university prospectuses, searching for a path that felt right.
Here are the two essential lessons I learned:
1๏ธโฃ ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐น๐ณ-๐ถ๐ป๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ถ๐๐ฎ๐น ๐๐ผ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ด๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐
As one of seven kids, four girls and three boys, Iโm the only one who attended university through the traditional undergraduate route.
My parents didnโt push me, and I didnโt have a mentor in the industry to guide me. But thatโs where self-initiative came in.
Why Interior Design?
I was drawn to architecture and 3D product design, especially orthographic drawing. But architecture seemed too long, and product design didnโt fully resonate with me. Interior Design offered the best of both worldsโand it was a three-year degree!
My 19-year-old logic: "People spend most of their time inside anyway."
2๏ธโฃ ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐น๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ผ ๐๐ฎ๐น๐ธ ๐ฎ๐น๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ด๐ผ ๐ฎ๐น๐น ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ช
I spent my first year living at home, and isolation hit hard.
It took me a while to get comfortable with my classmates and the workload; I regularly questioned whether I made the right choice. Back home, my friends were supportive, but as our interests diverged, so did our paths.
By the end of that first year, I realised the journey might be lonely, but I had to embrace it and keep going.
I moved in with some uni mates for the second year and kept reminding myself: Itโs okay; this will be worth it, and it was!
Leaving my comfort zone was tough, but going โall inโ was necessary to become the designer I aspired to be.
Looking back, Iโm grateful to be the first in my family to attend university and hopeful I wonโt be the last.
Thanks for reading.
