YOU don't have to like it

You don't have to like it - it just has to work.

Tell me, do you really like every dish you sell in your restaurant? Every single dish? Do you like every single beverage you sell? I will be very surprised if the answer is yes.

Surely there's something that you sell in your business that you don't like, or wouldn't use? Do you really love every member of your staff? Would you take any one of them home to live in your house?

Of course not. You serve food which your clients like and which is profitable for your business. You might hate red wine but that doesn't mean that your wine list has white only.  You might have a cigar room but would never consider smoking one. You might hate asparagus, but it's on your menu.

It's obvious. Business decisions are just that. They are made on weighing up how your business will make a profit.

So why is it, when it comes to design, you have to 'like' it? Think about it. An experienced design team has created, let's say, your menu.  But your comment is that you don't 'like' it. It is perfectly engineered with eye-mapping taken  into account to highlight the items you want to sell. The look of the menu has been created to be within your brand rules and to reflect your business to its best advantage.  It has been carefully proofed - over and over again - to make sure that the grammar and the spellings are correct. It has taken a great deal of skill and a great number of hours to produce.

And your comment is:
"Hmm... I'm not sure that I really like it..."
"I like it but I'm not sure that I love it."
"Can we change the font?"

Believe it or not, we have come across this. And have you any idea what our opinion is of people who say this?  And what would you say if your design company said to you "You do what you're good at and we'll so what we're good at".

You don't have to like your chef, but he does have to work hard for you. You don't have to like every item on your menu, but they do have to make money for you.

Let me give you an example. My personal taste is for sleek, modern, minimalist interiors. If I had a tearoom which catered to the over sixty fives, do you think I would decorate it to my own taste?

That is my Valentine message to you. Keep your likes, your dislikes and your loves for your private life. In business, you don't have to like it.