7 Surprising Lessons I Learned from Leanne Ford

Timely reminders on creativity, interiors, and making your own rules

The people I admire the most are those who live in true alignment.

It’s an increasingly rare quality — especially in a time when it’s so easy to be seduced by what everyone else is doing.

That’s why I gained a new appreciation for interior designer Leanne Ford when I had the pleasure of speaking with her on my podcast Imprint.

I left our conversation on a high — with a renewed commitment to design a life that’s in alignment with my values.

There’s something magical about Leanne. The same warmth and ease you see in her spaces is exactly how she shows up in conversation. She’s intuitive, generous, grounded — and not afraid to do things differently.

We spoke about so much — from her path to fashion to interiors, and how she still isn’t sure what to charge clients. But what stayed with me most was how she deliberately keeps things simple — and how deeply she trusts her own instincts.

She shared many unexpected reminders — truths that I needed to hear again. And maybe you do too.

So here they are — seven surprising lessons that might shift your perspective, reignite your creativity, or simply help you trust yourself a little more today.

7 Lessons I Learned from Leanne Ford

1. There Is No “Right” Way

Leanne didn’t go to design school. She didn’t wait for the “right” time. She just started.

That looked like following her curiosity, making the most of any given situation (including decorating tiny apartments on no budget), and saying yes to what came next.

And when she did, doors started to open.

It’s a good reminder that creativity isn’t about ticking boxes. It’s about being willing to begin, even before you feel ready. Often, momentum comes after action — not before it.

→ Try this: What would you do differently if you weren’t waiting for the “right” conditions? Take one small action today, even if it’s imperfect. Progress follows action.

2. Embrace The Freedom of Starting Small

When you’re starting out, it’s easy to feel like you’re already behind. But enjoy the freedom of this phase of your journey.

For Leanne, during these years: “There was nowhere to go but up.”

She styled her own tiny apartments, said yes to helping friends, and learned as she went. She had no business plan. No formal training. Just an openness and willingness to try.

When you don’t have a polished portfolio, a proven track record, or a perfect plan — you also don’t have much to lose. Take this time to experiment, explore your own style, and follow your curiosity, as well as the opportunities that come your way.

→ Takeaway: Don’t be in a rush to get through this chapter. There’s value in the messiness of beginnings. Let this part of the journey be about discovery — and notice what excites you so you can start to shape your direction.

3. Define Your Own Destination

It can feel safe to follow the path that others take. We can put all sorts of “rules” in front of us. We can get stuck on all the “shoulds”. But we don’t have to define ourselves or our journey in this way.

Instead, we can create our own vision, and follow our own path.

Leanne leads with the art first, business comes second. “And it’s worked out for me,” she says.

She’s an interior designer who doesn’t offer a “plug and pay” service. And when she needs technical support? She hires for it.

→ Takeaway: Build the kind of practice you actually want to have — not the one you think you should.

4. Imperfection Is Your Friend

Trying to have all the answers — and creating everything “perfectly” — can put a lot of pressure on us. It can stifle creativity. It can hold us back in so many ways.

“Thank goodness I’ve preached imperfection,” Leanne says, “because everything I do is imperfect and messy. But, for me, creating is the joy — and what comes of that is kind of irrelevant to me, honestly.”

This ethos has shaped the way she designs homes, builds businesses, and collaborates on her magazine, Feel Free. It gives her permission to play — and to keep going, even when the outcome is unknown.

“Things don’t have to be perfect to be beautiful, and I’ve gotten far with that,” she says.

→ Try This: Give yourself the opportunity to play this weekend. Carve out 15 minutes to write, draw, rearrange a shelf — whatever feels easy. Let go of any expectation that it needs to be good. Just enjoy the process.  

5. Protect Your Passion

It can be a balancing act — staying connected to why we started, while building a business that sustains us, and allows us to continue to pursue our creativity.

Sometimes, the best choice — for both our art and our business — is to acknowledge when we need support.

“I would do all of this for free,” Leanne says. “I protect the art of it.”

She surrounds herself with people who have the business skills she doesn’t enjoy, so she can stay connected to the creative process — the part that brings her joy. And when things feel uncertain? Her response is refreshingly calm: “If it all goes down the drain, I’ll just get a beautiful real job in Mexico.”

This isn’t about avoiding responsibility. It’s about recognising what you do best — and building the right support around it, so your passion doesn’t get lost in the logistics.

→ Ask Yourself: What’s one small shift you could make — delegating, simplifying, or letting go — to stay closer to the work you love?

6. Stay Small But Mighty

It is refreshing to hear a perspective that is not about “scale at all costs.” 

Leanne has consciously chosen to stay small — allowing herself more creative freedom, and the grace to not grow just for the sake of it.

This choice allows her to say yes to the projects that she loves — and no to the ones that aren’t aligned.

“Just because you can doesn’t mean you should,” she says.

She’s aware of what energises her (creating) and what doesn’t (managing people, running a large operation). Staying small is not a limitation — it’s a strategy. A way to protect what matters most.

And guiding it all is a deep trust in her intuition: “Any time I’ve ignored my gut, I’ve regretted it.”

→ Ask yourself: Are you building what you truly want — or what you think you should want? Listen to your gut instincts. What is it telling you?

7. Let Go of The Outcome

There is often a push and pull between energy and creativity – or any type of outcome we want to create.

There is a tension between what we hope will happen and what actually unfolds.When we grip too tightly… when we’re too focussed on the result… the joy drains out. And sometimes, the very thing we’re chasing slips further away.

But when we loosen our grip, let go of the outcome, and allow the process to unfold — something far more interesting often emerges.

This idea continues to show up for Leanne. Her new book, The Slow Down, didn’t come from a long-held plan. It grew out of simply documenting her home, and honouring the creative journey she was already on.

“It’s just about being loose — and seeing what comes out, how and when,” she says.

Letting go doesn’t mean giving up. It means creating space for something unexpected — and often better — to unfold.

→ Try this: Take the pressure off your next creative step. Let it be light. Let it be loose. Let it be enough — even if it’s not “leading somewhere.”

The Takeaway: Make Your Own Rules 

What really stayed with me after this conversation was how deeply Leanne trusts herself — and how everything she does flows from that place.

It was such a good reminder: You don’t have to follow the rules. You don’t have to do things the way everyone else does. You just have to stay close to what feels true for you.

That’s the real work. And the real reward.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION
Is perfectionism holding you back? What’s one thing you could let go of?
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