A certain kind of exhaustion comes from managing a life that looks perfectly organized on paper. Meetings are scheduled, deadlines are accounted for, and the to-do list is constantly updated. Yet somewhere between professional commitments and personal responsibilities, the person responsible for managing everything can become an afterthought.

Sierra Troitsky opened her design business with a clear plan, and her first months of inquiries changed it. She describes the plan this way: "I started my business with the aim of providing only full service design work, doing everything from initial concept to final styling." The requests that reached her were different, and her answers below cover that shift, what she has changed in response, and what she is still working out.