Georgia Zikas Discusses "Applied Optimism"

While I haven’t been able to work with Interior Designer Georgia Zikas yet, she’s been a familiar face for years. At this past Luxury Home Design Summit, we bonded over a presentation involving what Summit presenter Seth Cohen calls “Applied Positivity.” Georgia approached us with coming on the pod to discuss this in more detail, especially with how Cohen employs “hope” as a design construct. We also brought up his approach to curiosity as “the most honest form of optimism.” Georgia’s origin story of how she became a designer allowed for us to explore further this topic in unexpected ways. Notebook culture—writing things down—creativity, and client questionnaires came up, along with so much more. We also got to Georgia’s music story, allowing us to travel back to classic rock on the Cape for bonfires on the beach, Bonnie Raitt, Air Supply, grunge—the list is long!Original Presentation: “Designing With Purpose: The Power of Applied Optimism to Maintain Resilient, Visionary Businesses in Uncertain Times” by Seth Cohen | The Luxury Home Design Summit | May 20-22, 2025