Don´t Let a Grade Determine If You Can Be a Home Stager

Debra Gould
There´s a new phenomenon I´m dealing with as the operator of a home staging training program that I´ve never had to deal with before.

I´ve been receiving many teary phone calls from people who have taken another training program who "just" fell short of the 80% required to "qualify" for guaranteed employment as a home stager. Many of them find that no matter how educated or talented they are, or how long they´ve been staging homes on their own, they can´t get that elusive 80% needed to successfully complete the program for the "guaranteed job."

This ends up destroying the stager´s confidence to the point that they feel like they don´t have what it takes to make it in this industry and often that couldn´t be farther from the truth.

When you have an organization offering guaranteed employment, you have to question the promise being made. I don´t know how anyone can guarantee employment in any field, anywhere in this economy.

Read the fine print attached to any claim that sounds too good to be true. If it has been set up so that only those that get 80% qualify for a guaranteed job, how easy do you think they´re going to make it for people to meet that mark? Isn´t it one giant loop hole?


If you´ve taken your training from one of these companies and have had your confidence shaken because you weren´t able to make the grade, please don´t let that stop you from pursuing your dream.

It doesn´t mean that you aren´t cut out to be a home stager and it doesn´t mean that you´ll never find work as a home stager. All it means is that you are one of many talented people who weren´t able to qualify for jobs that may or may not actually exist.

Read through some of these Staging Diva Graduate Success Stories and see how well others are doing without having to jump through hoops trying to attain a particular grade or holding out for "guaranteed jobs".
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Debra Gould

Debra Gould, aka The Staging DivaŽ, is President of Six Elements Inc., an internationally recognized home staging company. Inspired by many requests from aspiring home stagers wanting to start similar businesses, Gould created the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program.

Gould has trained 7,000+ Staging Diva students in over 21 countries to start their own businesses. All shared a natural talent for decorating and interest in real estate, but didn't know how to make a living in their own house staging business before learning her secrets.

Debra Gould's mission is to inspire and empower others to use their natural talents to earn a living. She followed her dreams and wants to teach others to be able to do the same.

Gould pursued an MBA in Marketing and began a corporate career before moving to advertising. In the 1980s, she launched one of the first integrated marketing firms, which she ran for 10 years. Wanting a more creative life, Debra gave it up to design home accessories. She created the Debra Gould Home Collection, landing a magazine cover story and book feature, followed by her first of several HGTV appearances.

Buying decorating and selling six of her own homes in four years lead to an interest in real estate staging which she turned into a new staging career with the launch of sixelements.com in 2002. Since that time she has staged homes for hundreds of clients in addition to providing home staging training.

Gould is the author of "Staging Diva Ultimate Design Guide: Home staging tips, tricks and floor plans", "Staging Diva Ultimate Color Guide: The easy way to pick colors for home staging projects", and "Staging Diva Ultimate Portfolio Guide: Winning clients with the perfect home staging portfolio".

In addition to HGTV, Debra Gould's media coverage includes: CityTV, GlobalTV, CBC, CBS Radio, CNNMoney, Wall Street Journal, Woman's Day, Reader's Digest, MoneySense, Entrepreneur, House and Home, Home & Decor, Style at Home, Centre of the City, USAA Magazine, FabJob Guide to Become a Home Stager, Home Style, National Post Homes, This Old House, Home Business Magazine, Globe & Mail and others.

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