ASID, Dee Dee Dee!!

Most of interior designers in the US are the members of ASID (American Society for Interior Designers), they pay big bucks for the annual membership fee each year ($445 for 2011). However, I think this fee is a little bit too expensive for the interior designers who work for someone else. In the interior design business, the salaries between the interior designers who run their own firms and interior designers who work for someone else are very different, the $445 annual membership fee seems like it was made for those interior designers who own businesses. Most of the intermediate level interior designers who work for someone else make around $40k-$45k/yr, and the beginning level of interior designers' salaries can go as low as $25k/yr, so I wonder how they can feel comfortable to pay $445/yr to pay for something that will take such big chunk of money from their modest pay checks. Moreover, I feel ASID is only helpful for the well established interior designers who own businesses because they can use ASID's website to advertise their firms and network with other well established interior designers. There is no any well established interior designer on ASID's website wants to network with those interior designers who work for someone else because they don't bring them clients. There is no ASID industry member will want to associate with those interior designers who do not have their own firms because they can not sell stuff to those designers who do not have their own firms, of course, there is no any potential client will be willing to hire any interior designer who does not have his/her own business. So, I really do not see the $445 membership fee will do any good to those interior designers who don't run their own businesses. It is not like ASID will introduce wealthy clients to those interior designers who don't have their own businesses and help them establishing their own companies, so my take is - why bother?!! Maybe it is better to take that out from your business card so people will not misunderstood you have AIDS.