Episodes
This will be the 5th time in 5,209 days that I have put my opinions about taking on extra work outside of your normal job and typically during ridiculous hours of the day and night. This practice has come to be known as “moonlighting” and depending on your age and where you are at in your career, it is either the light at the end of the tunnel or an oncoming train. Andrew and I originally had something else scheduled for today’s show but this topic has been forcing itself into my brain over...
Published 04/21/24
Published 04/21/24
You check the time and realize that you have 4 minutes before your next meeting. Maybe it’s an internal meeting, maybe clients are coming in. Is it in person or online? Depending on how you answer those questions, time to start scrambling so that you are where you need to be and have the information required to make this meeting a good use of your time. But guess what? I promise that you will end up waiting on someone … maybe you are that someone. Either way, you aren’t getting that time back...
Published 04/07/24
How good do you need to be at drawing if you want to become an architect? Or … How can I be an architect – I can’t draw? Is there an easy answer to these questions? Of course there is, but that doesn’t mean the getting is easy.
Published 03/24/24
Tracking productivity, Bucket list vacation, Leadership styles, and Learning how to Draw Details ... We answer these questions and more today on Ep 146: Ask the Show Spring 2024
Published 03/10/24
If you have ever wondered what Delegated Design and Design Assist mean and how the distinction between the two could impact you and your liability and responsibility then this is a good resource of information as we break it down and discuss it in fairly simple terms.
Published 02/25/24
From a design standpoint, some things are just cooler than other things – and these things don’t need to be justified to anyone because people either understand it or they don’t … but that doesn’t mean there isn’t an interesting and amazing story behind these objects that might contribute to their coolness in a meaningful way. Today Andrew and I each selected three items and we are going to share with you some amazing stories …  Welcome to EP 144: Objects of Design [Note: If you are...
Published 02/11/24
The episode "Architectural Drawings: Excessive or Essential" will focus on drawings and the question that first comes to mind is to talk about what we draw, why we draw it, and who we draw it for and why that impacts all other considerations
Published 01/28/24
In Episode 142: When I Grow Up, Andrew and I discuss how things take place that divert you from your expected path as you move through your career. It's a natural evolution to move into new roles and responsibilities that break the idea you have for yourself when you decided to chart your future.
Published 01/14/24
As the end of the 2023 season comes to an end, Life of an Architect looks at Fan Favorite Episodes, the Blog posts, and the graphics created to support the topics.
Published 12/17/23
Drawings have always played a role in the process of study and discussion of what we do and why we do it. Today we are going to look at the different forms of drawing and talk about when they are used and how we align these different drawing types and the messages they convey as we discuss "Communicating Through Drawings"
Published 12/10/23
It’s almost that gift-giving time of the year and if you have an architect in your life, you know that getting them a gift is potentially the most agonizing experience possible - but that’s why we’re here. Now in its 14th consecutive year, Welcome to Episode 139 Holiday Gift Guide for Architects 2023!
Published 11/26/23
Are students graduating from architecture school prepared for the profession? Is the educational system aligned with the workplace? What is the best software to teach students? Can we all just get along? We started this exploration of the idea that Architecture School may need some modifications in Episode 137. The system needs to change to provide the skills, knowledge, and pathways for the future of the profession, but what else may need to be addressed? What does all of this mean to...
Published 11/12/23
The architectural education system hasn't been around for that long, yet it has it's issues and concerns. So that leads us to ask the question... Is Architecture School Broken? Join us for Part One of the conversation in Episode 137. We discuss the short history of arch edu, some common concerns with the system, and the shortcomings of the studio-based learning environments.
Published 10/29/23
What is the difference between Leadership and Management – there is definitely some overlap, but the key distinction lies in … wait, you thought I was going to tell you in the opening? It’s going to take some time to talk through those distinctions before we get there …Welcome to EP 136: Leadership vs. Management [Note: If you are reading this via email, click here to access the on-site audio player] googletag.cmd.push(function() {...
Published 10/15/23
It was podcast Episode 130: Employee Evaluations, and Andrew and I were discussing the process and criteria used to assess and measure an individual employee’s performance when we made the point that there would be value in creating a process where upward evaluations could be implemented, one that allowed the employee to share their thoughts and opinions on what mattered to them from their managers, from their team leads, even their employers. We decided to have that discussion to do just...
Published 10/01/23
Today we are talking about firm management – but at a fairly introductory level so that we can focus on a broad range of considerations that are applicable to a broader range of individuals who are transitioning into management roles.
Published 09/17/23
Management transition, Where to start a design, the Role of Artificial Intelligence in architecture, and What Cocktail Should Architects drink ... We answer your questions today on Ep 133: Ask the Show. Fall 2023
Published 09/04/23
You have made the decision where to study architecture. You've chosen the architecture school and your degree path. So now what? How much work is this going to be? How much will this cost? We covered some issues in Part 1, and now we will finish the monumental task of summarizing what it's like to start architecture school.
Published 08/20/23
So you are thinking about starting architecture school or looking to study architecture. Well, no matter your situation; we’ve got you covered today with all the introductory info in Episode 131: Starting Architecture School Part 1.
Published 08/06/23
In this episode we discuss the role that structured and organized employee evaluations have a valuable role to play in the process of evaluating the role that employees fill in any office environment
Published 07/23/23
Historically, modern trends in the AEC industry do not provide for buildings with a longer life span. In 'Built to Last' we will discuss ways to improve the lifespan of buildings through mitigating various aspects of impact on the built environment.
Published 07/09/23
Focus is a subject matter that warrants revisited attention from each of us as it is something that is in a constant state of change and in need of improvement.
Published 06/25/23
Do architects have a responsibility to acknowledge the time, place and style of architecture they design? How does form based zoning figure into this? Context and Design are the topics we are exploring in today's episode.
Published 06/11/23
Almost 4 years to the day and 100 episodes later, Andrew and I are going to go through an architectural bucket list of people places, and things. I don’t know what Andrew has in mind but I’m feeling that my list will inspire you and change your life…
Published 05/29/23