The Scapegoat

Do you ever think to yourself: “I can’t win for losing”? Unfortunately this thought crosses my mind too frequently on the job. As the least experienced designer in the office I feel like I am the scapegoat for any and everyone. Something modeled wrong? The intern probably did it. Something was noted incorrectly? The intern probably did it. Somebody said the wrong thing at the wrong time? Intern.

I get it. The odds are in my favor…or should I say not in my favor that I would be the one to make mistakes due to my lack of experience. However that’s not always the case. I feel like because of my inexperience I am more thorough in my work in fear of incompetence. Hence, you can’t win for losing. I’m beginning to think that my real lack of experience is in bullshit (pardon my French). Sometimes it seems like the more experienced designers and architects have just mastered the art of bullshit (pardon). They know more than me in general, yes, but how much? I’m starting to believe that they just have a better poker face than me.Should I practice poker in order to further my career?

LEED AP BD+C

Today was a GREAT day! I passed the LEED AP BD+C exam! I am so relieved to have both the Green Associate exam and AP exam passed and off my shoulders! At the risk of gloating, I'm really proud that I passed both on my first attempt. I did study my ass off though, so it's not like I can claim it was an easy feat. In fact when my exam time ended and my heart was beating out of my chest as I awaited the final results, I was certain that it was going to tell me FAIL. I barely finished answering the 100 questions in the 2 hour time frame. I had noticed that my timing was poor around 45 minutes into the exam and started panicking. I knew that I had to speed up and we all know how that can be a recipe for disaster when it comes to test taking! However it when it came down to it, I was well prepared and I knew in my mind that I knew the answers. So I calmed myself down as much as I could while still trying to go through the questions much faster and I tried to think like those tricky bastards from the GBCI that write the exam.

My advice for future LEED APs: carefully read the questions and keep in mind that the questions are written very specifically and can easily be misread if you're not alert. The GBCI/USGBC has no qualms about writing precarious questions.

It's Not Saving Lives...

I am extremely grateful that I have been given the opportunities to work on the projects that I have worked on and that my colleagues have put trust in me and my ability to do the work. However I often wonder when will I have the confidence to do any of this without fear of jacking something up? I can say that I am definitely more confident in my abilities now than I was 3 years ago when I began my first internship, but some days I still feel absolutely clueless. I wish there was there was an easy button that I could push that would automatically enlighten me. Unfortunately I’m starting to realize that in architecture, no two projects are alike. Each project offers new scenarios and issues that we all must address and solve on a continual basis ranging from unforeseen site conditions to budget issues.

With that said, I am getting pretty far in completing my IDP hours and am struggling to get experience in a few categories. Last week I invited myself to go to a subcontractor meeting on site of a project that I had worked on with my coworker. I felt rude at first for inviting myself but came to realize there’s no other way to get the experience. Nobody else is going to invite me along because they’re not thinking about my career and experience as much as I am. Why should they? They have their own careers and matters to worry about. It turned out to be a great learning experience for me and my coworker was happy to bring me along. It just proved to me that I need to be proactive to get things accomplished.

I am still curious as to how I’m going to gain all the necessary experience before becoming a fully licensed architect? I’ll probably be asking myself ‘when will I know it all?’ when I retire too!

For now I’ll put my mind to rest knowing that it’s not saving lives, it’s just architecture.

Building A Network

Last week I participated in a social networking event sponsored by AIA KS and Emerging Professionals. I was one of seven people to present a Pecha Kucha style presentation on “What Inspires Me”. The presenters represented all levels in the profession so there was a student, a recent grad (me), some recently licensed architects, and some nearing retirement. When this opportunity first presented itself to me, I immediately thought Hell No! Why would I put myself through the agony of speaking in front of a bunch of professionals of whom I don’t even know? As time passed and I found out that they needed one more presenter with approximately my level of experience I reconsidered the idea and decided to go for it…and I am so glad that I did!

This was a great opportunity for me to challenge myself and branch out and meet other professionals in my area. I really don’t know anyone in Kansas besides my coworkers and the few friends that I graduated with that still live nearby. This event allowed me to meet some great people who work at other firms in the same area as me. It also gave me the opportunity to give a public presentation while I am still somewhat familiar with how to speak in front of people! Trust me when I say I do not particularly enjoy giving speeches or presentations. I am quiet and shy and I can get very nervous. However, I feel that it’s a great skill to have and a skill that will get you far in this profession if you can pull it off. Considering this presentation was diligently structured by the Pecha Kucha style (20 slides, 20 seconds per slide) I figured I could handle the 6 minute-40 second ordeal. So I did and it was actually a lot of fun!

Here is a small sample of things I spoke about during my presentation that represent “What Inspires Me”:

Downtown Lawrence and the Lawrence Community.

Blogs, blogs, blogs!!!

Bruce Mau and Philippe Starck, two fascinating and brilliant designers.


Children and volunteer work.




The Earth and sustainable practices.

The creative process of movie production, especially Tim Burton's films!


Anyone care to share with me what inspires them?

Youth in the Profession

I REALLY do not want to be the person whining about their age, but ageism is an issue that I face on a DAILY basis. Granted, it does not help matters that I am 26 years old but could pass for a 16 year old. And unfortunately, that is not an exaggeration. This past year I was asked for identification to be granted access to an ‘R’ rated movie! Yeah. At the time, I was thinking exactly what you’re probably thinking: ‘who in the hell asks for I.D. at the movies anyway?’ Whatever, that’s not the point here.

I have found that my age is an issue with anyone and everyone that I interact with regarding my job, whether it is in the office or out in the rest of the world. When I tell people that I work as an ‘architect’ it’s as if they aren’t sure whether or not they should laugh at the hilarious joke I just made. I know that I should technically say that I work as an ‘intern architect’ but for the simplicity of describing my job to non-architects I find it easier to just say ‘architect’. When this matter first came up I would tell people that ‘I work at an architecture firm’ because I would feel a pang of guilt for saying that ‘I’m an architect’ when I knew in my honest little brain that I was not…yet. But that always lead to the inevitable follow-up question of ‘well what do you do there?’ with an underlying implication of ‘so you answer phones and make coffee?’ I suppose in my current situation the former is not exactly false, but I would prefer to describe the job duties that require the use of my master degree rather than my high school diploma. I mean, I’ll be paying an arm and a leg for that degree for many years to come, so I’d like to reap all the benefits I can get out of it. Can I get a what-what?

Things could be much worse. I am aware of this. I am extremely grateful to be young. Everything is still new and exciting to me. However, overcoming the obstacles and being taken seriously is difficult when you look like you just got your drivers license. The best solution that I have come up with to deal with this issue is to embrace your youth and prove your capabilities to those skeptics through your work. The work should speak for itself, right?

So in the words of Snoop Dogg (because I’m young):

“Nothin’ to it but to do it”.

One.

ONE. What does this number mean to you? What can this number possibly mean to me, my friends and colleagues?

Well, recently I’ve come to understand that ONE is a significant number. ONE minute can be devastating. A proposal that is time-stamped ONE minute late can be a deal breaker for being considered for a project. ONE minute late can take you off the boards for consideration! Now I’m not so sure that punctuality was enforced heavily enough in school!

ONE minute could mean something great too! A proposal time-stamped ONE minute early equals an enormous sigh of relief! Whew! We made it! All of those hours and last minute crises were all worth it! We made it with ONE minute to spare.

ONE minute of my time equals diddly squat of company money, whereas ONE minute of a principal’s time equals like 600% of my time. That’s significant.

ONE degree. If a wall is drawn ONE degree off, that could add up to a LOT of extra dollars spent to construct a wall assuming that the length of the wall is a considerable distance. Think about it. Just ONE degree could be unrecognizable to your eye when working on a 14” computer screen and then, BAM! $4,000 (or more) later it adds up to 25 additional lineal feet (or more) of some ridiculously expensive wall type to a project. That's huge.

ONE inch. The same principles apply here as they did for ONE degree. Imprecise measurements can be a devastating mistake. It’s as simple as that.

ONE is generally considered a small number. ONE dollar isn’t much to anybody anymore. ONE minute seems like a blink of an eye in most circumstances. ONE degree - well, any unit of measure that isn’t precise is generally going to cause problems in the future, so should we really be shocked by this one? ONE inch - (see ONE degree).

And let’s not forget, ONE is the loneliest number.

Your Newest Green Associate

This post is coming to you from a LEED Green Associate! Yes, I passed the exam which now makes me a Green Associate. Up next…LEED BD+C.

To be completely honest, passing this exam felt like graduating all over again. Proving that I could accomplish something that is not so easy to accomplish! Starting out in this career has brought on additional insecurities that were unexpected, at least for me. Insecurities that come from 1) not knowing the answers to what seem like simple questions, 2) being at the bottom of the food chain, and 3) well, being treated like an intern. All of those elements were anticipated, yet I have been surprised by how much they have affected my confidence in my work. With that said, passing the LEED GA exam on my first attempt gave me a lift and some reassurance that I am capable!