I used to have this idea that style was not that important. That we have the ability as Architects to create within a lot of different styles and a huge range of design capabilities. But the more I progress through my career the more I realize

Excitement and long projects

Feb 16th, 2020 3m 8s

Do you ever just get bored after a while of working on a project for so long? You know, how do you keep the excitement level up? Yes. I do get bored. I get to the point where I’m just wanting to speed things up to finish but things take time. Y

Are you doing work you care about?

Feb 9th, 2020 2m 8s

All right. So are you doing work that you care about. I mean, are you doing work that fulfills you. Things that lift you up? Are you focused on a cause that you can feel like you can stand behind? I haven’t found mine. At least. I don’t think I

Because you want to.

Feb 2nd, 2020 1m 23s

There’s nothing wrong with doing something just because you want to. Or wanting to try something new that might conflict with what you told yourself you were. We want new challenges. We get bored with the world we’re in if it’s stagnant. When w

Process

Jan 26th, 2020 1m 42s

Is your process written down and is it fluid? We should always be refining our process for creating and designing architecture. In order to create a process. One that allows you and your clients to have the most success with each and every proj

Are your clients making a mistake?

Jan 19th, 2020 1m 47s

Is it the right time for them to be renovating their house? Do they have other parts of their life together? I try to figure this out all the time. Is a renovation what they should be doing right now? Or is it something they’re using to distrac

Having trouble coming up with ideas?

Jan 12th, 2020 1m 44s

Having trouble coming up with designs? You have to start drawing. I know it feels strange to start drawing without knowing what you’re going to draw. You have to break the tension you have with the page. You look at the blank page and where do

The Unknown

Jan 5th, 2020 2m 25s

The unknown is the scariest part of architecture. Things will arise later and derail the momentum of the project if the question is not asked now. Assumptions you made will spring up and try to correct themselves. Those are the things that are

Think like an Architect

Dec 29th, 2019 1m 58s

There are two kinds of Architecture schools. Practical based and theory based. When people ask me what architecture school was like, I usually say the school I went to was very theory based. Meaning all the day to day the business side of archi

Architecture School

Dec 22nd, 2019 2m 14s

I’ve been hearing a lot lately about schools. How they’re overpriced. How they don’t prepare you. How you rack up debt for no reason. How you can do without college for some of today’s jobs. Architecture isn’t one of them. View this post on Ins

The key to becoming a professional

Dec 15th, 2019 52s

Responsibility. The key to becoming a professional. Being an Architect that your clients respect. The expert. The one people depend on. The key to all of that is to take responsibility for everything that happens during your projects. View this

I’m on a Quest

Dec 8th, 2019 1m 51s

VR has not fully arrived. It’s available to the elite crowd. It’s clunky, difficult and expensive if you want to take advantage of the out of the box solutions. There are several companies that have jumped on the release of the quest. They’re t

People

Dec 1st, 2019 2m 28s

We’re working and designing for people. It’s not just us out there. The clients are people. The inhabitants are people. They have emotions and feelings, and we have to expect complications. People are hard to read. Difficult to understand and i

Are you open to Criticism?

Nov 24th, 2019 2m 44s

We don’t always take criticism well. I know I struggle with it. I get wrapped up in the connection with my self worth and the value of my work. It becomes a reflection of who I am. What I’m capable of. How I made the decisions I did? Why I took

Yes will cost you.

Nov 17th, 2019 3m 17s

I don’t want this to come across the wrong way, but you have to start saying no. You have to say no to the wrong things. To things that go against your values. Things that disrupt your Architectural process. Things that conflict with who you ar

Starving Artist is mindset

Nov 10th, 2019 3m 33s

Architects don’t have to be starving artist. Artist don’t even have to be staring artist. It’s upsetting when I hear about Architects working for pennies. The story of the starving artist is ingrained in some of us. We’re told, if you do what y

Illustrate your client’s story

Nov 3rd, 2019 2m 56s

You’ve met with your client and discovered all the answers to your questions. You’re now tasked at designing a space that meets your clients goals. Solves a particular problem. If you don’t have a clear vision on your clients goals go back and

Are you really listening to your clients?

Oct 26th, 2019 3m 13s

Who is your client? This is important to know. Who are they? What are their struggles? What are their fears and what provides joy? We struggle with asking the hard questions when it comes to our clients. We don’t dig deep enough into their pers

Home

Oct 19th, 2019 1m 39s

There are a lot of places that can symbolize home for us. We can have more than one place that’s considered home. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Marc Sawyer (@wwsarchitecture) on Oct 20, 2019 at 3:07am PDT I have my home here in t

Guessing?

Oct 12th, 2019 2m 29s

You never want to be guessing or making assumptions when it comes to client work. In architecture there are a lot of questions you need to be asking. Get the answers you need to be successful with the project. View this post on Instagram A post

Form follows Function

Oct 5th, 2019 1m 53s

As Architects we hear this all the time. Form follows function. Remember those phrases that stand out from Architecture school. Burned in your mind. This one is the most popular. Let’s dig into what it means. Don’t design Architecture for beaut

Expectations

Sep 29th, 2019 1m 45s

Anytime we start something new we are going to have expectations. They could be good or bad. Depending on your outlook on the project. What we have to do as architects is not only take our expectations into account but take those of our clients

Communicate as a Designer

Sep 22nd, 2019 1m 31s

One of the most important skills you can build as an architect is the ablitiy to drawing by hand. When I think of the ability to draw, I don’t mean realistic amazing works of art. I mean communicative drawing. View this post on Instagram A post

Don’t add unnecessary complexity

Sep 15th, 2019 3m 1s

I want to talk about something I do a lot. It tends to paralyze me. It keeps me from moving forward on a project or goal because what’s out in front of me looks too hard. I’m talking about complexity. View this post on Instagram A post shared b

Backup your work

Sep 8th, 2019 3m 18s

I almost don’t like to talk about things like this for fear of jinxing myself. But I want to mention backing up your work. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Marc Sawyer (@wwsarchitecture) on Sep 8, 2019 at 2:59am PDT It’s important f