Architecture is a mixture of Art, Commerce, and Science. Art is for innovation, commerce for sales and transactions while science is for execution. Balancing all three factors is extremely important while developing a long-term career in architecture. Being a long course, it takes up a lot of time and as a result, most architects usually fail to recognize the importance of the commerce aspect which is Business in Architecture. They are essentially focusing on the design and execution aspects of the profession.
Architects Rion Willard and Enoch Sears create podcasts to help architects understand the importance of Business in Architecture. Willard and Sears have left their architecture design practices to venture into Architecture Business consultancy. The podcast, ‘Lies of Architecture’ particularly focuses on busting the myths and misconceptions that architects generally fall for. Whether it’s a start-up or a job, the podcast tends to cover all scenarios faced by architects in their professional lives. The hosts also share their own experiences and stories to simplify the conversation for viewers.
What to Expect:
In a subjective field like architecture, several lies may be individual experiences and might not be the same for other architects. However, in this podcast, the hosts discuss the lies and myths that are most common and misleading. The hosts acknowledge how heavy the word ‘lie’ could be, but they also emphasize the fact that these lies have a lasting impact on architects and their business in architecture. Viewers can expect complete transparency of thoughts and emotions as the podcast proceeds. The hosts don’t just manage to discuss the lies but also penetrate to the core of these lies and how to deal with them.
To begin with the podcast, the hosts initially talk about how the lies in architecture can affect the mental and physical health of architects, and why architects are not able to run a business efficiently. The segment is then followed up by the revelation of the lie, and why architects start believing in it so easily. The hosts not only talk about the impact of these lies on individual architects but also discuss the impact these lies might have on people around these architects.
The network of lies:
As the podcast proceeds, viewers will realize that there is a single lie discussed by the hosts, a lie that creates a huge network of lies around it. The hosts do a commendable job by thoroughly discussing this network and how to prevent being trapped in it. The fact that this network is started by architects themselves is also highlighted. As a viewer, one would feel anxious to figure out where this network began and who stands responsible for it. This is when the hosts will discuss how this issue arises right at the beginning of the architecture course. Architects experience multiple problems while studying the course due to which they end up having a particular mindset about business in architecture. According to the hosts, it is necessary to break this mindset to overcome the big lie.
Conclusion:
Being architects themselves, the hosts have done an exceptional job of breaking down a major issue faced by almost every architect at some point in time. However, the title, ‘Lies of Architecture’ may seem a bit misleading as the hosts focus on just one particular yet significant lie instead of multiple lies. A few topics seemed repetitive at a point as the hosts discussed the lie in an hour-long podcast. The interesting and engaging aspect of the podcast was its format. The host divided the entire podcast into three major segments, each one highlighting the importance of business in architecture. The first segment was regarding stress and its effect on the mental health of architects. The second segment eventually discloses the big lie and different versions of it. The third and final segment explains why architects need to explore the commercial aspect just as much as architects work on the art and science aspects.
Along with architects, this podcast is also highly recommended for non-architects who fail to understand the problems faced by architects on a regular basis. This podcast would be of great help to the friends and family members of architects as they would be able to understand an architect’s headspace better. The podcast at any point, does not impose or force any mindset on the viewers. It is just a healthy and engaging discussion that would help the viewers to think over this topic more rigorously. The hosts understand the profession quite efficiently yet they mention that they are open to criticism and suggestions if any. Enoch Sears and Rion Willard also upload other podcasts on similar lines which would help architects to grow their business or improve their work efficiency.
References:
- Podcast 484: Lies of Architecture with Rion Willard and Enoch Sears: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWAucB1ax-k
- LinkedIn profile of Rion Willard: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/rion-willard-584a882a?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F
