Michael Lewarne’s Post

What if the key to revitalising your architectural career, or practice, is Not designing buildings? The most agile and innovative firms are: → looking beyond traditional boundaries, → developing adjacent skills, and → embracing new territories. From software development to climate adaptation, the possibilities are endless. How are you expanding your professional toolkit to discover doors to new opportunities you never knew existed? #coaching #architects #architecture #architecturalpractice #leadership

On the back of my interview with Rick Kitagawa and @Christopher de Filippo, on their Origins podcast, I've put together how I use Tim Ferriss' Fear Setting exercise I talked about. New Blog Post: How I chose myself and overcame all my fears. (Spoiler alert: I’m still working on overcoming my fears)

What if you did the opposite of what other architects doing? It can be effective when stuck in a design problem. Why not in practice? How might doing the opposite transform your practice and the value you deliver to clients? For example: → Instead of doing full services, offer design concepts only. → Instead of reducing your fees to win projects, increase them. → Instead of doing everything in BIM, hand draw only. → Instead of bespoke, offer from a catalogue of designs. → Instead of bigger, offer smaller. What unconventional practice model could revolutionise the way you serve clients? #designpractice #coaching #architects #architecture #architecturalpractice #leadership

Architects, is your practice on fear or opportunity? "What are you not doing, in fear it might not work?" Architecture practice requires courage. It's easy to follow the well-worn path. But innovation and adaptability comes from a willingness to be different. Which assumptions do you need to question and test? What’s the change in your practice you’re avoiding out of fear? #workshops #coaching #architects #architecture #architecturalpractice #leadership

I have a question for architects. "What if you're wrong about your practice model?" When starting a practice, most architects have relied upon past assumptions and professional traditions and norms without truly examining them. If you started with a first-principles approach to practice-building, the way you established your practice twenty years ago should be different to the way you’d do it today. → Question everything. → Challenge your thinking. → Look beyond architecture for fresh insights. The goal isn't to wrack you with doubt, but to ensure your practice is built on a solid foundation of considered and intentional choices rather than following uncritical conventions. If you were to start a practice now, what convention in architectural practice do you think needs to be rethought? #practice #coaching #architects #architecture #architecturalpractice #leadership

If you've ever been curious to understand how I got to where I am today. What I've learnt along the way. And my tips for choosing yourself. This podcast episode might be for you. I was privileged to spend and hour chatting with Rick and Christopher about this and more. Thanks agian to them both for indulging me.

A trust deficit can handicap your architectural practice. And micromanagement often stems from distrust. When leaders believe they're the only ones who can do the job "right," it creates a vicious cycle: → No one gets trained to take on more responsibility → Work piles up → The bottlenecks worsens Breaking the cycle requires a leap of faith. For leaders, trusting your team isn't just about alleviating your workload, it's about unlocking your practice's true potential. I’m curious, how do you build trust and empower your team to grow? #trust #coaching #architects #architecture #architecturalpractice #leadership

Leaders in architectural practice, please note: Agency is not zero sum. Empowering others does not diminishes your authority. In fact, distributing agency can lead to more innovative ideas and increased staff retention. But, everyone should be contributing to this conversation. A question for leaders, Are you fostering an environment where all voices are heard? A question for team members, Are you actively seeking opportunities to contribute? And a question for all to ponder, How might your organisation benefit if everyone felt empowered to make positive changes? #agency #coaching #architects #architecture #architecturalpractice #leadership

Architects have you ever come across the, "The Job Hog?” They’re the saboteur of productivity in architectural practice. I’m sure we’ve all all seen them, the architect who wants to do it all. → Design every detail, → attend every meeting, → micromanage every decision. Whilst admirable in their dedication, this approach creates massive bottlenecks. → Projects stall, → teams get frustrated, and → growth becomes impossible. Delegation isn't just about efficiency, it's about nurturing talent and scaling your practice. I’m curious, how do you balance hands-on involvement and training, with empowering your team to take ownership of their work? #micromanagement #coaching #architects #architecture #architecturalpractice #leadership

Feeling powerless to make change happen at work is common. But you can still do something about it. You probably have more agency than you think. Many professionals, even those in leadership roles, struggle to effect change in their organisations. But here's the trick: agency isn't always given - it's taken. Start small. Forge alliances, develop your skills, and identify overlooked tasks. Remember, asking for more responsibility can be as simple as "What would it take for me to have more agency here?" Here’s a challenge… What's one small step you could take today to increase your influence at work? #agency #coaching #architects #architecture #architecturalpractice #leadership