Last week I attended the AIA Convention in Atlanta, Georgia. It was a great week of inspiration, education and connection.
After 20 years in the profession and almost as many as a member of the American Institute of Architects, I began attending the annual convention back in 2013. That year I was invited to speak at Architect Live, on a small stage at the floor of the convention expo. The presentations are each broadcasted live online and throughout the convention venue.
Last year, I was invited by Matt Ostanik, founder of Charrette Venture Group, to serve as a member of the jury and judge the first annual Architecture Business Plan Competition. The finalists of the competition are invited to present their plans in person the day before the convention opens and the winner is announced the following day at a wonderful cocktail reception.
In addition to the competition, I was again invited by AIA to speak at Architect Live and participate as well on a panel discussion for the Foresight Report, the Institute’s annual publication to share the state of the organization and highlight the current and future trends in architecture.
It was a busy week last year in Chicago, but so much fun.
This year with plans to work with AIA National on a larger project later this summer (stay tuned for details), I chose to lay low at convention and not present live. I was asked to return to the Charrette Venture Group Architecture Business Plan Competition jury (the 2015 winner was DELV Design from Indianapolis) and enjoyed a fantastic convention, meeting new friends and building stronger bonds with many, many old friends.
Coming back to reality though, is always hard. After a week of socializing and intense focus on my chosen profession, starting back up on Monday is painful. A week’s worth email, waiting clients and past due tasks make it tough to have much of a transition back to my normal routine.
It’s stressful.
Stress, unfortunately is a part of our profession. We learned early on, as we spent hours upon hours perfecting our designs in studio, only to be shown the many opportunities we missed with our chosen solutions. When we became interns and grew to licensure, the intense focus required to pass our exams caused stress unlike any we’ve experienced before.
When we launched our firms and work to learn the many aspects of business that our architectural education neglected to share, the stress continues to build.
Stress may be an integral part of the profession by default, but that does not mean we must accept it as a way of life. In fact, in order to be successful, we must manage the stress in our lives and learn ways to live a life with as little stress as possible.
Stress is dangerous.
Long term stress has been found to cause heart disease and other debilitating illnesses. I’ve experienced, first hand, what stress can do to one’s body and mind. I continue even today to battle the effects from decades of living a neglectful life.
About 18 months ago, I started experiencing uncomfortable sensations in my fingers and toes. I ignored them for months and continued working my long hours on both businesses, sleeping about 4 hours per night and living a life filled with stress. I came to accept that in order to achieve the success I planned, I needed to work harder… and longer.
Last summer, the sensations intensified and began progressing up my legs and arms toward the core of my body. I visited my doctor and was given a complete work up of tests. We were concerned that the sensations may be neurological or early signs of things much worse. After several series of tests throughout the year, my doctors have concluded that I am very healthy (Thank God), but feeling the signs of intense stress. Every test I was given showed nothing but a healthy man and ultimately, I was told that my symptoms are “in my head”; literally an overreaction to the lifestyle I lived for more than a decade.
It was time to make some changes.
Reducing stress in not easy. For me, it has been extremely challenging. I have goals to meet and businesses to build. I have people; family and friends, near and far, who count on me to perform at a certain expected level. So what do I do? How do I reduce my levels of stress?
For me, its a matter of life or death. I must make several changes in my life and I have started by reducing my stress. Here are 6 changes that I have recently made to my lifestyle in an attempt to reduce my stress.
Sleep More. For years I survived on about 4 hours of sleep per night. I would work full time during the day as the Partner in Charge of Operations at Fivecat Studio, my residential small firm. Then I would stop to eat dinner with my family and after kissing the kids goodnight, I would head back to my MacBook for another 7 or 8 hours of creating content and building the platform that has become EntreArchitect. After experiencing the “wake up call” of failing health (and with much “encouragement” from my lovely wife), I shifted my schedule to perform all my required tasks, for both businesses, before 9 o’clock. At that time, I wrap up whatever I am doing and head up to bed. I read for about an hour to transition and hit the pillow with lights out between 10 and 11. More sleep has made me more productive, much more patient and ultimately, a happier person.
Meditate. Other than prescribing more sleep, my doctors gave me a choice. They said, “We have medication that can help you relax, or you can learn to relax on your own.” I am not about to start popping pills to correct a situation which I caused and that I am more than capable of fixing. They suggested that I stop whatever I am doing three times per day, sit still, shut my eyes and use my mind to go deep inward. I am not on a perfect schedule, but I try to meditate for at least 5 minutes three times per day. If you are interested in learning more about meditation, leave me a comment below and I will share more details about what I am doing and how it is helping me heal.
Eat Real Food. All of these changes are difficult, but none are more difficult than changing my habits around food. I like my snacks and desserts before bed. I like bread and grains, ice cream and dairy, but some of these things don’t like me. I am still experimenting with what is good and what is bad, but I am learning that the more “real” my food is, the healthier I feel.
Move More. My years of sitting and working for 16 to 20 hours has most certainly caught up with me. I have no doubt that the sensations I am feeling are mostly caused my lack of movement. We are told to be intentional about moving around, or even work in the standing position. Stopping work, standing and stretching at least once per hour is good medicine… but not easy. When we are being creative and focused on the task at hand, we don’t want to stop. We want to continue working in the name of productivity. Sitting is killing us. We need to stop and move, and each day I am trying to change decades of a bad habit of physical stagnation.
Exercise. I’ve been walking for years. I experienced another “wake up call” a few years back, when I spent a week in the cardiac unit of the local hospital. (Again, a false alarm, but no doubt to me, a clear message from God.) It started me off with a daily routine of walking at least 2 miles, 5 days per week. This winter I started to experiment, on and off, with running. I am learning that running is a skill (who knew) and as I improve, I am finding it more enjoyable. Exercise is a “no-brainer”. It is a direct formula. Exercise more and you will feel better, inside and out.
Have more fun. I think this may be the most important of all. As we work to grow our businesses and support our families, sometimes we forget the things that matter most. Taking time away from the studio and spending time with family and friends is important. (Like many of us did last week in Atlanta. I’m still feeling the effects of Daddy Dz BBQ.) We need to live a life that matters and work should not be our only priority. Schedule more time to have fun. Get outside. Feel the sunshine and wind. You will reduce your stress and you will live a happier life… and that my friends is what matters most.
Question: What have YOU done to reduce your stress?
Photo Credit: / 123RF Stock Photo
Self-hypnosis is a great way to deal with stress. I sometimes use it to allow myself to let go of projects over the weekend. Before things would niggle me and I was unable to relax.
Great post Mark- I had a similar wake up call a few years back and have made some similar changes to find more life balance.
What’s your ritual around meditation?
Excellent post, Mark. I’ve worked really hard recently to reduce stress by stopping my workdays earlier (if I’m constantly working overtime, the only problem is bad time management – after you’ve raised your fees of course :)), building a standing work desk with a drafting stool for when I need to sit to mix it up, meditating, and treating exercise time as a business practice.
I use the Headspace app for meditation and it’s been great. All in all, I’ve also seen my productivity improve and have probably gotten a few more projects that I might not have, simply because I was the happy, fun, relaxed guy in the room.
Reducing stress for me has also made me much more confident, because I know that my priorities are where they’re supposed to be. More confidence equals better work, and more work.
Kudos to you for spreading this message. Design professionals, maybe next to tech entrepreneurs, are I think the worst about neglecting healthy habits and sleep, and wearing it ad a badge of honor. We should all make time and structure our businesses for maximum happiness, and the profit will follow.
Cheers
Timothy Hair, ASLA
Hi Mark,
Great topic! I’m happy to learn you got a clean bill of health! At our stage/age, it can truly be scary to feel out of control with undiagnosed symptoms…and then to find out it’s ‘just’ stress is a relief yet in itself a wake up call. Stress can and does kill. We all need to remind ourselves that taking care of ourselves first ultimately is better for everyone ( think of the instructions on a plane – put the 02 mask on yourself first, then help others).
Finding ways to deal with stress/anxiety is extremely challenging, especially with balancing family/career/self care…and of course finances. I like your 5 minute mediation intervals…rather than a coffee break. I like to try to take an “intermission” and at least eat breakfast and lunch. I find if I fuel up on even a small healthy start breakfast I’m better equipped to deal with the day. I usually start the day with a 5 to 10 minute walk with my pup, “charrette”, and try to take in nature, sun/rain/snow…and not think about my often overwhelming schedule + ‘to do” list! Sometimes I actually have to remind myself to “breathe”! Do you find that happens to you too?seems like based on your advice, especially at those moments, if I can add 5 minutes of meditation (and at intervals throughout the day), I might just be able to decompress a bit and get some perspective on priorities. What a concept! Thx!
ps – you’ll notice my Yorkie’s name is Charrette…and although I actually don’t believe in the all-nighter philosophy, it is certainly synonymous (and symptomatic) with/of our profession…
Mark,
All excellent points and at 59 I have visited them all! You are on spot with this post!
Keep the good stuff coming. Again thanks for sharing.
Number One….exercise! exercise! exercise! I cycle 3 days a week, roughly between 80-100 miles a week. I love the solitude,
it definitely clears my head, and puts “all things” in perspective. The sweating and release of endorphins really helps dealing with stress. Trust me…..you don’t have to be some great athlete to exercise, just “DO IT” as Nike says.
Number Two….get a dog! Dogs love unconditionally! These ‘four-leggeds’ really help if you’ve had a bad day!
Number Three…..Make efforts to balance your life…..emotional, spiritual, psychological, and physical.
What a great message, Mark. Thank you. I’ve actually been thinking of leaving the profession entirely, Almost purely because of the stress of working in a firm where schedule and pace drives every decision. … down to the quarter -hour.
I’m hoping instead to redefine practice. .. on my own doing the things I enjoy for the customers I want.
That in itself will reduce my stress greatly!
Best of luck with your transition. Keep us posted on your progress.
Great post Mark. Stress and overwork and endemic in our profession – and the timeframes to deliver projects get ever shorter. I personally developed severe muscular and nerve injuries from too much time at the computer – and I was only 32. Over 5 years later I am still healing. But I chose not to leave the profession. Yoga, meditation, taking a lunch break and trying to leave on time all help me cope with my injuries. I actually find I am often more productive when I am working less hours, my brain is switched on and things get done faster and right the first time. We defiantly need to talk more in our profession about stress and work life balance. I often write posts now on my blog http://www.themidnightlunch.com. when I first started the blog though, I was looking for work, and worried about revealing too much of my own opinions on this issue. But now I figure it’s better that everyone know how I feel – then I can avoid working in a team that thinks a regular 12 hour day is ok.
The answer to this is easy: get a dog. Not for your kids, your spouse, or your neighbors — get a dog for yourself AND TAKE CARE OF IT YOURSELF. You need to adopt a regular schedule which means that you get home pretty much the same time, you’re going to feed the dog at the same time every day (which means you feed yourself at the same time); you’re going to walk more than once daily, and being around animals is a known stress reducer. You’ll realize that if you leave your dog alone more than one night in a row, you’re probably doing too much, and taking yourself too seriously. (who needs to attend meetings multiple nights a week? if you think you do, why?).
And you need to get a pretty good sized dog. I’ve always had dogs that required 5 miles of walking a day — it doesn’t have to be all at once — and there were times when I brought my dog to the office on weekends. Even if you do that, you have to take the dog out in the middle of the day. And if you have the right dog, you’re going to end up talking to strangers, getting more involved in your neighborhood in a casual way, and be more attentive to your neighborhood as well. You’ll experience the seasons, see who did what to their house, and probably meet all the kids when they come up to talk to your dog. If you’re really lucky, you’ll get a dog that sneaks out — and then you really end up knowing your neighborhood.
Dog walking can become meditative. If you pay attention to your dog, you’re going to stop paying attention to your work all the time. And we all know that dogs are in the moment. They don’t think about their deadline or their vet visit next week; they get into things they shouldn’t, and they snuggle when they should.
Forget the tapes, exercise regimens, magic food schedules. Just get a dog.
That is excellent advice.
So true, while some stress is inevitable, too much of it makes a dent on every aspect of life. Thank you for sharing your approach on how to deal with stress. It’s great advice!