Step 1: Awareness of the status quo

To change anything first we need to know where we stand and secondly where we would like to go.

I remember sitting in a climatized office in Abu Dhabi in 2006, thinking: "Yes, I should do something about climate change." Like most people in the industry, I did nothing and opened the window to let some fresh air in while the AC was running. Coming from university, I felt I needed to learn the trade first - changing the world and climate change were just abstract ideas relevant, but only for later. I wanted to apply what I learned at university and become a great Architect!

Will to design is recognizable

Working closely with the client, a Dubai sheik who came into money with the boom of the emirates, I had ample opportunity to get challenged and learn. First time in my life, I had to navigate the conflict of discovering and translating the client's requirements into solutions. Quickly, I realized that the university did not prepare me for this. At university, I learned what good architecture should look like - the "what," but I did not learn to listen and to ask the right questions. Moreover, I learned a pattern of beeing an arrogant prick who knows better than everybody else. I was so cocky that I knew why people built - so I could develop great, never before seen architecture!

Once, the client asked us to design a summer residence.

My colleague and I were thrilled, and we started developing a fantastic modern-looking monolithic block - very en vogue and what we learned at university that good architecture should look like.

But it was not at all what the client wanted and expected. He pictured a mansion like a southern state villa - symmetrical and traditional - and communicated his expectations. So we wasted time, frustrated the client, and frustrated ourselves because we did not understand his needs. Even worse, we did not know that we did not understand the client's needs. Does this sound familiar to you? Isn't this the way most planning offices operate? 

Focus on the client’s needs

But to change something in my approach towards architecture, I needed a second hint. Our client was very much into numbers. Having generous spaces was essential to him. When I presented the new designs by imagining walking through the rooms and telling stories, he always asked: "Simon, how big is the lobby? How big is the bathroom?" First, he caught me unprepared, and I did not know, but when we changed how we worked. We looked into Building Information Modeling (BIM). We looked at purchasing a software tool - a mistake many companies still make - but thankfully got discouraged by the effort to set it up. 

Finally, we decided to set up a process in Autocad in 2D and a plugin to update the area in a text field automatically. This process enabled us to print an updated client brochure quickly. After some time, we could print a new report with just half an hour of preparation time - the time between the call from the client and his visit. That helped to answer his questions quickly. Moreover, we could fulfill the client's need of having a nice-looking brochure to show his friends. 

Once, something did not work with the color styles, and instead of having a nice-looking pastel-colored brochure, we got this booklet with primary colors - red, blue, yellow, and green. Having no choice, we showed the design progress with this ugly booklet, and the client said: "Finally, you use nice colors!" 

Although I earned perfect money and liked the people I worked with, I needed to change. I wanted to learn the tradecraft, the "how." I felt I could learn from experience in this office, but not by example. Looking back, I see how naive this was - I almost only learn by experiences and mistakes I make for myself - unfortunately.

One of my key takeaways from my time in Abu Dhabi, which is still crucial, was always focusing on the client's needs! It's my responsibility as a consultant to help the client to achieve the goal - often even to formulate the goal.