Afraid of Heights
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I am afraid of heights. I am not sure if I always was afraid of heights, but I am now, and so you will not likely see me volunteer to sit in the front row on a rollercoaster. In fact, you will not see me join you on any seat... ever!
But that is ok. It is totally fine to be afraid of things, I have learned that there is a particular part of the brain responsible for this reaction called the amygdala. Many may know it is the "fight or flight" response. I am not gonna fight you for that seat on the rollercoaster, I am gonna run like hell from it!
Why I bring up the topic is not to talk about rollercoasters, but to talk about things that I am not afraid of and how they have shaped me as a person, and an architect.
Architecture is a very old profession, as long as there have been buildings to occupy then there has been someone to guide the design and construction of them. Architecture is then a slow-moving profession that adapts to changes and technology very slowly. I experienced this firsthand when I started architecture school in the late 90's we were required to do all drawings by hand, and it was only until the third year that we were allowed to introduce the computer (CAD) into our toolset.
Ever since I began using the computer to make drawings, I was intrigued by how to make the process more automated and still an aesthetic product. This has proven to be a lifelong pursuit!
Back to the topic of fear, I know that CAD drawings could be scary when hand drawing is "the way we always have done things", but sometimes you have to put your fears aside and take the leap toward the future that you want. I have always believed that we can do more, better, work with the computer as a tool, and I also believe that if we can embrace the positive traits we can take more control of the process of the design and construction of buildings.
Throughout my career, I have stayed a "techie" when it comes to the practice of architecture and maintained a no-fear attitude toward trying out new software, or tools, that could make what we do more accurate and faster.
So while I am still afraid of heights, I am not afraid of trying new things.
tags: PKM, software, CAD, fear, learning
Many elder architects are hesitant to appreciate (CAD) because they lack the art of drawing, but I believe that CAD can be just as beautiful, and furthermore, I believe that the end result is the building not a set of drawings, but that is definitely a conversation for another day.