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O P I N I O N
How would YOU respond? A Q&A might be just what the doctor ordered if you want to shed new light on your career and the choices you’ve made along the way.
A start-up company I’m mentoring here in Reno profiled me in their online database. The start-up is a networking company set up to help people in the commercial real estate industry connect with each other and with resources. I sent a copy of my bio and answered a few supplied questions, which challenged me to think a little differently about my career. The questions and my answers follow, but I suggest that in addition to reading my responses, you formulate your own answers.
Ed Friedrichs
Has the profession of architecture been as much fun as you thought it would be when you started your training in the field? I’ve always had fun in everything I do. In architecture, I’ve noticed many of my colleagues and competitors over the years take themselves way too seriously. Particularly with clients, I’ve looked for ways to inject fun in our relationships. It’s why we’ve always ended up as good friends. Here’s an example: When shopping for stone in Europe with a client and our contractor, we teased each other about gargoyles, as in “That one looks just like you!” When it came time to install the stone skin on the building, I commissioned a gargoyle to look just like our client. We secretly installed it above a dining patio on the second floor and had a
champagne reception to unveil it. Everyone had a great laugh and, when my client retired, the owner of the building removed it and gave it to her as a retirement present. I love staging pranks that put a smile on everyone’s face. “In architecture, I’ve noticed many of my colleagues and competitors over the years take themselves way too seriously.” What’s the coolest project with which you were associated? What made it special? The cool projects are too numerous to mention,
See ED FRIEDRICHS, page 12
THE ZWEIG LETTER August 29, 2016, ISSUE 1166
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