8
MY PAUSE. Stepping back from an industry I’ve poured half my life into stings. But this break doesn’t erase what I built. Late nights perfecting workflows. Cancelled vacations to update a database. Vendors who became friends. Young coordinators I coached into leaders. Those wins and scars are mine. This is a pit stop, not a full stop. For the first time in years, I get to draft my own future. I get to decide what’s worth carrying forward, what I’m done ignoring, and what ambition looks like when boundaries, clarity, and meaning shape it. A WORD TO ANYONE IN THE VOID. If you’re stuck in that in-between, no job, no ideas, or no fire in your gut, don’t kick yourself. You’re not done. You’re catching your breath. The void feels brutal, but it’s where you sharpen the tools for your next climb. I’ve led marketing teams through impossible deadlines, talked coordinators off the burnout ledge, and mentored staff who thought their spark was gone. Every time, it came back. Yours will too. So, what’s one thing you’ve been ignoring in your own void? Maybe now’s the time to face it. This pause isn’t wasted. It’s where you stop running on fumes and start writing the next chapter on your terms. Kraig Kern, CPSM is innovation and integration lead at The Wooten Company. Contact him at kkern@thewootencompany. com.
KRAIG KERN , from page 7
THE CULTURE OF OVERDRIVE. In AEC, pausing feels like admitting you’re not tough enough. We treat burnout like it’s in the job description. I worked with a guy who skipped vacations for three years, bragging about it like a badge of honor. The U.S. Travel Association says over half of Americans don’t use their vacation days. I even had a mug that read: “Deadlines Are My Cardio.” Funny until it wasn’t. It’s
still in my box of office junk, mocking me. WHAT I’VE LEARNED IN THE SILENCE.
The void isn’t a dead end. It’s a slow burn. A place where resilience rebuilds, and you stop defining yourself by your inbox. Creativity starts to whisper again, like an old idea you jotted down years ago on a Post-it note, begging for another look. I’ve seen project managers go quiet after another relentless proposal cycle; their brains fried from endless drafts and edits. I’ve coached coordinators who felt numb, wondering if the next long-shot pursuit was worth it. I’ve watched architects crash post-charette, unsure if they’ve got another unique design in them. These aren’t failures. These are signs we need to stop sometimes.
© Copyright 2025. Zweig Group. All rights reserved.
THE ZWEIG LETTER NOVEMBER 17, 2025, ISSUE 1610
Made with FlippingBook flipbook maker