Architecture Career Specialist: Finding Your Way Towards Meaning and Fulfillment in Architecture - Jacki Schaefer, Season 2: Careers

How can one develop a rewarding and meaningful career as an architect? Jacki Schaefer, an architecture career specialist, discusses her journey in the field of architecture and how transitioning away from it led to creating value for others. She highlights the disillusionment she experienced in practice and the disconnect between academia and the profession and how she turned both into a force for positive change for her own life. Jacki also emphasizes the value of career coaching and the need for individuals to understand their motivations and goals in the face of the narrow definitions of success in architectural culture. The conversation concludes with insights into the trends and ideas shaping the new generation of architects and advice for students and professionals. Follow Jacki on LinkedIn 00:00 Introduction and Background 01:41 Transitioning Away from Architecture 03:08 Disillusionment with Architecture 05:05 Feeling Isolated in Architecture 06:04 Creating a Career Coaching Role 07:31 The Value of Career Coaching 09:23 Ethics in Career Coaching 11:12 Understanding Motivations and Goals 13:27 Narrow Definitions of Success in Architecture 15:49 Influence of Academia on Career Expectations 20:02 Trends and Ideas in the New Generation of Architects 23:40 Advice for Students 24:59 The Lifelong Process of Career Development 25:29 Thinking Ahead and Making Decisions 25:57 Identifying Skills and Experiences 26:25 Understanding Job Parameters 26:54 The Uncertainty of the Future 27:23 Being Open to Possibilities 27:51 Employer Perspective on Hiring 28:14 The Value of Training and Teaching 29:07 Looking Beyond Technical Skills 29:35 Considering Cultural Fit and Personality 30:02 The Anxiety of Finding a Job 30:31 The Gap Between Academia and Practice 31:29 The Challenges of Transitioning to the Real World 31:56 The Impact of Leaving College 32:23 Exposing Students to Different Perspectives 33:21 The Value of Architecture Education 33:49 Questioning the Quality of Work 34:18 Learning from Mistakes and Anti-precedents 35:16 The Importance of Interdisciplinary Work 36:16 Understanding Different Perspectives in Architecture 37:13 The Need for Broad Exposure in Education 38:04 Small Business Owners Doing it Right 39:01 Asking the Right Questions about Success 40:24 Valuing Architecture as Part of Life 41:23 The Challenge of Defining Success 42:49 The Impact of Working with Students 43:17 Memorable Stories of Impact 45:41 Listening to Your Inner Voice MoPo Season 2 Schedule March 4 - Season Introduction with your hosts March 11 - Jacki Schaefer - ⁠Career Coach⁠ March 18 - Andrew Kao - Former VP at ⁠CBRE Hana⁠, Former VP at ⁠Miller Knoll⁠ March 25 - Evan Wiskup - Founder of [⁠Wiskup Architecture⁠] Co-founder of ⁠neighbor⁠ April 1 - Evan Smith - Co-founder of ⁠Highland Park Technologies⁠ April 8 - Zach Soflin - Founder & CEO of ⁠Layer⁠ April 15 - Brandon Hall - Founder of ⁠BHA⁠ Follow Us @ On ⁠Spotify⁠ On ⁠Apple Podcasts⁠ On ⁠Youtube⁠ On ⁠Instagram On LinkedIn