Practice Management Member Conversations

When I was in architecture school, "starting my own firm" sounded about as appealing as hand-drafting a life safety plan in ink. I watched classmates wax poetic about someday striking out on their own, curating bespoke client experiences, and crafting dream projects with absolute creative freedom. Me? I was perfectly content becoming a master AutoCAD draftsman, maybe even get a throne somewhere between 'Revit Jedi' and 'Plotter Whisperer.'

Fast forward 20 years. I've officially committed an act of professional madness: I stepped away from a leadership role in an established firm and started my own.

Here's what I've learned from the "holy crap, I guess I'm doing this" phase of launching a new practice:

• Certifications are a maze: SBA 8(a)? Two-year wait. Minority-owned? Only really matters on SAM.gov. Combat-veteran-owned? That's my golden ticket. The rest is a scavenger hunt.

• Defining my target market took real soul-searching: Federal and commercial work makes strategic sense, it's what I know, where my network lives. But my heart? It keeps one eye on hospitality projects, the kind where design and experience shake hands.

• You don't have to do it all yourself: I've leaned into my existing tribe, friends and collaborators from past firms who contract as specialists. It's the Avengers, but for CDs and RFIs.

• RACI matrices and insurance gymnastics are real: Wrangling contract roles, responsibilities, and coverage has been the most "fun" I've had since my last redline marathon.

Starting from scratch isn't just humbling, it's also weirdly liberating. The chaos is real, but so is the clarity when you finally define your purpose and crew.

So I'm curious, PMKC brain trust:

"What's one system, mindset shift, or strategy you put in place early in your practice that saved your future self from a world of hurt?"

Looking forward to learning from the scars and successes of those who've gone before!

Hi Michael,

Love your story and vibe. You have a great attitude about the industry madness already. I'd say look for a business partner to share the load with. I cant imagine doing this alone...plus its' more rewarding to celebrate success as a team. Good Luck!

Kate,

That's a good point! I definitely miss the banter of having a team to bounce dumb and smart ideas off of. I absolutely want to build the internal team as quickly as possible. The next major hurdle is leveraging my caffeine addiction with BD to get more projects in to justify the salaries of employees and attractiveness to a partner. 

Thanks!

RK - great suggestion on Art Gensler's book. I was fortunate to work with AIA California to film Art Gensler around a dozen years ago, which can be viewed in this free video Insights from Art Gensler, FAIA.

 In this remarkably candid address to emerging professionals, Art Gensler generously shares his insights into:

• Starting, growing and operating a design firm
• Developing a highly collaborative culture within a multi-disciplinary firm
• Understanding a client's business model and mission
• Running a multi-disciplinary design firm as a well-tuned business

Wish I knew more of this when I started out!

Reid,

Thank you for your insight! It makes me feel a lot better knowing the struggle I am seeing isn't new nor is it unusual. I really like the mindset you are suggesting in order to endure. The shift from paycheck to freedom with the help of a money guru is such a great idea! I have been hesitant in finding that person due to not knowing who to trust or if I could simply figure it out myself. I think you're right though, why do it myself when there is someone smarter out there who can help me get to where I want to be! As my mom always said, "just take it one day at a time and one step at a time." is how I have been approaching it. If there isn't some sort of therapy for new/existing entrepreneurs, there really should be. 

Thanks again for your thoughts! Looking forward to bouncing more ideas back and forth!  

Congrats on the craziness of leaping into business for yourself! It's a lot but you will adapt quicker than you think. And no, you don't have to do all of it. You have already clued into that based on you comment about reaching out to your tribe for help with project aspects. Based on my own experience, that's critical because you will reach a point where you only have so many hours in a day.

I would suggest as well to get an accountant and a business attorney. Your accountant will help you figure out how best to pay yourself as well as keep you from running afoul of the IRS. I actually sublet space from my accountant, and the stories... If you can't get a referral to someone from within your peer group, then look at the local business chamber. There will be multiple you can reach out to and interview.

I would also suggest you not be afraid of taking work outside of your target market, especially as you grow. You need to eat, and doing a one-off project here or there isn't a negative. Plus you might stumble across something that you had no idea you would find interesting. Could open you up to a new market.

And I think that's it. I've been doing this on my own since 2016 and had a practice with two partners before that. One word about partners - be prepared to be happy with the way they are conducting their part of the business, even when it's not how you would do it. If you are very particular, then I would consider being the sole boss. 

Love this, congrats on joining the founders club! :)

One thing I implemented (from learning the hard way in my first go-around) was to develop a robust disaster scenarios plan. 

I'm not talking natural disasters, which seems to be all the advice you can find out there. WHY IS THIS? There are so many other challenges small businesses face!

Market stalls, major projects dying on the vine, sudden loss of key staff, economic meltdowns, a main client goes under or stops paying bills, on and on. 

A few years ago I drafted up very detailed steps we would take in the event of these various scenarios to protect our team and the firm as long as we could, and I was SHOCKED by how soon we had to use it, a number of times, how thankful I was to have done this, and grateful for the confidence it instilled in my team knowing we had a plan in place with steps they could track as we waded into the challenges we faced.

Highly, HIGHLY recommend. The business world can be unpredictable, especially these days.

(also, +1 to Kate's advice to find a great partner. My life changed when I went from solo owner to a trifecta partnership with the most amazing women ever. Couldn't go back)

One other item - always ask for a retainer to help avoid getting shafted on payment. We started doing this in 2010, and not once has a client balked at providing that. And it's come in handy once or twice.

Congratulations Michael on levelling up! No systems or strategies here, just mindsets. 

1. I recall being worried about opening a small business because a lot of what I read / heard was that you would have to work really really harder than ever to make it on your own, but I was already working really hard; couldn't imagine what it would be like to work harder.  That was a false premise - maybe those folks had easier jobs than I did; I worked hard then and work hard now and love it.  Well 95% anyway, and I realize that half of the other 5% I "could" delegate to a 3rd party if I really wanted to, at some financial cost.

2. Many business advisors focus on keeping tight track of everything financial in order to ensure one's financial success. But that causes me stress, and I could always tell when a firm (either my own or my employer's) was doing well vs poorly without overthinking it. Sure I keep tabs on a very few KPIs but you don't HAVE to. I am doing just fine financially - yes I could do better but would I be happier?  Only if someone else was doing the money-thinking.

3. In a micro-practice, the cash flow is highly variable with a weak relationship to invoicing. I liken it to flying a plane at low altitude over rough terrain in bad weather - as long as we only trim a few treetops and occasionally swoop up into the clouds, I'm OK with that.  And if you can't stand that, then you can devote your energies to seeking a higher, smoother ride.

4. It's a big world, even in a small market. I initially suffered from a mean non-compete agreement and a litigious former employer, but there are so many other sectors and submarkets to discover.  BUT there is also an astounding demand for bottom-feeding architects, which can be tough to avoid.

So the long and short is that you get to align your business with your values and interests. I choose to do a higher percentage of quality work for small nonprofits at tighter fees (because I love the personal touch and the impact) than would the architect who wants to be sure their work is cutting-edge publishable, or than the architect who has ambitions for expansion, scale, and steadiness.

Give me a call to catch up sometime!