In early March of 2020, as my colleagues and I prepared to speak live in front of a thirty-plus person audience, the Coronavirus was spreading fast across Asia and had just arrived at our shores here in America. As we gave each other elbow bumps and joked about not being able to shake hands, none of us suspected that over the next year meetings would be held virtually, and that the virus would wreak havoc across the world.
Photo by Sebastian Molina fotografía on Unsplash
We did not suspect that the coming months would be filled with sickness, isolation, protest, fire, and loss—layers of societal angst that occasionally peeled back to reveal unexpected silver linings of environmental healing, family bonding, societal growth, and technological advancement.
A personal silver lining on the dark cloud of the year 2020 is that all the chaos prompted me to take a fresh look at Strongwork Architecture's Vision, Mission, and Values.
Why do we do what we do?
What gets us out of bed everyday?
What do we want to achieve and what will be our legacy in the next 5, 10, 20 years, and beyond?
How can we make a positive impact in our community?
With help from a several great advisors and mentors, I have spent the past months listening, thinking, and planning, and now I am moving forward with a renewed sense of purpose and the intention to do better and to make a difference.
Anonymous non-copyrighted superhero depicted by the author’s son
2020 reminded me that I have the power to unyieldingly advocate for positive change. And like every good Spider-Man fan knows, "with great power comes great responsibility."
I will look back in 10, 15, or 20 years and know that I did my very best to positively impact the world, my community, my family, my company, and myself.
With this Vision for positive impact in mind, Strongwork Architecture is embracing the following Mission and Values to guide our work through the coming years.
Our mission is "Better Every Day." A passion for constant learning and growth is what gets us out of bed every morning. We are constantly seeking ways to become better architects, designers, co-workers, spouses, parents, community members and so on.
This mission is the foundation of our team commitment to being better stewards of the environment, crafting beautiful architectural solutions, and providing excellent services and products to our clients so that they, in turn, may be empowered to become better engineers, homeowners, operators, project managers, family members, and so on.
Our 5 Core Values back up the "Better Every Day" mission. These Values are our guardrails for decision-making and relationships and are manifested in our office culture.
Family first
We value time with our families and actively promote true work/home balance. This foundational, family-first philosophy extends to our clients, colleagues, and community members.
Life is growth
We are a team of curious souls with the desire to learn and grow. We believe in never settling for the status quo, which drives us to become better at who we are every day. Through growth, we become better at business, better problem-solvers, better partners, better colleagues, better family members, and better human beings.
Everything is everything
We believe everything is connected, and everything we do must have a purpose. We take action to make a positive, meaningful impact on our world.
Delight in design
We promote a culture of design to boost our creativity. Love of design is why we exist. Design challenges us, improves us, and delights us!
Live in leadership
We promote a leadership mindset. Our core values extend beyond the firm. We carry out leadership in our community and our office by sharing our knowledge, listening to and supporting others, acting as a resource, and striving to inspire each other every day.
Better Every Day
Now, in the first weeks of spring, a world that has experienced a year of radical change is beginning anew. Over the coming months, we will be re-engaging with our community and network through a series of media channels with content that explores the deeper meaning of these values and how they relate to our life and work.
I hope you will join us as the Strongwork team begins this journey to do and be “Better Every Day.”