This Architect Doubled His Income. Here's How.

Every Friday afternoon, I meet with students enrolled in my Architect + Entrepreneur Course to discuss their progress, professional challenges, and help guide their next actions. This is how I met Henry Gao. When he enrolled, his skills were being underutilized by his employer, and he was struggling to make ends meet in one of the most expensive cities in the US, San Francisco. Unsure if the risk of setting off on his own was the right thing to do, I reminded him it wasn't an all-or-nothing decision. He could keep his job AND start a side hustle as a low-risk next step.

Twelve months later he's more than doubled his monthly income.

Imagine, doubling your income in that short span?

Henry Gao, SF based Architectural Designer in his studio

Henry's story is part of a growing trend of young architects prioritizing work-life balance and earning more. Designing a creative life of your own making is an unattainable ideal, a dream never realized. In this latest installment of the modern practice series, Henry shares exactly how he did it.

By leveraging principles of entrepreneurship and finding ways to divorce time worked from fee earned, Henry was able to carve out time to sketch and learn architectural photography. He explored new digital tools and a method for using them in practice. And, importantly, he began sharing what he learned with others. The iPad workshop below is one of his ‘white space’ experiments. He discovered an unmet need in the profession and he’s using it to teach others, supporting his family with the proceeds and using that to buy even more creative ‘white space’.

DIGITAL WORKFLOW FOR DESIGNERS

This free, 3-Part Workshop is an intro to Henry's iPad for Designer’s Masterclass (which I'm enrolled in + highly recommend).

Interested in replicating Henry’s success? Here’s your shortcut.

Architect + Entrepreneur Course

When I started 30X40 Design Workshop in 2013 I was focused on building a non-traditional studio. I wanted to design homes, but as a creative person with many interests, I wanted a business that would allow me to explore them all. I made a very simple shift in the way I practice and this course explains how you can make that transition too. You’ll learn how to make the same creative white space Henry did so you can do more of the things you want to do. It's absolutely possible to design a business that serves your financial needs, supports your family and also feeds your creative intellect. And, it doesn't matter if you live in a city, a suburb or a remote island - like I do - when you apply the principles of entrepreneurship to reinvent a conventional practice model you'll earn more and have more time for the things you enjoy.

Whether you’re just getting started or you’ve been at this a while and you’re not where you’d thought you’d be, you’ll find valuable lessons here. I share what saves me time and makes my business more money each month. The curriculum provides a framework and a set of actionable steps that will help you put in place the systems required to design a business that works for you. You’ll have the freedom to choose what you work on each day, a purpose driving you forward and the time to spend on the things in life that really matter: your personal relationships.

Without the freedom to chose what I work on each day, a purpose driving me forward and strong personal relationships I don't consider myself successful. How you judge success may be different. Maybe your metrics are financial, maybe you want to run an international team, or win the Pritzker or travel full-time. There are no right answers, only ones that are right for you. This course teaches you to work with intention, toward goals that matter.

Modern Practice Series - Ep 1 Eponymous Architecture

In this new series, I’m visiting architects and design professionals asking them to share the choices, challenges, failures, successes and failures that have shaped their careers. Too often we hear from only those architects elevated by the media to superstar status. These so-called 'starchitects' account for a small percentage of design professionals. And, the stories from the bulk of our ranks - a great many talented architects and designers – remain untold. This series gives voice to their stories. 

We uncover early inspirations that led them to choose architecture, experiences in architecture school, internships, what firm typologies to look for, advice for taking the Architectural Registration Exams (ARE), how to find work and clients, working for and with others, networking and struggles building a business.

In the inaugural video of the series we meet John Clappi, a licensed architect living and working in Brooklyn, New York. He has more than 20 years’ experience practicing architecture in both Boston and New York City at a variety of scales from large developments to award winning Record Houses and private residences. He’s worked for two starchitects: Richard Meier of Richard Meier and Partners and Brad Cloepfil at Allied Works, both high-end, boutique design firms. In part 1 he recounts the school years and his early career pivot points as well as his experience working for Meier and Allied Works and time working on large scale developer projects in New York City. 

In part 2, we’ll discover why he set out on his own, how he secured his first commissions and the challenges he’s facing as he builds out a larger vision for his nascent architecture studio: Eponymous Architecture, PLLC.

It’s a rare and candid look into the struggles designers and architects face as we seek to become licensed professionals and to find a life of true, creative fulfillment.