by Charles Hendricks | Dec 11, 2015 | citizen architect, Empathy
Where is the fire in the belly attitude that this country is built on?
As I watched the middle school girls basketball game yesterday, it hit me. From the first quarter on, they looked tired. It must have been a particularly hard day of school. They played well, but there was no fire, no emotion. As I watch sports I see that fire in some college games. There is a fire in the belly attitude with the fans and teams – they want a win and they play hard to get there. When the team does not win, they are deflated, spent, physically tired.
I do not see this in professional athletics. It seems more important to celebrate the individual effort by the individual after every play. So what you made a catch – did it change the game or did it just fill time? This individual celebration in professional athletics seems to have taken over the fire in the belly attitude that makes this country the greatest place in the world to live. I don’t think we have lost it as a country, but is certainly seems we are losing it. It certainly seems that we are focused more on the individual celebration than building a brighter future for everyone.
My father taught me to work hard and to treat every job as if my reputation depended on it. BECAUSE IT DOES. When I started my first job at 12 years old delivering papers, my parents helped me understand how to run a business, but put it on my shoulders to do the work. With every job I have had since I have treated it like my own business and put forth the best effort possible each day. Did I fail to achieve my potential? Many times. However, the failures were used as a learning opportunity, they were not just blown off as if they did not matter. This is the fire in the belly attitude that this country is built on. The true American spirit is hard work, support for each other, pride, and empathy for others. NOT GREED. The fire in the belly attitude is not about making money, it is about making the future better for you AND your family, friends, community, and country.
As I look around my community, I see the drive to be better, the fire in the belly attitude in some great leaders. They are working hard to improve our community. These leaders are are bankers, non-profit CEOs, videographers, administrative executives, web experts, insurance salespeople…. They are the people working to make our community better. They have drive and passion. They don’t stop to celebrate every catch, they take the burden on their shoulders and move this community forward and celebrate winning as a community.
My desire as a father is to pass this fire in the belly attitude on to my children. As an employer, I want to pass it on to my employees. As a community member, I want to pass it on to everyone.
by Charles Hendricks | Dec 6, 2015 | Empathy, Harrisonburg Architect
Can one person make a difference? In all honesty, I am not sure anymore. The world seems to be a crazy mixed up place to live, work, and play. If you state an opinion that is slightly controversial you will be attacked on social media. There is venomous hatred being spouted by leaders of religious universities in our state. Statements that once would seem outrageous and never said in public are now on the top of my SM feeds every time I sign on. Fear is overcoming common sense at every turn. Overcoming fear together should be our next priority.
In this day of extremes, I am frustrated. I am frustrated that it seems hatred and bitterness is so much easier to spread than compassion and empathy. I am frustrated that it seems no matter how hard you try, the mountain seems too large to move. I am frustrated that it seems we can no longer hear each other if we don’t 100% agree with each other. I am frustrated.
However, my frustration does not make me want to stop doing my part. I think it may even push me to work harder to make positive change for the future. I am focused on continuing to grow and learn new ways that I can improve my community. I do not want to let fear and hatred win. Can one person make a difference? The good news is that we don’t have to find out because there are many people who will not allow hate to win. If these people join together, overcoming fear and standing up against the bullies that are using fear and hatred as their weapons, we will win, but not until we stand up against the hate and fear.
by Charles Hendricks | Mar 30, 2011 | Charles Hendricks, community, Empathy, family, Harrisonburg Architect, Local Leaders, Office Culture, team
My six-year-old was asking me about Earth Day. I explained that it is a day to remind us of the power of mother nature, a day to remember that we have to take care of our natural resources, and a day to think about our actions as they impact others and future generations. She then told me that she knows the solution to the problem. “You just have to stop being lazy and fix things.”
It does seem that simple on paper to me as well. If we just quit fighting over who caused it, or who should pay for it, or how to fix it, and we all just try to be better, a little better, then we will all be a lot better off. If we all reduced our energy use by 30% annually, what would happen to the amount of foreign oil we have to import each year. What would that do to the mercury levels in the air from burning coal? What would that do to the increasing rate of illness we find in certain sectors of society? What would that do for mountain tops in West Virginia? What would that do to the quality of drinking water available to all of us?
I know, I have already heard the argument that you cannot afford all those expensive upgrades. BUT, What if we all cut our water usage by installing a $3 aerator on our sinks? Would that reduce our water bills, water consumption, our environmental impact across the country. If ALL of us make a small change, wouldn’t it make a huge impact?
If we look past the expensive solutions and every household changed one light bulb, or even just turned off the lights in rooms that they are not using all the time. Or if car lots turned off their lights after 2 am each night. Or if you cut one car trip out of your weekly schedule each week. What if we each just did one thing, would you see the difference?
I am ready for Change. Real Change. Change that makes the world a better place for my children and your children. I am ready to make a difference. Will you just stop being lazy with me and fix things?
by Charles Hendricks | Mar 26, 2011 | Charles Hendricks, citizen architect, Empathy, family, Harrisonburg Architect, Local Leaders, Office Culture, team
Balancing life: being Dad
I have been accused many times of not sleeping in order to do the amount of work that I accomplish each week. I promise you that while I am involved in many activities, events, and efforts, I do get plenty of sleep. I do worry though that I am sacrificing things in my life that I will regret later. I worry about the little things that I don’t spend time doing, like attending social events to better get to know people in the community. Anyone that has seen me knows that I have not given proper attention to being healthy. While I don’t have many of the vices that one may suffer with in modern society, I do have a lack of desire for exercise and eating healthy and I worry what this will result in over the coming years. However, My biggest fear is that I am not spending enough time with my family. I struggle with balancing life: being Dad.
Over the past several weeks there has been a change in the normal pattern that I hope to continue. I have worked hard to get the garden set up. The girls have helped me with the process, sometimes actively, sometimes taking breaks, sometimes forgetting completely about the garden and just running around the yard. We have also enjoyed several family outings these last several weeks that were focused on my daughters. Last Saturday, the girls dressed up like Thing 1 and Thing 2 and we drove 1 1/2 hours to Hooville (Charlottesville) to meet the Cat in the Hat and watch a 30 minute cartoon on the big screen at the Paramount Theater. A couple of weeks ago we attended Annie at Four County Players, staying up very late for the girls and also me, but I will never forget the way they both had their eyes glued to the stage the entire time. Even better, thanks to our friend, Tracie Skipper, the girls got to meet the amazing actress that played Annie after the play. (by the way, I highly recommend making a trip to Barboursville to see a play at Four County Players, they do an incredible job). It is hard to find balance in life to be the best dad, best architect, best husband, best committee member, but that is my goal. While I know something always has to give, I can assure you that I will never give up trying to be the best.
by Charles Hendricks | Mar 24, 2011 | citizen architect, Empathy, Green Building, Local Leaders, Office Culture, team
One of my favorite quotes in the architectural world, “design is the first sign of human intention” ~ William McDonough, sets the stage for how architecture should be approached. Architects should focus on delivering design that will save money, save energy, reduce environmental impacts, and serve the intended use to the best of their ability. It all starts with design: setting the right priorities and understanding the process.
Let’s examine this notion of design. Take a step back and look at the process of creating a family calendar, a list for the grocery store, a vacation itinerary; these are all your designs for these activities. So how does making a grocery list apply to designing a building? It is essentially the same process of designing a solution. You can scatter shoot and simply make a list of things needed, without any thought to how the items will best fit together. This process will waste your valuable time in the store. Or you design the most efficient solution to the problem keeping items on the same aisle grouped together on the list. In other words, you have to understand the process, materials, and members of the team to best design a solution that is most efficient. If you understand the store layout, know how the products are arranged, and know which cashier is most efficient, then you can maximize your investment, time, used to accomplish the task.
In designing a building, an architect is trained to maximize your investment through design. The architect understands the pieces of the puzzle, the materials, the efficiencies of systems, and the members of the project. While anyone can purchase a floor plan design software at a big box store and put rooms together, they don’t understand all the complex pieces of the puzzle. Builders can deliver a house that provides shelter, but can they make sure that the spaces function to optimal performance for daily living. I contend that only an architect can bring all the pieces together, understanding how to design the most efficient solution, how to best use the materials, how the integration of systems impact spaces, and how the roles of the team members impact the end product. Yes, hiring an architect will cost more on the front end, but you then can achieve the most efficient design that meets your goals. Hiring an architect will save you money through energy-efficiency, by using materials to the best of their means, and by creating space that meets your daily lifestyle goals. Hiring an architect is your first sign of intention that sets the standard for your project.
