A Collaboration in design for Tandem poles between Structura and Clockwork is recognized in Architectural Record’s Nov. 2011 and Snap Magazine’s Feb/March 2012 issue.  This collaboration has also yielded the Sabi family of concrete and aluminum poles. http://www.structura.com/

Yesterday Clockwork’s Houzz profile was populated with much of our residential work, take a look here.  Houzz is a great resource for finding and cataloging residential inspiration images and we are excited to share our work with Houzz’s on-line community…enjoy!

Each and every week seems to bring something different – almost characteristically themed – either with catch phrases in the office, consistently repeated media topics, or simply instances/verbage that seem to reiterate themselves throughout the typical monday through friday grind that we know as the ever-so daunting ‘work week’.  There is consistently that thing (or various things) that is emblematic and in turn, representative to our exposure of {insert desired topic here} during those 5 days. Well, as this weekend rapidly approaches we are reflecting on the ‘thing’ for this week.

With buzz of the final four, zuckerberg on the cover of fast company, inspirational music mixes blasting around the office and hunger games setting records at the box office we think this week has been quite motivational; as a matter of fact, one we see gently grasping the cusp of GREATNESS… and of course, it got us to thinking – what is greatness, what defines such a dominant noun, what lies at its core?

I can assure you this – its not going to be easy. its no day at the beach.  its not going to be handed to you on a silver platter served by a white glove, black tuxed butler.  nope.  its not measured by the amount of cash comfortably tucked away in your wallet, its not quantifiable by the size of your home, or the amount of people you have stored in the contacts section of your outlook. nope.  It takes an insane amount of motivation and dedication. It takes an extreme amount of passion, an immeasurable amount of heart and an endless amount of time.  You have to want it… desperately.  You have to believe… in yourself, your team and the capabilities of your talent.

Since it is the final four and we have a few Jawhawk fans around here (just a few) lets use basketball players as an example…  the sport is not a part of their life – their life is the sport.  its who they are – it defines them.  Its not all that they are, obviously there is much more the human being than one sole entity / desire.  However, they know this is them; this is their calling… and they want to be the best… superior. Transcendence is reflective of dedication and thats why they commit their life to the sport – every aspect of it, everyday.  They never stop – They lift, they watch film, they learn, they think, they talk, shoot, drills, sweat, bleed… and they leave it all on the court… everyday. The good ones are there, the great ones want it more.  less is not more… more is more – you have to want it – above and beyond the next guy.

Outside of the gym one man doesnt cut it… he relies on his team – a strength in numbers mentality – their desire and drive feed off of one another – they do everything together, they are family.  Its imperative to honor the team as part of an individuals successes and never forget that.  In all actuality, the great ones always appreciate, reward, remember and are humbled by their ‘team’.  The team is the support group and without them the ‘greats’ are nothing.

This is the point - no matter what profession, no matter the goal, regardless of the desire or intent… you have to want it.  You have to love what you do, you have to constantly push yourself, you have to train – never give up. Please, for me, never give up. You have to constantly strive to be better, be sharp, always be hungry, always want more. Do it for a greater good. If failure finds you, then admirably overcome that adversity and continue with the knowledge from that experience. Acknowledge it, dont ignore it. If you want it, go get it – period.  It is in what we DO that defines us… so go DO something, determine what you want to do and do it.  Do it better than the next guy, do it like you KNOW it should be done.  be the difference. If life / the man / circumstances get you down… then look elsewhere, keep searching – never get comfortable, never settle.  Surround yourself with like-minded individuals that share similar goals / expectations – if you have a solid team then you can feed off their energy.  If it came easy, it wouldnt be worth fighting for.  Not everyone achieves it but you always remember the ones that do.  Now, thats enough talk… go get it! p.s. remember to smile… we like your smile.

Although ‘the 1%’ has become a bit of a buzz word lately, this ‘1%‘ describes a completely different project, one that connects non-profits with designers willing to give 1% of their time pro-bono.  This program was created by Public Architecture in San Francisco to encourage pro-bono services by architects + designers and judging by their project gallery they have had quite a bit of success!

As if Monday isn’t bad enough – well, now it is blatantly staring us straight in the face; taunting us, armed with an abundant and overwhelming coffee stench rolling off its warm breath – evidence of its jump start on the morning.  Today, Monday is standing even taller – glowing with added confidence and backed by extra muscle – yes, there, in the dim-lit corner – Monday’s good friend ‘daylight savings’. With this brash duo kicking off the week – I think its safe to say that we are all struggling (some more than others) to adapt to this state of minor alteration to our daily routines.  But, in this small circumstance of change we should take a brief moment to step back from the chaos that is Monday and analyze the bigger picture.

We, right now, in this exact moment, are undeniably witnessing a state of flux – from wall street to the gas pumps;  from political prospects to the inevitable evolution of your bracket – everything is destined to change. The media persistently plagues its pages regarding these numerous and varied specific instances of fluctuation and transition.  It is apparent that such copious and quite daunting reporting has left most member’s of society questioning, concerned and frequently looking over their left shoulder watching their proverbial back. However, we believe that this is a time to intuitively determine identity + intent – and after a couple of economically brutal years ‘change’ is something that can and should be undeniably embraced – both by you (yes… you) personally and businesses small and large.  We, here at Clockwork, absolutely believe that this time of instability and/or transition should be approached with optimistically open arms and act as a catalyst for progress.  Below, you will find a presentation we recently put together contemplating the concept of identity in the workplace and the factors to consider during the recent times of constant transformation.  Why are we sharing such a painstakingly composed and time-intensive presentation with you?  The answer is simple – we are not only a team of talented architects and designers but at the end of the day we pride ourselves in being problem solvers and how we relate everything we are / do back the human element… we are thinkers and want to share our thoughts with people.  so, why not – after all, that’s what life is all about – connecting with people and we want to be a part of that in every way possible.

This week is going to be awesome.

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As we sail into march madness and spring weather, here is Clockwork’s March calendar created by Shane.

Along with being a skilled group of designers + architects, Clockwork has a plethora of other talents + hobbies that were revealed yesterday evening at a group happy hour.  Below are some we would like to share, good luck guessing which ones go with which Clockwork team member!

- ***** is a very gifted artist who thrives on combining political concepts with the visual arts

- **** has Djed with world-renowned DJ Chris Liebing

- *******’s significant other owns and runs a vineyard

- ***** has tried out for American Idol + The Voice

- **** has a passion for buying, restoring + riding motorcycles

- ***** was a semi-professional salsa dancer back in the day

- **** is a top notch Dad + chef

- *********’s house has been published in Dwell magazine and will soon be on the cover of a design book

TED2012: Full Spectrum is happening this week and has (as usual) a great line-up of remarkable people speaking.  For more information on the speakers, links to watch webcasts, etc. click here….and for the local KC folks, check out TEDxKC for upcoming events.  The TED speakers are applicable and interesting for anyone in any industry and we highly recommend checking them out.

Clockwork is proud to announce that last week one of our Principals, Neil Sommers, was recognized as a multiple Paul Harris Fellow by the Rotary Club of Leawood, KS for his dedication and service to the club.

The Paul Harris Fellow recognition was created in memory of Paul Harris, the founder of Rotary as a way to show appreciation for contributions to the Foundation’s charitable and educational program. Every Paul Harris Fellow receives a pin, medallion and a certificate when he or she becomes a Fellow. This identifies the Paul Harris Fellow as an advocate of the Foundation’s goals of world peace and international understanding.

By the time of Harris’ death at the age of seventy-nine, Rotary International had grown to more than 200,000 members in 75 countries.  Rotary International currently numbers 1.2 million members world-wide.

The motto of Rotary International is “Service Above Self”. While the club provides a venue for both business and social networking, the primary focus is on local and international service projects.

If you are interested in learning more about Rotary, please email Neil at neil@clockwork-ad.com.