GRIZZLY PEAR

written snapshots

OPM.42 Fence Sitting

Make a decision!

The Owner needs to decide.
Already?
Right now?

Yesterday? (oops!)

But if decision isn’t ripe yet,
The OPM should live with the discomfort of uncertainty.
Straddle the fence.

There’s at least three parties on a project:
Users
Contractor
Architect.

Three of agendas to juggle.
Yeah we’re a big happy team.
But each of us are beholden to the demands of our organizations.
Who signs whose paychecks?

The OPM’s job is to sort through the conflicts and develop a synthesis.
Part of this game is to play the game.
To develop a good conclusion.

It might take a some fence sitting to sort it out.
Ponder each team’s agenda.
Understand why they conflict.
Inhabit their perspective.

Time’s up.
Then get off the fence.
Make a decision. Communicate clearly.

Delay further and it’s opportunity cost.
Time’s a wastin’.

~

Some Links

I’ve been following Jeffery Saddoris ever since coming across his long running podcast with Bill Wadman.

On Taking Pictures went on hiatus for a few years, but they recently returned to bless us on a sporadic basis, whenever the guys feel like turning on their microphones together.

In the meantime, Jeffery hosts several podcasts and writes an introspective newsletter. Iterations consistently make me ponder my own life, choices, and art.

~

black and white photograph of a boy feeding a swan, Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney, 2nd January, 1935. by Ted Hood
Far West boy feeds a swan, Taronga Park Zoo, Sydney, 1935. Ted Hood

~

Thanks for reading!
Justus Pang, RA