If restoring structures that were constructed centuries ago has taught conservation architect VIKAS DILAWARI anything, it's how to embrace what he calls the 'least bad compromise' - because sometimes, it's simply not possible to find the exact material he wants or to go back to a long-abandoned technique. It's the trick to being happy in life, too, Vikas believes: accepting that sometimes you won't get what you want, and that what's 'good enough' can actually prove to be pretty great in the long run. It's an incredible thing to be able to be happy with what you have, says Vikas, but this, like the need to find time for his family and for other things that matter, was something he learnt over time and through experiences. His daughter once even told him, 'You've been conserving so many things, now conserve your home.'
Vikas chooses his projects carefully now, preferring to immerse himself in select projects, rather than to pile up the contracts. The result? Seventeen of the buildings he's worked on have bagged UNESCO Asia Pacific awards for cultural preservation in Southeast Asia. But it took Vikas a while to slow down and to go back to something life had tried to teach him - rather painfully - in his early days as a conservation architect: the need for balance.
On this episode of THE UPPERCASE PODCAST, the renowned conservation architect talks about what helps him to check his expectations, the need to shut out the noise and focus on what's important for yourself, and about the powerful tool that helps one through the tough times: a sense of humour.
If restoring structures that were constructed centuries ago has taught conservation architect VIKAS DILAWARI anything, it's how to embrace what he calls the 'least bad compromise' - because sometimes, it's simply not possible to find the exact material he wants or to go back to a long-abandoned technique. It's the trick to being happy in life, too, Vikas believes: accepting that sometimes you won't get what you want, and that what's 'good enough' can actually prove to be pretty great in the long run. It's an incredible thing to be able to be happy with what you have, says Vikas, but this, like the need to find time for his family and for other things that matter, was something he learnt over time and through experiences. His daughter once even told him, 'You've been conserving so many things, now conserve your home.'
Vikas chooses his projects carefully now, preferring to immerse himself in select projects, rather than to pile up the contracts. The result? Seventeen of the buildings he's worked on have bagged UNESCO Asia Pacific awards for cultural preservation in Southeast Asia. But it took Vikas a while to slow down and to go back to something life had tried to teach him - rather painfully - in his early days as a conservation architect: the need for balance.
On this episode of THE UPPERCASE PODCAST, the renowned conservation architect talks about what helps him to check his expectations, the need to shut out the noise and focus on what's important for yourself, and about the powerful tool that helps one through the tough times: a sense of humour.