For all manner of diseases and ailments, all kinds of social problems be they relationship or habitual, if you have money problems, if you have problems at work, you do not do well in school, always absent minded with a concentration span that lasts slightly more than a second, if you are too forgetful, you have sleeping problems, always disturbed by nightmares, you are too moody and no one likes you and you have spent all your money on those popular doctors from Tanzania, you have been doing it all wrong. You need to try an Architect.
It has been rightly said that architects come second only to God. Maybe it’s because they are creators. Furthermore, the term has severally been (mis)used to describe people in their different fields without any particular reference to the built environment. Kamlesh Pattni is the known architect of the Goldenberg scandal and several MPs have been regularly referred to as architects of the bills they present to parliament. But the real architects are those who shape the environment that we live in and these are the ones you need to consult.
This is why. In our day to day lives, many decisions are subconsciously taken by people based on earlier decisions made by architects. Take, for instance, from the obvious ones where the routes you take daily to arrive at your destinations were sketched in some papers by a group of architects and it was called a ‘master plan’. The same people decided where you will live, work and have fun. They called these residential, commercial or recreational zones. Down to these zones, they decided where you will build and where you won’t. You may rightly argue that these are based on laid down principles and people have no choice but to adhere to them, you are right.
But even in instances where you have a choice, of whether to stand or sit, whether to stroll by or zoom past quickly, whether to extend your stay or cut it short, architects have a way of dictating your pick and if you opt for the contrary, it will be at a price of a little discomfort. Have you ever noted the difference in ambience between restaurants? Fast food restaurants will come with uncomfortable high wooden stools, and some do not even provide them at all. The idea is you walk in, buy your cheap meal, have it as fast as possible and move. Your attempt to extend your stay will only result in a backache. The more expensive a restaurant gets, the cozier it becomes.
In sum, architects have a way of touching the human subconscious and affect it in many ways. The approach to design of, say, hospitals involves careful use of colour and light in a way that hastens the recovery of patients. In schools, design features used ensure minimal distraction form exterior while enhancing a person’s concentration span and ability to understand from the interiors. Homes too have a formula that combines careful orientation possibilities, sizing of doors and windows, texturization (does this word really exist?) of floors and walls and differentiating the heights of spaces in an attempt to influence the ‘ying and yang’ of a person, and hence the decisions they take. A good architect would always use their powers to positively enhance your life and this is not limited to the few aspects mentioned.
But if after consulting a good architect you still wallow in all those unending problems, maybe its time you made a trip to one of those doctors from Tanzania.
