Twelve top architects and designers share advice for the younger generation
To round off our Performance Review series, we asked leading architects and designers for their words of wisdom, including Daniel Libeskind, Sabine Marcelis and Lina Ghotmeh.
The design and architecture industries are complex, and making a living from them can be daunting.
How should you navigate the industry as a fledgling?
This is the question we posed to industry leaders – people who themselves have built successful businesses.
Advice from the practical to the existential
Among the architects featured are deconstructivist powerhouse Libeskind and Stirling Prize winner Níall McLaughlin, who established their eponymous studios in 1989 and 1991 respectively.
We also spoke with architects who have found success more recently, such as Ghotmeh, who was this year named on Time magazine's list of the world's 100 most influential rising stars.
Top designers who shared their words of wisdom include Gustaf Westman, Kelly Wearstler and Tom Dixon, who preached "go to parties".
Like when we previously asked top designers about how they got their breaks, we requested that people be as honest as possible.
Advice ranged from the practical to the existential, although certain time-tested themes carried throughout – master basic skills, build community, stay curious and don't be afraid to be yourself.
Many of the participants encouraged trying different types of design, while others stressed the importance of having and maintaining "big ideas".
Over the past two weeks, our Performance Review series highlighting the issues facing architecture and design has sometimes made for bleak reading.
But here we explore how opportunities can still be found in spite of the challenges.
Read on for advice from 12 top architects and designers:
"Be in the room with potential clients" says Sabine Marcelis
"Be authentic and unapologetically yourself. Work hard, be kind and prepare for when luck or an opportunity strikes.
"Opportunities don't just happen – you have to take an active role in creating them.
"Be in the room with potential clients. Go to the events you are invited to. You never know who you may meet or sit next to at a dinner.
"Face-to-face connections still are so important in establishing bonds that can lead to future work/projects."
"You need an accountant and you need a lawyer" says Tosin Oshinowo
"The most practical advice I can give is that you need an accountant and you need a lawyer. If you don't set the right structures from day one, it will create challenges for you in the future. The irony is, yes, having these external parties comes at a cost, but you have to find a way to create that foundational structure. Never think that you can use a standard agreement – every job is bespoke.
"For young designers and young architects, it's the easiest pothole to fall into because we have finished design school and think we've got all the skills to provide the service, but we don't have the skills to run a business.
"It's a saturated market, but everybody has a defining factor. You have to find your secret sauce and use it as your marketing tool. The easiest entry into architecture, but the most saturated, is residential – there's so much competition, which means that the fees you earn on it are low because there is somebody else who will do it a little bit cheaper. That's not the place any young designer wants to get into.
"Look for collaborations, competitions and working with communities. These might not necessarily be high-paying opportunities, but they will propel your career forward. Civic projects and community-led projects tend to have very good PR – residential, not so much.
"The two things you need to build are a capital base and a profile. You might end up using the more boring projects to pay the bills, but make sure you have work that gives you enough of a presence that you can use that to push your agenda as a practice.
"We are entering the era where the star architect is dead. The next generation of designers needs to be in tune with balance and knowing that they are not at the head of the table – they are one of many parties that need to collaborate to create good architecture that is equitable, sustainable and progressive.
"We are faced with a new age of how AI is going to change our profession. One thing is very clear: it can never replace the jobs that require souls, and we should be mindful of that. We have tools being provided to us that we didn't have before. We should never allow them to control us, but we can utilise them to our benefit, and architects who understand this very early on are the ones who will survive the evolution."
"You make your own luck" says Tom Dixon
"Stop thinking you should wait until somebody discovers you. It's not going to happen. You make your own luck.
"There seems to be a nervousness about putting your stuff out there. It's a very different and fast-evolving world; it's so much easier to get an idea out and test it out in the real world. I'd say, get on with it, don't hold on to a single idea and keep trying.
"I get a lot of people coming to me for jobs who have spent four or five years at art school and got a portfolio with three ideas in, but I'm like, so what did you do for the rest of the time? These people are frozen in nervousness about getting their ideas out.
"It's tough because you're assaulted with exemplars of people who seem successful or have loads of ideas all the time. It gets harder and harder to know what your idea is. I sympathise, but you have to act.
"I tell students to go to parties. Do not ignore the parties, do not ignore your teachers, do not ignore all the workshops and the rest of it. The more people and connections you have, the more that works into your work life in the long term."
"Be scrappy and get your hands dirty" says Kelly Wearstler
"See as much as you can. Whether visiting a major exhibition or setting up studio visits with artisans and makers, I encourage everyone to be curious, especially when you're just starting out. Immersing yourself in all kinds of creative practices is the quickest way to educate your eye and find your distinct perspective.
"I recommend getting very good at the basics, becoming a very good listener and then taking risks. There is a lot of sameness out there, so conveying your own point of view is essential. And this is a client service business, so being able to collaborate and exceed expectations will ensure positive word of mouth. When I began, I had to be very clever in executing my vision within budget and trying to see past roadblocks.
"The explosion of AI in the creative realm is already shaping our future. Being adept at leveraging these tools to clarify your own creative voice and supercharging your output will define those who are leading the pack.
"Moments that might seem challenging are the greatest learning opportunities. Lean into the hard times, don't run away. A creative career is always a process of growth. Be scrappy and get your hands dirty – you will get out what you put in."
"Understand how to sell" says Laurids Gallée
"Students sometimes come to my studio to get advice from me, and I'm always very cautious. A lot of people's wisdom doesn't apply anymore. Even in the 10 years since I graduated, the world and education have transformed so much that I may be a dinosaur in the way I run my studio.
"But there are a few things that I always tell [students]. You need stamina – don't expect quick successes. It's a slow and long process, so this has to be taken into account and people should not get discouraged.
"People don't pay attention to who their market is. This is super important and I had to learn it the hard way. It would have made things a lot easier in my earlier years if I had understood who the people purchasing things from me would be, because it's not only about creativity – if you want to continue, you have to have sales.
"Understand how to sell to whom and in what quantity, and how they make money with that – these annoying calculations that become very normal at some point, but in the beginning, as a young independent designer, everybody completely avoids them because you just focus on making beautiful things."
"Practice the basics until you are fluent" says Níall McLaughlin
"An in-depth knowledge of construction is indispensable. If you haven't been taught that in college, teach yourself. It will open up opportunities for you, and you will be confident enough to take them.
"If someone can draw beautifully, make precise models, and do 3D digital work fluently, they will be welcome in any office. Don't forget to apply to my studio!
"Despite what you hear in the media, there is a market out there for skilful architects who demonstrate mastery of the discipline. Practice the basics until you are fluent, then the world is your oyster."
"If you don't have big ideas, you're already irrelevant" says Daniel Libeskind
"My advice would be to follow what you love and follow your dreams. Don't get sidelined by concepts that undermine your skills or the folly that doesn't let you follow what you are really good at.
"To get a job you have to differentiate yourself, not by style or by superficial look, but by a profound path that you're following.
"There's always going to be sceptics – people who will tell a young person that they will not succeed, that they will fail if they don't join the larger crowd, but I think the opposite. If you have something that you want to do, you will be very successful if you don't listen to them. Of course, there might be some years in the desert, but ultimately you'll emerge to some freedom with your talent.
"I think the great danger is that people give up and think technology will drive everything they will do, but it's not that way. It's we – people who are talented, with ideas, who dream – that will drive that whole development.
"If you don't have big ideas, you're already irrelevant, you're already unnecessary. To be successful, you have to offer something that isn't just reinforcing the patterns that already exist, but creating something outside of that pattern. It used to be called art, or creativity."
"Look at the world with genuine curiosity" says Lina Ghotmeh
"Architecture is a way of life. When choosing this path, one steps into a profession that shapes you as a person. It is a calling that urges you to look at the world with genuine curiosity. As an architect, you should nurture that curiosity and allow the world to move through you – so observe, research, and question what shapes the environment around you.
"Originality and depth come from a true commitment to ideas and integrity in practice. Standing out is the result of meaningful work pursued with perseverance. It is not a goal in itself, but a possible outcome of dedicated practice.
"Remember also that studying architecture is not only about eventually establishing your own practice – it is about finding your voice and your convictions within the context that suits you best. A collaborative practice may just be the environment where you can pursue your passion and align with an ethos that allows you to naturally stand out.
"We need architects who can think together, not only in competition. Architects capable of joining forces to bring architectural culture to a wider audience and to make architecture an essential part of every built environment.
"We need architects who are willing to challenge the status quo, who can tackle complexity, who care deeply for their surroundings, and who are ready to leap forward with the technological revolutions ahead of us. See the positive side of the world and build upon it."
"Young people have an advantage" says Gustaf Westman
"I think young people now more than ever have an advantage over the older generation with knowledge in digital tools, social media, etc.
"The problem is that too many people listen to what teachers and the industry say is 'correct'. What the industry teaches is just the same path everyone is taking! Think different – there's so many things you can do.
"I designed bad things in the start but if I told that to the younger Gustaf, he would probably have stopped trying."
"Show how you think, not just what you draw" says Carlo Ratti
"Show how you think, not just what you draw. When I review portfolios, the projects that stay with me aren't always the most polished, but they are the ones that reveal new ideas forming. AI can automate representation but it cannot invent meaning on its own. Start from the strength of your ideas; that's where humanity still lives.
"We need architects who can connect across disciplines. I like to think of this new figure as a choral architect: someone who designs through coordination, participation and shared intelligence.
"I understand the fatigue. Architecture often turns inward, mistaking its metaphors for reality. But the world is shifting fast; the climate is transforming, populations are changing, resources are vanishing.
"The question isn't whether architecture will adapt, but how. To borrow Buckminster Fuller's words, we must be architects of the future, not its victims."
"No one does this work alone" say brothers Michael and Martellus Bennett
Michael
"Learn to observe. Architecture and design are really about listening to people, to materials, to the histories that live inside a space. Slow down enough to understand why things are built the way they are. That's where the real education is.
"Build community. Find mentors, collaborate with people outside your discipline, and surround yourself with people who challenge you to grow. No one does this work alone.
"The industry needs designers who aren't afraid to tell the truth. People who design with purpose, with heart, with culture. We need a generation that's willing to challenge the old systems, rethink how we build, and create spaces that actually reflect the people living in them. Designers who lead with empathy, curiosity, and conviction – that's what will move us forward.
"Keep moving, even when the path feels heavy. Every sketch, every mistake, every late night is shaping your voice. Don't rush it. Let your story rise through the work."
Martellus
"Never employ experts in full bloom. The true value of a team lies not in hiring those who believe they have already reached their peak, but in cultivating growth, curiosity, and development within your ranks.
"An expert who is still growing brings energy, adaptability, and fresh vision. To build lasting work, surround yourself with people who are becoming, not those who believe they have already become."
Performance Review
This article is part of Dezeen's Performance Review series interrogating the problems plaguing architecture and design, from difficult working conditions to ethical dilemmas.
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