Erica Williams
“There won’t always be someone there to help you climb up the ladder to where they are. Make room for yourself at the table, speak up, contribute, bring value, and be courageous.”
#WomenWhoBuild, meet Erica Williams,
Erica is the visionary behind The Design Bloc, a full service design and consulting firm based in Florida with a focus on design development, technology, community, and education. Prior to pivoting in her career and starting her own venture Erica had worked as a designer for large scale companies including Gensler and Starbucks. In addition to The Design Bloc, Erica also mentors young designers, hosts courses, and writes and publishes e-books.
ArchNative sat down with Erica to discuss her introduction to Architecture, how she was able to scale an Instagram presence into a thriving business, what inspired her to start her own venture, and what her advice is for young women just starting in the field.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and your journey in architecture ? What was your first introduction to the field?
I grew up drawing, painting, and sketching. I was the quiet kid in the class that was always drawing realistic drawings. I didn’t really know until junior year in high school that I wanted to be an architect. This came about by me being a night owl and staying up late one night to catch a PBS special about architect Zaha Hadid. That was when I fell in love with Architecture. I was actually in a sculpture class at the time and I really liked how she used sculpture in her architecture practice. I also liked that she was a woman of color and I connected to that. I actually didn’t even really know what an architect was until I saw that and I was hooked from there. I ended up taking a drafting class my senior year and going on the track towards Architecture. I then went on to pursue my Masters of Architecture degree at the University of South Florida. While I started as not the strongest student in my class (I was making models that looked like I cut them with scissors), I ended up graduating as one of the top design students and having my thesis as a topic of conversation at conferences. I ended up winning the AIA Medal for Design Excellence and Leadership. That solidified that I was doing something right, so I thought to myself, let me keep going down this path.
I graduated during the recession in 2009, so after school I ended up going to New York to look for work in person and pass out resumes, and doing the same in DC. I ended up getting a lot of call backs, which was refreshing after 8 months of not getting a job or any call backs in Florida. Gensler called me as I was still passing out resumes in DC and eventually after interviewing with them that same week, I accepted the offer to join their team - that was my first job in Architecture.
You worked for some high profile companies including Gensler and Starbucks after graduating from school, what made you take the pivot and become an entrepreneur ?
I like to say that, I didn’t choose entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship chose me. I was doing very well at Gensler, I was there for (6) years and ended up being one of the youngest practice area leaders in the firm at the time for Product Design. There was always something that was driving me to do something and build something bigger than myself outside of any firm that I worked for. I always had an entrepreneurial spirit. In school, I would teach the younger kids how to play the piano and I would even sell my artwork. I always had it in my DNA. It was always something pulling at me, no matter how well I did in the corporate field. During my time as a Starbucks store designer, I was presented with an opportunity I couldn’t refuse, and I took my then hobby (The Design Bloc), to the next level after I was awarded a coworking grant - the rest is history.
Can you tell us a little bit about Design Bloc, what is the mission of the company?
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The Design Bloc started as an instagram page in 2014 and I just did it as a way to connect with other designers around the world. Instagram was very new at the time and I thought it was very cool to show architecture and buildings and what I was doing. I ended up posting and realizing that people were following me from all sorts of places around the world. I just got a natural high from connecting with people and talking about design. There weren’t really many other design pages at that time on Instagram, I think Architecture Hunter was the only other one. I felt that I wanted to inspire and connect with other people. I wanted it to be a community by designers, for designers. Eventually it turned into something bigger than that. Now it has evolved into a full time consulting firm, which also includes an educational component. I also mentor, host courses, and write e-books. I currently have (2) projects that I am working on which are based in Miami that I am excited about.
What is the most rewarding part about having your own company and what is the most challenging?
The most rewarding part I would say is knowing that I built this from my own ambitions and my own imagination. It is really rewarding, in the same way building a building is; Where it comes out of your own mind and people are inhabiting it and loving it and connecting with it. It’s kind of the same thing with a company. At first it’s an idea, you kind of feel crazy at the beginning like people are going to wonder why I am doing this, but then once people are appreciating it, getting those messages is really rewarding.
The most challenging is probably the same thing, in that you are the one running that company, and you need to make sure that you are meeting all of the benchmarks you have set for yourself and not feeling like you are falling behind in any way. You can work all day and all night if you let yourself. Finding that balance between work and life is also really challenging since everything starts to blur together as an entrepreneur.
What does your day to day look like?
“The most rewarding part I would say is knowing that I built this from my own ambitions and my own imagination. It is really rewarding, in the same way building a building is; Where it comes out of your own mind and people are inhabiting it and loving it and connecting with it. ”
Being an entrepreneur, my work is beyond just what one sees on the instagram or the website. I do a thing called priming where I do basically the same thing every morning. I wake up, I have my morning walk, I have my tea, I do my meditation, and I check my emails. I trade stocks when the market first opens for about (2) hours, and then I have meetings with my clients and my mentees. Towards the end of the day I work more production wise in terms of getting floor plans updated, posting on instagram, getting some content created, and making videos. I tend to work really well at night. I actually shift a lot of my production time to the afternoon. My day ends around 9. I always make sure to take a break and reward myself with a drink from Starbucks or another coffee shop and make a list for the next day. I make sure I don’t end the day without making a list for the next day.
What is one piece of advice you have for women entering the field?
Don't be afraid to step into the room. It’s important to know that you can only go as far as you push yourself. There won’t always be someone there to help you climb up the ladder to where they are. Make room for yourself at the table, speak up, contribute, bring value, and be courageous.
Some of my best outcomes have come from me stepping into rooms (literally) and I have no regrets!
For more information about Erica, you can follow her at her personal page at: @DesignLifeSmart
For more information about The Design Bloc you can follow the company page at: @TheDesignBloc