I recently had a very interesting conversation with a Planning student. We’ll call him John – not for anonymity, but because I forgot his name (I’m a jerk like that). Anyways, John is about to graduate and is concerned that his unique skillset may not translate to a career in Planning. You see, John is … More Once Upon a Time: Planner as Story-Teller
Hey, remember me? I used to write posts here. My apologies. I went away on Paternity Leave and … ahhh, never mind, no excuses. I’m planning to provide regular updates again, but they’ll be spread out a bit more than before. I’ve exhausted most of the topics I wanted to write about and unless you … More Copy and Paste, Or How to Think Outside the Text Box
If you’re not a ‘people person,’ you may want to pursue a different career! As Planners, our responsibility is to represent the public interest or the ‘greater good,’ which means working with the public throughout (most) projects. While public involvement varies (based on project scope, budget, location, etc.), most projects have at least three meetings with … More Public Consultation: Say Hello to the Bad Guy!
This is not a question I get asked often by students (because that’s rude), but it’s something I know they’re wondering. I know because I was a student once, and I really wondered about this. While I’m obviously not going to tell you how much I earn (again, none of your business), I did touch … More I Want to be an Urban Planner… What Will My Salary Be?
I’ve touched on proposals in a few other posts, but this week I thought I’d go into a little more detail. As a new Planner, helping to prepare proposals is a bit of a rite of passage, and you may find this takes up the majority of your time until you become more involved in … More The P Word…
Here’s something no one tells you in school. After years of being a Planner, all the technical words you use at the office will creep into your everyday vocabulary… and best of all, you won’t even notice you’re talking like some weird Planning robot (though your friends/spouse will surely remind you). It makes sense. Planners … More This Right-of-Way Sure Could use a Mid-block Crossing: Or, How to Talk Like a Planner
As a Planner, a big part of my job is creating plans (shocking, right?). Whether I’m preparing a secondary plan, a master plan, a mobility hub study, etc. the end result is a pretty picture that shows buildings, streets, parks, trails, etc. at varying levels of detail. When I first started working, the thought of … More So, How Do I Make One of Those Cool Master Plans?
Previously, we looked at a typical day at the office for a Planner. If the thought of sitting at your desk all day makes you shudder, you’re in luck… As a Planner, you’ll have lots of opportunities to get out and about. Here’s a few: Meetings – Meetings are the most common respite from the … More All Work and No Play Makes Matt a Dull Boy
For me, one of the scariest things about job hunting is the horror stories about resume fielding. We’ve all read about employers who throw out resumes because they’re stapled wrong, they use Times New Roman font, etc. While I wish I could say these stories are false, there’s some merit to them. The competition is … More Before You Submit That Resume…
No new posts until Wednesday, but I just thought I’d point out the fancy new logo on your right (or somewhere else, bottom maybe, if you’re reading on your phone). I’m thinking about experimenting with a few variations, so bear with me if it looks different every time you visit – for a little while anyways.
