5 Years. Wow. That flew by...

5 Years. I have to say that again. 5 years already since I walked away from what I still do believe will be the best job I will ever have. The reasons for having left; they were very tangible at that time, not so much today - 115 miles roundtrip daily commute in LA traffic, a 10 year old about to start middle school who hardly ever saw his mum in between 10+ days of fast paced international travel a month and the commute, a dream to develop a small lot subdivision project in my community of Silver Lake, Los Angeles and most of all, a complete physical breakdown where my body and my mind both begged me for a rest, for a slowdown, for time to think and rejuvenate.

This week, 5 years later, has been one of introspection, a lot of lot of lot of nostalgia and most of all, one full of optimism about the future - A palpable excitement about opportunity, partnership, creativity, family, friendship, brand (personal and professional) and to continue the eternal quest to find a balanced life between all those things of importance while being a full time working professional and now also the mother of a teenager. Most of all, this week, in my trip down memory lane, I am so immensely humbled by the the successes seen by Team MEGA and the lessons learned along the way; and boy, have there been lessons learned...!

What a fantastic journey the 5 years of MEGA has been! Our Urban Design Studio, in the heart of the Arts District in Los Angeles (come say hi!), MEGA continues to see new opportunities and seeks to keep pushing the boundaries of Design and Planning in emerging markets with the support of an amazing and diverse group of clients and consultants who continue to bring collaboration and innovation to the table for every project. We have had the good fortune of intersecting with some of the best in the business, perhaps sometimes the youngest or newest in the business or the most "entrepreneurial", but this much is clear - Great Design Vision is achievable, Innovative Communities are buildable and Sustainable, Long Term Partnerships are possible; when a team brings trust, creative ideas and an open mind to every project.

On the personal projects front, last month also marked the successful completion of our first Development Project in Los Angeles - A 3-small lot subdivision in Silver Lake on a modest 7,000 sf plot of land that we had called home for 12 years before breaking ground 2 years ago. We did it! An idea and exploration that came to be on a long flight home to New Delhi back in 2013; exhausted and broken from 3 straight weeks of travel in the Middle East and China, this very personal project was made real only by the true grit and excellence in design and building that comes from the mind of my better half, Sidhartha Sabikhi, AIA, and the super creative team of people at R204Design who brought all their passion and determination to making this project a reality. As much as I love Los Angeles and have proudly called it home for almost 20 years, the city certainly does not make it easy for first time developers to build - To build thoughtfully, conscientiously and with a respect for community and land together is even harder. We; however, together, with no one to advise or guide us through this process, making mistakes and learning from them, persevered and sold the last of the 3 homes last month. We are so proud of this little project and so grateful for the support we had from our collaborators and our tight knit community as we immersed ourselves headlong into construction back in 2017. We invite you to check out www.MaltmanHomes.com to get a glimpse of this true labor of love.

So here’s to the next 5 years. I am excited for new opportunities in design, new partners, partnerships, and collaborators, and most of all, so determined to continue to build strong design teams and grow young and enthusiastic talent while nurturing the experience that our collective teams have to share. For us and whatever our team looks like going into 2020, 5 years in, we must continue to evolve to stay competitive and stay relevant, we must stay nimble, and we must stay true to good design and healthy debate, adjusting and morphing as we look towards what's next. Evolution seems ephemeral and perhaps scary sometimes, but today I am ready to take all of life to the next stop in my journey, the next place, the next level - What any of that looks like, I have no clue.

Let’s meet somewhere along the way, shall we? I hope we do!

MEGA #MEGA #SLVRLKPartners #MASS-D