One tenth inspiration

This is the new world record set on September 16th by Eliud Kipchoge during the Berlin Marathon. And it was a phenomenal feat, which has once again awoken in many people the hope that the almost mythical two-hour barrier could be finally be broken. Why have I started on the theme of sporting records? Don’t worry, I’m not going to lecture you here about getting out of your comfort zone or testing the limits of your endurance. My theme is about admiration, drawing inspiration and finding the motivation for action. The Kenyan’s feat and his modesty made a deep impression on a close relative of mine and have also been a source of inspiration for his sporting activities (and he’s someone who isn’t easily impressed). A few days later I started wondering about what spurs other people on to greater things. Could it be the famous quotations you can sometimes see decorating the walls of offices these days? This interior design idea came in for some criticism during the discussions between the jury of the Eurobuild Awards for Architecture, but I would actually like to defend it – everyone is inspired by something different, so maybe we shouldn’t be so hard on this rather aphoristic approach to office decor. On the subject of the space we work in, in this month’s article entitled ‘The Devil in the Details’ we summarise the results of our architectural awards, where one of the categories was for best workspace solution. Meanwhile, our main awards ceremony – the Eurobuild Awards – is also rapidly approaching. In the article ‘Eight of the Very Best’ you can acquaint yourself with the unique individuals nominated by the editorial team for our Personality of the Year 2018. Many more fascinating people can be found on other pages of this issue, such as in our feature article, ‘Buying is just the Beginning’. I often wonder what inspires, drives and motivates real estate players, but this is a topic for conversation over a coffee or... for a new section of the magazine.