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The New and Improved Revit Hand: Ultimate Learning + Every Revit Tip, Trick, Technique & Workaround

In this article, you will learn “how to learn” Autodesk® Revit® and pick up EVERY Revit Tip, Trick, Technique & Workaround (known and unknown)—including future ones. Yeah, I know what I just wrote and I am confident of the statement!

These tips will provide extremely valuable tools for working with Revit and even Dynamo; as well as for personal and professional growth with the hope that you become the best possible you!

How Do I Learn Revit?

While one answer is:

“If you are a professional and are asking this question you should consider a career outside of AEC.”

A better answer is:

“Start with the Tutorials provided directly inside of Revit. Start with the first one and do them all until you master them.”

If you read the rest of this article you will even find out how to find them, if that is now a question as well.

Got it?

  • Do the tutorials!
  • Do the tutorials to learn (or start to learn) Revit

Next, add to the self-learning (that is mandatory IMHO) classes from local schools, resellers, Autodesk directly (if you can swing the $). One can use online videos, etc., and if you are really serious about wanting to learn Revit (or Dynamo) you can utilize the tips herein and get on it all (free and paid)!

OK, so you want or need Revit tips, tricks, and techniques, but how about Revit workarounds and workflows? Or are you simply looking for ways to produce your work (more) efficiently, or even correctly? Well, so do I… read on ;)

Since there is so much out there already, I am going to focus on ways to get tips, tricks, techniques, and workarounds that for some are obvious, yet are unused or under-used by far too many Revit users.

The best assets to get answers, tips, tricks, techniques, and workarounds:

  • You and Your brain
  • Your Computer (AKA: Others’ Archived Brains)
  • Revit Mentor (AKA: Others’ Live brains)

Tip #1: Self Help: Get It/Give It

Do not ask someone before trying, re-trying, then re-trying differently yourself!

That is a rule for everyone who needs an answer to a question, whether in Revit or elsewhere. 

This is not tongue in cheek; rather, this is perhaps the best way to learn. There is no magic wand out there—answers come from creative thinking and trying repeatedly, failing, and ultimately persevering.

  • Approach obstacles as opportunities and you will better yourself and others.
  • Give yourself a chance to figure it out; you can come up with the answer yourself most of the time and that is what life is all about.
  • Take a new approach and lose preconceived notions of what you believe to be the possibilities.
  • Look at the Properties dialogs. Your answer may be right in front of you.

Tip 1a

Create Answers Yourself (and grow your knowledge in meaningful, fulfilling ways). By following three simple concepts and eight potential steps, you will most assuredly either create or find the answers you are looking for.

Concept: Change Your Perspective

  • Get up, do 10 cleansing breaths, rethink, try again

          No hippie/zen joke here; this is great for your brain and outlook, at the very least!

  • Take a break, walk around, rethink, try again

          A few minute break can work to clear your head, allowing an answer to formulate, as well as giving you a good stretch.

  • Describe your issue to someone who knows nothing about it

          Ask one who knows nothing of the software or process that is giving you problems. Doing this will require you to explain it in a new way and that reframing will allow you to hear it anew and should open you up to a realization of the solution(s). (This works for me most of the time!)

Concept: F1

  • The F1/HELP button is your first line of defense. That said, the answer is not always there. But try this first!

Concept: Internet Search

Someone has most likely already had and solved an issue just like yours and the Internet will provide you with myriad answers. Don’t forget to check different viewpoints!

Did someone say Google (or any other good search engine)? And, no, I won’t give you a link for those ;)

  • Describe your question specifically and briefly with the word ‘Revit’ in it.
  • RevitForum: http://revitforum.org/  
  • AUGI Forums: http://forums.augi.com/
  • The Blogosphere: There are so many Revit/BIM blogs out there your head may spin. Most all of us who write provide links to the blogs of others, so you can easily create a list that fills your needs.

Now, the concepts above will get you the answer you need 99 percent (unscientifically reached figure) of the time. For the other 1 percent, move on to Tip 1b.

Tip 1b

Ask a Colleague or Expert

Ultimately, there are no bad questions; just be sure you have exhausted the concepts above so you don’t appear as a lazy or incapable professional. To have tried to help yourself before asking others is actually a parameter that will help you as a person in many ways! The people you are asking are busy as well and initiative is usually rewarded, so let them know that you tried Help and the Internet, etc. before posing the issue to them. I can almost guarantee that you will be respected more and more.

Be a problem solver yourself, to whatever degree you can. Even though there are no bad questions, there ARE questions that are too numerous or repetitive. Most of these are so easy to figure out without involving others that you may create an unwanted reputation as a lazy professional. And as you may know, laziness is a good cure for long-term, gainful employment and professional advancement.

Tip #2: Leverage Social Media

LinkedIn, Twitter, Foursquare, YouTube, etc. are some of the sites that every Revit and BIM person needs to exploit. Why is social media a good tip? Because you can find people and solutions faster than you can say…

If you do not have an account for LinkedIn, Twitter, and Foursquare yet, you desperately need to get on board. If you have them, use them.

For instance, at Autodesk University the use of Swarm and/or Foursquare combined with Twitter has proven an overwhelmingly successful method for people from around the world to meet more easily (and more often) than ever before by simply checking into a location and engaging on Twitter, Instagram, etc. Folks became immediately visible to all of our digital (and real;) friends and followers, making meetings happen, a lot! Now with Periscope, who knows what fun will be shared… oh, and some learning, too.

This is of main importance at places like RTCEUR and at Autodesk University—not simply for the socializing aspects, but also for spontaneous working and brainstorming sessions that sprout up. This provides value well beyond the standard fare and many a Revit and BIM workflow will be shared and brought back to our individual corners of the world, helping beyond any of our expectations.

Tip 2a

Follow Leaders, Lead Followers

You can get a decent list of people to follow by hitting a few people’s followers, like… mine: https://twitter.com/#!/JayZallan/following that should catapult you into their followers, etc. Then all you need do is interact.

The BIM Top 500 (https://www.leaderboarded.com/b-i-m) is a great place to find who you may want to follow, though take the list with a grain of salt as some people who are truly great do not rate at the top of the list as it only calculates one’s “Klout” score, but it is useful.

Tip 2b

Post Only Good Content

You can get a lot of support by sharing some of your own expertise, but understand that with information overload always looming be mindful that many people unfollow twit-spammers or over-posters and over-personal-posters. I suggest keeping it mostly on-point.

Here is a partial list of Revit and BIM folks on Twitter, to get a headstart (in no particular order ;)

@JayZallan

@TroyGates

@darren_roos

@marcellosgamb

@davewlight

@davidfano

@AYBABTM

@alnjxn

@becausewecan

@PhilRead

@DesignReform

@jvandezande

@seandburke

@simonwhitbread

@Revitspace

@scottsh115

@dourevit

@virtuarch

@JonLanderos

@KnowledgeSmart

@projectvasari

@AutodeskSupport

@robincapper

@lukeyjohnson

@revit3d

@brucegow

@mdradvies

@DynamoBIM

@Steve_Stafford

@RevitFactCheck

@BIMandments

@MattRumbelow

@jobcaptain

@JasonGrantArch

@SteveDeadman

@ShaunF1969

@bauskas

@GeorgeMokhtar

@MSIXVEO

@ZachKron

@jeremytammik

@ikeough

@TanjaDzambaz

@WesleyBenn

@DesignByMany

@RTCEUR

@zoog

@fedenegro

@djivey

@revitall

@StewartGH1970

@kirklyncox

@CSIConstruction

@jrostar

@davidkingham

@scottddavis

@JWurcher

@pauldohertyaia

@ElrondBurrell

@cjridder

@BrianSkripac

@apertedesign

@paulfaubin

@blads

@HarlanBrumm

@LEEDing_Lady

@masteringrevit

@randydeutsch

@Twiceroadsfool

@BIMstore

@caddhelp

Assorted tips from #BIMandments and Elsewhere

  • If you find yourself doing a task repetitively, create a keyboard shortcut (if one does not exist). Then use it!
  • Be proactive, not reactive
  • Modeling screw threads in thy family will result in a sinful visit from a disrobed Justin Bieber
  • Know a lot about creating families? Toss most of it when you start working on adaptive components and conceptual massing tools
  • A shameless link sharing:

         Know Your (Worksharing & Central Model) Rights

         http://bit.ly/x3PZyv
         http://bit.ly/ywQ6a4

You get the idea now… the Revit community is active, sharing, and giving. Your job is to take advantage and join in so that new users can grow and you can get and give tips. Learning may be complex and take time and be frustrating at times, but I ask: what’s better than becoming better?

OK, so now you know the process to become a Revit Master:

Try>Try Again>Try Again Differently>Bounce it Off ‘Lay People’>Hunt Down the Digital Answer>Ask a Mentor.

You now have at your disposal not only how to learn Revit, but also EVERY Revit Tip, Trick, Technique & Workaround (known and unknown)—including future ones.

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