Systems Thinking
How do you learn to think better?
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Cohesive Wisdom
Evolve a shared brain to help take the right actions by recognising the right signals from establishing the optimum behaviours.
Align values, beliefs and actions
Know what you value and what you seek, build belief in your direction and destiny, build a ship to get there. It's the people you collect onboard that will matter most.
Value System
Value System: what is valuable, why it is valuable, what is quantifiable value?
(Inputs -> Forces -> Outputs)
- What do you need?
- How does value flow through a system?
- What things are valuable? Why are they valuable?
- What forces influence state changes in value?
- How is value transformed?
- How is value stored?
- How is value transferred?
- What outcomes define success?
Belief System
Belief System: how does the world work, what direction is the world moving in, predictions for the future?
(Truth -> Trust -> Purpose)
- Why are you here?
- How do you know the truth?
- Who and what do you trust? Why?
- What are your predictions for the future?
- What position do you need to be in to make a positive impact?
Control System
Control System: platform and playbook for controlling direction and speed of change.
(Position -> Attention -> Leverage)
- Where and how should you invest your time and energy?
- What can you control?
- What do you need to measure?
- What tools provide the greatest leverage?
- Timing
- Cycles, Business, Macro
- Secular Trends
Insights System
Create a system for inspiring and capturing valuable insights by evolving your questioning capability
- What can you do better?
- What questions should you be asking?
- What could go wrong?
- What could go right?
- What is the end-game?
Frameworks and Techniques
Apply the right frame of mind and approach for a specific problem and related intention.
For a given situation understand what framework for thinking is most appropriate by developing OODA loop triggers and processes.
First Principles
Break problems down to their most basic elements, rather than accepting existing solutions at face value.
Routine and Habit: Make a schedule to block-out time for deep thinking and question assumptions and break down complex problems into their fundamental elements. This way of thinking can lead to more effective and innovative solutions. You don't have time or reserves of willpower to always think from First Principles. Think slow to act fast by developing Mantra or rules of thumb to improve accuracy of decisions and actions in times of pressure.
Elon Musk applies this method to rethink processes to broaden capabilities and make step improvements to capacity for wielding leverage.
Second Order Thinking
This concept involves considering the possible reactions and consequences of your actions beyond the immediate results. This foresight can help you avoid unintended negative outcomes.
Routine and Habit: Before making significant decisions, take the time to consider potential secondary, tertiary, and further effects. This habit can help you foresee potential issues and mitigate risks.
Concept Mapping
Focus on visualizing relationships and interconnections between concepts.
Tools: Freehand first to digitalize later to optimize flow.
- Large whiteboard or digital canvas
- Sticky notes or digital equivalent
- Markers or digital drawing tools
- Concept mapping software
Practice:
- Formulate a clear focus question
- Identify key entities/concepts related to the question
- Sort concepts from general to specific
- Outline the map:
- Place main concept at the top
- Arrange other concepts hierarchically below
- Connect related concepts with lines/arrows
- Label relationships between concepts (use linking phrases)
- Add cross-links between different sections
- Review and revise the map:
- Ensure clarity and completeness
- Check for logical flow
- Identify any knowledge gaps
- Use color coding to group related concepts (optional)
- Keep concepts and linking phrases concise (1-3 words)
- Iterate and refine as understanding develops
Resources:
Triarchic Intelligence
This process promotes interdisciplinary thinking and synergistic problem-solving, which can lead to more comprehensive and effective solutions. The Triarchic Theory of Intelligence breaks down human intelligence into three main components:
- Analytical
- Creative
- Practical
Where innovation happens at the intersection of applying differing perspectives and fields of knowledge to a problem. Using different perspectives allows us to observe reality through a variety of lenses and provide opportunities to spot new connections, discover unique insights, and devise innovative solutions.
Step outside of yourself to adopt different perspectives that widen your scope of observation and increase the number of "dots" you can connect. This enhances your capacity to come up with creative and novel ideas.
Creativity is just connecting things - Steve Jobs
A summary of the perspectives or agents
- New Perception: Approaches the idea from a fresh perspective, challenging preconceptions and seeing things in a new light.
- Thoughtful Analysis: Takes a methodical, step-by-step approach to understanding the situation, breaking down complex problems into simpler, more manageable components.
- Uncommon Linkages: Seeks connections between seemingly disparate ideas, looking for patterns or relationships that others might miss.
- Shifted Perspectives: Looks at the situation from a completely different viewpoint, perhaps as a different stakeholder or from a long-term perspective.
- Conceptual Transformation: Changes the way we think about the core concepts involved in the problem, challenging and reshaping our understanding.
- Intellectual Growth: Emphasizes the role of learning and growth, seeking to build on existing knowledge and acquire new skills or insights.
- Emerging Potentials: Identifies new opportunities or possibilities that could arise from the current situation, often in unexpected or surprising ways.
- Inventive Integration: Combines existing ideas or solutions in new and innovative ways, leading to hybrid solutions that build on the strengths of their components.
- Revolutionary Advances: Seeks radical, game-changing ideas that could completely alter the existing situation, often by disrupting traditional ways of doing things.
- Paradigm Evolution: Questions the fundamental assumptions or "rules" of the situation, proposing changes that could shift the way we approach the problem.
- Complexity Amplification: Delves into the complexities of the situation, acknowledging that real-world problems often involve many interconnected factors.
- Unsettled Hurdles: Identifies and addresses the challenges or obstacles that stand in the way of a successful solution, seeking ways to overcome or navigate around them.
- Rising Remedies: Focuses on potential solutions, especially those that could address the root causes of the problem.
- Unprecedented Development: Explores possibilities that have not been considered before, pushing the boundaries of what is currently known or achievable.
- Emergence Catalyst: Stimulates the emergence of new ideas or solutions, often by encouraging collaboration, cross-pollination of ideas, or brainstorming.
- Identifiable Breakthrough: Aims to create or identify ideas that could lead to significant advancements or breakthroughs in the situation.
- Innovative Synthesis: Merges different ideas, perspectives, or solutions into a cohesive whole, often in creative or unexpected ways.
- Expanded Frontiers: Pushes the boundaries of what is currently known or possible, seeking to expand our understanding or capabilities.
- Trailblazing Discoveries: Seeks to discover completely new ideas, solutions, or ways of thinking, often through exploration, experimentation, or research.
- Transformation Leap: Aims for a qualitative shift in the situation, seeking solutions that don't just improve the current state, but fundamentally transform it.
These cognitive styles are essentially different ways of thinking or viewing a problem, allowing for a diverse array of ideas and insights to emerge. They help foster creativity and novelty by encouraging us to step outside our usual patterns of thinking and approach problems from various angles.
Outside In
Take an outsider's perspective of the situation.
Step outside the eye of your mind to see the world with fresh eyes.
Inversion
This method prompts you to solve the opposite of a problem when you're stuck. For instance, instead of pondering how to create a successful project, think about what would make it fail, and then avoid those pitfalls.
Routine and Habit: Make it a habit to occasionally take a problem you're facing and try to solve the opposite problem. This practice can lead to innovative solutions and can help you avoid potential issues.