Topic: Systems Thinking

Blog archives

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• Traction Heroes Ep. 18: Framing

  A conversation about how choosing your mental models can help you gain traction

• Traction Heroes Ep. 16: OODA Loops

  Exploring a classic cybernetic model for improving performance.

• Traction Heroes Ep. 11: Gall’s Law

  Are you considering replacing a long-standing, complex system? Think twice.

• Traction Heroes Ep. 8: Quagmires

  Harry and I discuss the source of the turbulence we see in the world — and what we might do about it.

• Traction Heroes Ep. 4: Mental Models

  Harry Max and I discuss how our ideas about the world affect our ability to act skillfully.

• Gall’s Law Strikes Again: the Sonos Debacle

  Reflections on what went wrong with the failed Sonos app – and how to avoid making the same mistakes.

• First, Do No Harm

  A call for a conservative approach to changing complex systems.

• The Informed Life with Chris Aldrich

  Overview of my conversation with a ‘modern-day cybernetician’ about the context and history of communications.

• Using the Iceberg Model to Understand Complex Situations

  Analyzing OpenAI’s turmoil by using a classic systems thinking framework.

• Clarify Your Thinking by Drawing Concept Maps

  When you’re trying to understand a complex subject, drawing a concept map will clarify your thinking.

• The Informed Life with Sheryl Cababa

  An overview of my conversation with the author of ‘Closing the Loop’ about the role of design in social change.

• The Practical Use of Theory

  Theory gets a bad rap. But a good theory can be very practical.

• Mind-Tickling Tactics

  Ten approaches for sparking insights.

• Book Notes: “How the World Really Works”

  A summary of Vaclav Smil’s book about the scale of the challenge of reducing our fossil fuel dependency.

• The Informed Life with Karl Fast, part 2

  A summary of the second part of my conversation with Karl Fast about embodiment and interaction.

• Clarity vs. Confidence: Starting Conceptual Models Right

  How to communicate clearly when starting work on a conceptual model.

• The Key to Understanding Why Things Happen

  Understanding structures and mental models produces better outcomes.

• (Re)drawing System Boundaries

  Drawing the boundaries of a system map depends on what questions you want to illuminate. But the map may elicit new questions.

• The Informed Life with Ben Mosior

  A summary of my conversation about Wardley mapping with strategic consultant Ben Mosior.

• How to Keep a Long-term Focus

  Three tools to help you keep your eye on long-term goals.

• Worth Your Attention

  Links for the week.

• Three Models

  Modeling is the most critical underused design skill. Here are three models you should keep in mind.

• The ‘Culture’ Layer

  How Stewart Brand's pace layers model helps us understand how complex systems change over time.

• Expanding Our Practice

  Thinking more broadly about the role of information architecture.

• Screens and Models

  How to see beyond screens to the conceptual models they manifest.

• Worth Your Attention

  Links for the week.

• Do You See the Big Picture?

  Systemic oversight can improve your products and services

• Closed and Open Systems

  How open systems help us embrace change.

• Efficiency and Redundancy

  How COVID-19 is making us rethink the tradeoffs between efficiency and redundancy.

• The Pull of the Present

  What happens when our shortsighted ""solutions"" come back to haunt us?

• Worth Your Attention

  Links for the week.

• LEGO: An Appreciation

  The enduring joy of LEGO — the simple, elegant system that’s been part of my life for decades.

• Tending Your Industry's Ecosystem

  How the internet upsets industry ecosystems and why that matters to your bottom line.

• The Informed Life With Jeff Sussna

  How cybernetics can help us design for unintended consequences in complex systems.

• The Informed Life With Trip O’Dell

  How one designer's dyslexia shapes his workflows.

• The Cynefin Framework

  How the Cynefin Framework helps navigate complex systems with distinct decision-making strategies.

• Two Approaches to Preserving Cultural Monuments

  How two different cultures tackle preserving their heritage and what we can learn from them.

• Systemic Design Beyond the Screen

  Designing is about much more than screens.

• A Change of Mindset

  How pursuing engagement on YouTube leads to rampant misinformation and societal impacts.

• Which Watch to Wear to the Apocalypse

  How the end of the world helps me understand what I’m really designing when I create digital things

• EPCOT

  How Walt Disney’s last dream became a real-world lab for urban experimentation.

• Design 3.0

  How design’s shifting from products to outcomes—and why it’s crucial to stay ahead of the curve

• An Architecture + Systems Thinking Reading List

  A curated reading list exploring the fascinating intersection of architecture and systems thinking.

• Seeing What’s Actually There

  How drawing reveals gaps between perception and reality.

• The Way to Proficiency in Complex Environments

  How emergent systems can better address complex environments compared to rigid structures.

• Towards Greater Diversity in Design Teams

  The Law of Requisite Variety shows why design teams need diversity.

• Purposeful Governance

  How to steer human-made systems effectively towards their intended outcomes while embracing change.

• Trusting a Software Ecosystem

  Navigating software’s web of trust: understand dependencies and align interests.

• Structuring the Problem

  Ill-structured problems demand designers clarify and structure them for better solutions.

• Book Notes: ‘The Evolution of Everything’

  Exploring how systems evolve through bottom-up forces, challenging top-down structures in design.

• Designing a Better System

  Unpack the challenge of truly grasping complex systems beyond mere acknowledgment.

• Cybernetics and Planned Economies

  Dreams of centralized economic control clash with practical reality.

• Hugh Dubberly’s Approach to Understanding Problems

  Hugh Dubberly's design strategy reveals how reframing wicked problems drives innovation.

• A Principle for Self-organizing Systems?

  Is Karl Friston's free energy principle the key to understanding self-organizing systems?

• The Complexity Gap

  How can ""second order science"" help societies bridge the complexity gap in governance?

• The Mother of All Demos at 50

  How a demo from the 1960s shaped today's interactive and collaborative computing.

• Developing a Mental Model of a System

  Building a mental model of systems like the Apple Watch enhances user proficiency.

• Trapped by Mental Models

  Discover how our mental models shape—and sometimes distort—our understanding.

• Modeling in Design

  Why modeling skills are crucial for designing invisible or distributed systems.

• Pivot Like Lincoln

  Lincoln teaches strategic adaptation: keep true north in mind while navigating obstacles.

• The Simplicity on the Far Side of Complexity

  Discover the beauty of clarity in complexity for lifelong growth.

• Resilience

  Resilience is key in systems and societies; understand goals and act to sustain.

• Tread Mindfully

  Understanding systems' purposes is key for effective, mindful design interventions.

• Design at a Higher Level

  Understanding design beyond symptoms—uncovering and addressing systemic roots.

• Giving Feedback

  Transform feedback into a steering mechanism that guides systems and relationships.

• Book Notes: “Conceptual Models”

  Discover why crafting strong conceptual models is crucial before diving into UI design.

• The Use of Models

  How creating simple models helps navigate complex systems and take skillful action.

• Bringing Systems to Life in Fort Mason

  Bringing systems theory to life with hands-on learning.

• What Keeps You Up at Night?

  How understanding systems and causality can prevent unintended consequences and sleepless nights.

• How Do You Know?

  Examining mental models helps refine decisions.

• The Call

  Our era quietly calls us — how will you respond?

• S/he With the Best Model Wins

  Understanding systems as models lets you act more skillfully and avoid disaster.

• Distinctions

  How distinctions clarify complex subjects by increasing contrast.

• A Call for a More Holistic Approach to Business

  Larry Fink's call for businesses to serve society echoes the need for purpose-driven design.

• Inside and Outside a System

  Are you designing the thing or its support networks?

• What Do We Mean by “Systems”?

  Understanding 'systems' through interaction design: how parts interconnect to serve a purpose.

• A New Adventure: Teaching Systems at CCA

  I'm teaching systems design — follow along as we dive into complex challenges!

• Silver (Air)linings

  How air travel’s complexity reveals itself in unexpected ways during flight delays.

• Cybernetic Systems in the Designer's Palette

  How can cybernetic systems redefine design constraints like stealth aircraft did?

• Systems Everywhere

  How understanding systems can boost effectiveness in work and personal growth.

• Book Notes: "Principles"

  How Ray Dalio’s principles shaped Bridgewater’s success.

• Book Notes: "Designing Regenerative Cultures"

  Our urgent need for redesigning systems through interconnectivity and regenerative principles.

• Maker Faire Wisdom

  A family visit to Maker Faire reveals timeless design wisdom on observing systems.

• Perpetual Prototyping

  How embracing a mindset of perpetual prototyping enhances systems design.

• Book Notes: "The Architecture of Emergence"

  Explore how natural and cultural forms evolve, highlighting emergence as a universal phenomenon.

• Gall's Law

  When aiming to create complex systems, start simple.

• The Strongest Form of System Resilience

  How self-organizing systems adapt to become more resilient.

• System Pliability

  Designing resilient systems means balancing change and stability for long-term viability.

• Buckminster Fuller's Mission Statement

  Inspiration for designers looking to make impactful systemic changes.