Context mind openers signal that:
• There is always a bigger picture of what we consider as real compared with what we started out thinking was real. Everything comprises layers and parts and is part of bigger picture.
• There are no systems that are truly closed but that all systems are open and transformational.
Process mind openers signal that:
• Everything is in the process of undergoing unceasing change.
• Nothing is fixed, everything is co-evolving over time.
Relationship mind openers signal that:
Everything shares a common ground.
Individual entities are parts of a coherent organized whole.
Transforming System mind openers signal that:
Everything is a transformational system, combining aspects of Process, Context and Relationship.
How it is dis-embedded attention that must be directed to the quadrants, not analytical/rational:
Dis-embedded attention must be directed to the Four Quadrants and not rational/analytical because rational analytical will get bogged down easily. Rational analytical thought will attempt to represent the circumstances in the quadrants in a mechanistic fashion. And for thinking to be fluid and able to move swiftly over mental models, it must be able to treat thoughts as object i.e. be dis-embedded.
The Authors
John Stewart is a systems thinker. As a core member of the Evolution, Complexity and Cognition Research Group of the Free University of Brussels (ECCO), he brings focus to the evolution of cooperative organisation and the development of consciousness and cognition. As an author, John most recently completed ‘The Evolutionary Manifesto’ which outlines an evolutionary worldview and explores its relevance to humanity. In particular, it identifies how humanity will have to evolve its cognitive capacities, systems of governance and social organisation if humanity is to fulfill its potential to contribute positively to the future evolution of life in the universe. He is also the author of the internationally acclaimed book ‘Evolution’s Arrow: The Direction of Evolution and the Future of Humanity’ while his work on cooperative organisational and psychological evolution has been published in a number of key papers in international science journals.
Victoria Wilding is Principal of SYMPLICITUS. To her role, she brings 25 years experience in senior executive positions within the corporate, government and community sectors in Australia and around the world. After several successful roles in sales management in the IT sector, she established a management consulting firm that provided leadership training and advisory services to CEOs, Boards of Directors and senior executives of global firms including Shell, Kodak and Telstra as well as Australian State and Federal Governments. During the past ten years, Victoria has dedicated her efforts to supporting the development of future leaders through her role as Founder and CEO of the SHIFT Foundation. She is an accomplished facilitator and coach offering an extensive body of expertise in meta-systemic thinking, complexity and leadership combined with an extensive understanding of business and world affairs. Victoria is an active contributor and member of multiple international networks of leading thinkers and practitioners.
Photo Credit: NASA.GOV
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