Think Big, Start Small

I attended a "Basic Systems Thinking" course today. While I shall not bore everybody with what was being thought, I will leave some nuggets of info which I felt were quite valuable.
We are surrounded by systems, how the country, your company, your project, your family functions etc are all systems. And recognising how they work and how they can work for you can make a world of difference.

The lecturer, Dr Jacob Lee, pointed out that in systems, people normally see the components but fail to see the connections within the system.

He also spoke on the "loops" in our lives; loops are systems. As an example, the obvious loop is one of a char kway teow store and how the shop owner keeps his customers coming back for more. And loops could either lead to a vicious cycle (where matters keep deteriorating) or a virtuous cycle (where matters keep getting better).

And if we are in a vicious cycle, and these are normally systemic problems which are very difficult to solve, one way to break the cycle is to start at the area where one has the most control and to start SMALL but having a BIGGER aim in mind -- Think Big Start Small.

And in many times, the assumptions we make in resolving problems may actually lead to the problem becoming worse. For example, if in a company, increasing numbers of staff are resigning but management merely chooses to mitigate the situation increasing pay instead of looking at other issue like motivation or whether the staff is adequately trained, the situation may never get better.

That's all for today :)