Making the Invisible, Visible: Connections in a System:
By SDXer Angela Coutinho
Recently, I was listening to an interview with Ester Perel, a psychotherapist and relationship expert who said, “the quality of our relationships determines the quality of our lives”…and I wondered: could the quality of relationships in a system also be a way to understand that system?
Origins of a Systems Thinker
I’ve known and been curious about systems thinking for a long time, but found it difficult to understand or wrap my head around it. My first exposure to systems thinking was at a public lecture I attended at the University of Waterloo. At the time, I was working as a technical writer in a software development company located right by the campus. This was way back when, in 2008, and since then I have been fascinated by the ideas and theories of system thinking, complex systems, and social innovation. Working in software development, there was lots of focus on technical research, development, and innovation…but the whole idea of the “social” was foreign to me. But, then again, as a newish immigrant to Canada, many things were foreign to me and I was open to learning everything I could.
The ideas of Social Innovation Generation (SiG), while very confusing, were also very appealing to me. As an outsider looking in, my question often was, “what is systems thinking?” I would look through the SiG Knowledge Hub ever so often, but I still did not understand how it could be applied. Of course, there is no one, simple, easy answer — that was the first thing I learned. The only idea that I really grasped was the difference between simple (baking a cake), complicated (building a rocket), and complex (parenting), and I knew I was intrigued by the concept of complex systems, as much of my energy was spent in parenting.
After I moved to Edmonton and joined the Government of Alberta, I tried to understand the landscape — dare I say system — and figure out where I fit in it. My new big question became “what is policy?” After some digging around, I was thrilled to stumble upon the Alberta CoLab and SDX, the Systemic Design eXchange Community of Practice. Here, I enjoyed the community space and many learning sessions. At one of these sessions I “got” the idea of what was meant by “system” — you know, the entities that are connected in some relationships with feedback loops — that were situated in time and space. And, that not all systems were physical — some were conceptual. That was a good day. As well, I understood that systems thinking was not a formula, but a mindset — a way of approaching a situation and viewing the world.
Connecting the Dots…
In recent times, I have become more aware of how relationships and my experiences have shaped my life, and so I wondered how relationships or connections would affect or even be a determining factor in a system. While I have been mostly concerned with relationships between people, I am beginning to pay attention to the relationships or connections in a system.
I think of my brain as a system, shaped by the connection of neurons that get wired based on my experiences. As habits and patterns form, the neurons that fire together, wire together the reinforcing habits and establish the structure and architecture of my plastic brain.
So, if relationships are important for people and connections are just as important in a system, the key question for me now is: in what ways can I become more aware of the connections in a system? Or, how can I make the invisible, visible?
Making the Invisible, Visible: Staring with Self
One useful starting point I have found is to begin with my relationship with myself — with my own feelings, thoughts, and sensations. I have recently developed a mindfulness practice, and this provided me with a starting point to examine my relationship with myself, first, and then the world around me — in other words, becoming aware of my worldview or my mindset. It seems that my perception of myself and the world determines what I see, what I miss, and how I react, with either craving or aversion to it all. Like the blind men and the elephant, with self-awareness I am able to realize that I see only part of the system.
Visibility and Intention
Another way I have found effective in making the invisible, visible is by being intentional about noticing how I show up in my relationships and interactions with others. I try to notice and uncover my worldview through open-ended conversations (being prepared for anything that might emerge), active listening, and engaging with people with different experiences. I have discovered it can be a struggle to stay open, non-judgmental, and connected with people or situations I don’t agree with or find challenging. I notice the instinct to end my discomfort by “solving” the problem or giving advice.
To overcome this tendency, I’ve learned to pay attention to whatever sensations are arising in my body — my breathing may get shallow or I may find my shoulders start to tense and rise towards my ears. When this happens, I know I am closing down, so I deliberately relax by taking a deep breath or pulling my shoulders down. This helps me refocus my attention to the moment at hand and stay connected.
Seeing Beyond Self
Through this process, I now understand the system thinking mindset to be the ability to perceive the “system” from multiple perspectives. See it from the inside and the outside, from the past, present and future, from up-close and from a distance. I do not know if seeing a system from multiple viewpoints simultaneously is possible, so my work-around is to build awareness of the “where” I am looking from. To me, a systems thinking mindset means to be conscious of my default viewpoint, my subjective state, and to deliberately look from other viewpoints. This helps me to examine my assumptions and attempt to be more objective and empathetic.
While I have not had much opportunity to utilize the many systemic design tools and methods in any formal way to solving complex problems, they have influenced my thinking and mindset. Over time, I have begun to understand their value and adapt my mindset. This means I no longer take things at face value. Rather than jumping to quick and easy solutions and answers, I am able to step back a bit and ask myself, what else could be going on here? Is there something I am missing? This has changed my attitude, and I able to remain calmer in uncertainty and be less distressed when staying with a messy problem.
It’s through my journey in thinking about systems that I’ve uncovered the need to pay attention to myself in the system and what I bring to the system — and my relationships with others in it. Thinking in systems has changed how I see the world and my relationship with it.
Angela Coutinho describes herself as “an entity that is constantly changing to collaborate and adapt to changing circumstances.” She is an SDXer because “it provides tools and space for learning, experimenting and sharing.” You can connect with Angela via SDX.
