Category: Articles
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From Students to Citizens and Workers: An Interview with Deborah Meier
You and some colleagues are on a retreat, discussing long-term strategies for your organization. As the hour grows late, someone brings up the issue…
The Conversational Power of Mapping Our Mental Models
Suppose that I bought a $34 ticket to hear a concert and, on the way to the event, I lost the ticket. I…
Attention Not Energy
When you face something unpleasant, give it your attention but not your energy.” This is one of the best pieces of advice I’ve ever…
A Business Is More than a Balance Sheet
Teachers sit on the bleachers at town meetings watching the townspeople resist raising their salaries. The Dartmouth faculty complains to the trustees about the governance…
Shifting the Burden: The “Helen Keller” Loops
Most of us know the story of Helen Keller and have probably sympathized with her and her parents, whose actions to protect their handicapped daughter…
Fixes That Fail: Oiling the Squeaky Wheel—Again and Again . . .
How many times have you heard the saying “the squeaky wheel gets the oil?” Most people agree that whoever or whatever makes the most “noise”…
ithink®: The Visual Thinking Tool
We live in an age of spreadsheets. From tracking expenses to projecting future revenue streams, spreadsheet software packages have become an invaluable tool for many…
Bringing “Background Analysis” to Foreground of Energy Policy
In this article, Donella Meadows shows how computer models — products of structural thinking — can help bring clarity to a complex issue. As she…
S-shaped Growth and the Law of Diminishing Returns
Most of us are familiar with the story of Sir Isaac Newton sitting underneath an apple tree and “discovering” the law of gravity when he…