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Systems Thinking and Mapping

4 Levels of Consciousness in Systems Mapping That Transformed My Understanding of Work

Problem structuring. Gatekeeping. Generative Ideology. People-purpose

We are problem-solvers, and this is a massive problem for us. We have dedicated our lives to solving any problem we encountered since we lived in caves trying to survive, until now, when we are trying to dismantle globalisation. We face a problem and we solve it; that is our nature. However, this mindset often prevents us from considering ourselves as part of the problem itself, where our actions or inactions are at its very core.

This dualistic paradigm that separates problems (objects) from people (subjects) is a legacy of Platonic philosophy. In this worldview, objects exist as perfect ideal forms with imperfect physical manifestations, whilst subjects are the conscious beings who perceive and understand these objects. This paradigm is still present in our way of thinking and conditions how we interact with reality.

We approach climate change, for example, as a problem to be solved by banning fossil fuels or regulating big corporations, but it is mainly a problem of us as people renouncing consumption and engaging in living more simple and local lives. Whilst we want to have the latest model of mobile phone or cheap…