Tackle Wicked Problems – Redesign Your Thinking

Have you ever been in an argument without the slightest hope of finding common ground? Where both parties involved felt like they were hitting a wall? Entangled in a net of allegations? Have you ever found yourself ponder problems like the Social Development Goals (SDGs)? Wicked problems so complex, finding solutions seems futile. Just thinking about solving them can be taxing.
During an argument, letting go of your initial thoughts and consider the view of the other is difficult, to say the least. We’ve all been there, we’ve all failed numerous times. How then, might we change our perspective to a whole group of “others”. Consider other people directly affected by the triggers of the SDGs. People experiencing injustices and lack?
Even though the comparison of a mundane argument and the SDGs is unbalanced, I propose, they share an attempt at a solution. What if all you would have to do in an argument, is a shift of perspective, a change of mind? What if altering your thoughts not only benefit you during an argument but also lead the way to solve bigger problems, even wicked Problems? Albert Einstein supposedly said:

“We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” -A. Einstein, 1946

Thus, if redesigning our thinking will lead to new solutions, I suggest we set forth to do it right now.

A quick explanation about thinking

First of all, it is important to know how our thinking is formed and what influences it. Our thoughts evolve from our theoretical framework. Our theoretical framework is a combination of our worldview and our value system out of which we take the information for our practice (Wahl, 2012). It is the way we think about and interpret information. This framework has been establishing itself since our earliest childhood, it puts itself together out of our expectations, teachings, experiences and our family and communities (Willard, 2002).

Reframing our theoretical framework

Our theoretical framework has formed itself without us being conscious of it. Hence, with us paying attention, reframing it is possible. If we permit new pieces of information to enter our theoretical framework, we enable them to challenge- and expand it. We do this by letting go of existing prejudices and taking the time to listen, explore, ask and look. Every one of us is responsible for the way we take in information. It is a choice, whether we contemplate pieces of information that grow outside of our comfort zone or not. Furthermore, we need to make sure that we look for true information, since, it will be the foundation we work on. We should make an effort to look for reliable sources, take in and ponder fresh information, let our mind transform this information into novel ideas and actions. This will break through barriers of what we can, want, choose and therefore create.
A daring act, considering how cumbersome it can be, to change only a fragment about ourselves. Even more so, if we want to change patterns that coined our mind. Redesigning our thinking requires us to question our values and assumptions. This act may feel like an earthquake that shakes our deepest beliefs. Much like when you are in an argument and suddenly realize that you are wrong and the other is right. Or when you look at the SDGs and think “how did we ever let it come this far?”

Why bother?

Alongside the discomfort a redesign or your theoretical framework might release, there are other repercussions. Yes, it will change the way we think. However, its effects go far beyond the metaphysical. Our thoughts influence our actions. As Maturana and Varela put it:

“Every act of knowing brings forth a world. All doing is knowing, and all knowing is doing.” -Maturana&Varela, 1987

The way we act depends on what we know and how we think about this knowledge. This implicates that every practical act depends on our theoretical frameworks. If you consider the number of unresolved conflicts in your life, not even to mention the vehemence of the SDGs, it is evident that the theoretical framework of most human beings is not a union of empathy, equality and humbleness. The human condition has brought on a lot of trouble. But take heart. If our theoretical framework has been formed without our awareness, we can intentionally change it. We can ameliorate our ability to seek and digest virtuous information. Good and noble deeds will naturally follow.

Design helps!

We have established that our thoughts emerge from a place within us. A place we can mould. This process will most likely start tearing down thought patterns and convictions we have been forming since early childhood. The process will be difficult to cope with, thus, we need all the help we can get. One source of help is design.
Before you stop reading because you are tired of hearing: “The answer to a problem is design,” let me elaborate in more detail.
During their collaboration with the renowned architect Frank O. Gehry, Richard J. Boland Jr. and Fred Collopy noticed the difference between Gehry’s design attitude and their decision attitude. According to them, a decision attitude is approaching a problem with the mindset that the solution is it is choosing one of several, pre-existing options. The design attitude, on the other hand, goes beyond standard choices and creates new possibilities for the future:

“The design attitude appreciates that the cost of not conceiving of a better course of action than those that are already being considered is often much higher than making the “wrong” choice among them.” -Boland & Collopy, 2004

Design allows us to leave possibilities open. In doing so we can cope with uncertainty better and explore opportunities which might lead to unforeseen insights and solutions.

The effect of design on thought

To reform our thinking for the better, we need fresh and versatile information. So what would be a wise way to go about getting this information? You guessed it, a design attitude. Especially when we want to tackle highly complex, interconnected problems like the SDGs, shared by a multitude of stakeholders, we need an attitude that looks beyond what is already there and seeks new possibilities. An attitude allowing us to start a process, an approach or a lofty project, without knowing where it leads to and if it will work out. Only then can we lose the fear of being wrong and break through the walls our current theoretical framework has built around us.

So what now?

To reform our theoretical framework we can apply a set of practices Dave Gray, the author of “Liminal Thinking”, suggests. These practices align with the design attitude. They are open-ended, retaining from nudging you in a certain direction. Gray suggests getting in touch with your ignorance, seeking understanding and doing something differently (Gray, 2016).
Based on his suggestions I propose that each one of us starts by taking small steps in these three areas:

• Get in touch with our ignorance: Explore your history. Ask yourself, which values you hold high, consider your past and watch out for moments in which those values were formed. Ask yourself, what the most important lessons you learnt during your childhood are. Maybe it is time to question if these values and lessons are still relevant. Most likely you will discover some blind spots you need to shine light upon.
• For practising seeking understanding: Look for people who ask the same questions as you, even though you might know beforehand that you will not share the same answer. Be patient with them as well as with yourself.
• Lastly, doing something different: Challenge yourself to seek new sources of information. Consider sources that are in contrast to what you’re scrolling through usually.

Let’s start reframing

Whether we want to have more fruitful arguments or confront wicked problems like the SDGs: we need to challenge our jammed thinking if we want fresh solutions. A conscious redesign of our thoughts can help. Provided that our approach is open-ended, allows for uncertainty, ambiguity and does not sift out every piece of information that challenges our existing theoretical framework. A design attitude supports this way of thinking since it gives us the option to leave possible outcomes open, without being overwhelmed by seemingly unsolvable problems. The steps each one of us can take to start with the redesign do not have to be intricate. Start small, but start somewhere. Become aware of your theoretical framework. Start venturing into the vagueness that questioning and reforming will bring. Only then, can we address wicked problems with a fearless mind, refusing to get downhearted by the uncertain outcomes of our endeavours.

 

 

References and Sources

 

• Featured Image: Banksy, Love is in the Bin, 2018, Private Collection, Photo: Sotheby’s © Banksy

• Boland jr. R.J., Collopy F. (2004). Managing as Designing. Stanford Business Books
• Gray, D. (2016). Liminal thinking: create the change you want by changing the way you think. Brooklyn, NY: Two waves books.
• Maturana, H. R., & Varela, F. J. (1987). The tree of knowledge. Boulder, Colorado: Shambhala.
• Willard, D. (2002). Renovation of the heart: putting on the character of Christ. NavPress.
• Wahl, D. (2016). Designing Regenerative Culture. Triarchy Press.