The Trouble With Models — what works
PEOPLE IN SYSTEMS DO NOT DO WHAT THE SYSTEM SAYS THEY ARE DOING.
University professors chase grants, not student enlightenment. VCs nurture personal brands alongside deals. Startup founders optimize funding metrics over customer needs.
THE SYSTEM ITSELF DOES NOT DO WHAT IT SAYS IT IS DOING.
The restaurant business is actually the alcohol business.... See more
University professors chase grants, not student enlightenment. VCs nurture personal brands alongside deals. Startup founders optimize funding metrics over customer needs.
THE SYSTEM ITSELF DOES NOT DO WHAT IT SAYS IT IS DOING.
The restaurant business is actually the alcohol business.... See more
Tina He • The Art of Understanding What's Going On
Everything we think we know about the world is a model. Every word and every language is a model. All maps and statistics, books and databases, equations and computer programs are models. So are the ways I picture the world in my head—my mental models. None of these is or ever will be the real world. Our models usually have a strong congruence with
... See moreDonella H. Meadows • Thinking in Systems: International Bestseller
Any user of a map or model must realize that we do not understand a model, map, or reduction unless we understand and respect its limitations. If we don’t understand what the map does and doesn’t tell us, it can be useless or even dangerous.