The place within systems where the most energy can be leveraged or lost comes at the points of interaction between parts. If you want to understand a system, and even more if you want to affect the system, training to see how the parts of the system interact is critical.
In human systems, three major types of activities arise from the human “parts.” The most important for the continued integrity of the system are those engaged in maintenance activities. This keeps things flowing smoothly and is grounded in the system’s continuance. Next, there are achievement behaviors done by those looking to make a name for themselves within the system, often by expanding its scope or the effectiveness of its operation. Finally, there are self-directed behaviors that focus on the individual within the system regarding their rights, autonomy, and control over the system.
In a healthy system, these three behavior styles work together for the overall benefit of the system. In unhealthy systems, one of these behavior types has often taken over the entire system, causing it to grind into stasis, become a vehicle for the aggrandizement of a few, or disintegrate the system altogether.
The most reflexive systems, and those most capable of adaptation, are those which have an effective form of feedback. In its technical sense, feedback is any information that, when returned to the system, can change the pattern of behavior of the system. Information, in this sense, counts as unexpected, novel content different from the regular background “noise” of expected content. To become more sensitive to the feedback of the systems you are or are a part of means becoming more sensitive to that which is novel.
Setemheb 