Work The System by Sam Carpenter, subtitled 'The Simple Mechanics of Making More and Working Less', is equal parts manifesto and guide; shifting reader's perceptions to see the world as an orderly collection of individual linear systems—each of which can be improved one at a time. [1][2]
For an individual, this might represent itself such that a weight loss goal isn't to lose 10kg, but rather it's to build a training and nutrition system that will result in 10kg lost and keep then that way.
As a matter of policy, everyone in the organization will execute each perfected system in exactly the same sequence every single time - yet everyone understands that if a system can be improved due to their input, the adjustment will be made instantly.
The world runs on systems, and they work in spite of humans, not because of us. A system is any composition of several components, which work together to accomplish a single goal.
- The world runs on systems, and they work in spite of humans, not because of us.
- Start focusing on the systems you can control, and stop complaining about the ones you can’t.
- To analyze the systems in your life, take a step back.
Viewing the world through a lens of systems isn't the only way to see how things work, but it is definitely a useful one for drawing ideas and inspiration from - and is probably one perspective that most people have never considered.
References
- Work the System, workthesystem.com
- Work the System: The Simple Mechanics of Making More and Working Less, Sam Carpenter
- Work the System: About the Method, workthesystem.com