Solving the Most Complex Problems

$#!T JUST GOT
COMPLEXBROUGHTTOYOUBYTHEBUCKETBRIGADE
a manifesto (of sorts)

If the world is truly more
connected
and complex
than ever before ...
how do
businesses
prosper in an
even greater
competitive
climate?

If governments
around the world
are entering
an age of
austeritY
how do our
leaders understand
the systemic
implications
of the difficult choices
they’re making?

AND HOW DO WE UNDERSTAND THE WORLD
WELL ENOUGH TO LEAVE IT
An even BETTER PLACE
THAN WE FOUND IT?
won’t someone think
of the children?!

IF The challenges
we face ARE more
complex and
interconnected
than ever before ...
WE NEED A NEW MODEL
FOR PROBLEM SOLVING.

BEYOND
DEVICES
BEYOND
BORDERS
BEYOND
BELIEFS
TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY SOLUTIONS WILL HAVE TO EXTEND
TO SOLVE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY CHALLENGES

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION, FROM THE CORPORATE SILO TO THE
NUCLEAR FAMILY, IS A PROBLEM SOLVING STRATEGY.
THE COMPLEX CHALLENGES FACING US AHEAD DEMAND
WE WORK TOGETHER IN NEW WAYS.

IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY
TRIBES ARE A DANGEROUS
MODEL FOR SOCIAL
ORGANIZATION
IF SOCIAL ORGANIZATIONS
ARE TO SOLVE REAL PROBLEMS.

SLOGANS, NOT SOLUTIONS, SPREAD WITHIN TRIBES BECAUSE THE
SURVIVAL OF THE GROUP IS VALUED OVER PROBLEM SOLVING.

LONG-TERM SURVIVAL IS NO LONGER
ASSURED AT THE COST OF ALL OTHERS.

NO LONGER CAN ANY INDIVIDUAL
NATION COLLAPSE. WORLD CIVILIZATION
WILL DISINTEGRATE AS A WHOLE.
COMPETITORS WHO EVOLVE AS PEERS
COLLAPSE IN LIKE MANNER.”
– Joseph A. Tainter
“

THE RECENT HOUSING CRISIS DEMONSTRATED
WITH CASCADING DESTRUCTION JUST HOW
INTERCONNECTED AND INTERRELATED ALL OF
INDUSTRY AND HUMANITY TRULY IS.
TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY PROBLEMS WILL
CONTINUE TO ELUDE TWENTIETH
CENTURY SOLUTIONS.

TO SOLVE THE WORLD’S MOST
MASSIVELY COMPLEX CHALLENGES
WHAT’SOURMISSION?
CHALLENGES THAT WILL REQUIRE COLLABORATIVE
PROBLEM SOLVING AND A COMMON UNDERSTANDING OF
HOW A MORE COMPLEX WORLD WORKS

TO DEVELOP A NETWORK OF
TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY PROBLEM SOLVERS
ANDWHAT’SOURSTRATEGY?
ARMED WITH A COMMON UNDERSTANDING OF HOW TO COMPREHEND,
COMMUNICATE, AND CONFRONT COMPLEX CHALLENGES

WE’RE DEVELOPING A GUIDEBOOK
THAT WILL HELP YOU MAKE SENSE OF
A MORE CONNECTED & COMPLEX WORLD
WHAT’STHEFIRSTSTEP?
TO ESTABLISH A COMMON UNDERSTANDING, INTRODUCE NEW TOOLS,
AND SPREAD A FUNDAMENTALLY BROADER UNDERSTANDING OF THE
CHALLENGES YOU FACE BOTH PERSONALLY AND PROFESSIONALLY

USE YOUR NEWFOUND UNDERSTANDING AND
OUR NETWORK OF PROBLEM SOLVERS TO
MAKE THE WORLD AROUND YOU A BETTER PLACE
ANDWHATTHEN?
ONCE WE SHARE A COMMON UNDERSTANDING AND THE ABILITY TO
CONNECT, THERE’S NO LIMIT TO THE CHALLENGES WE CAN FACE TOGETHER

WAIT A MINUTE. WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE?
IN THE FUTURE, UNDER HYPOTHETICAL AND SIMPLIFIED CIRCUMSTANCES

WELL, WE’D NEED A CHALLENGE.
LET’S SAY THAT WE NOTICE RETIREMENT INVESTING
AMONG FAMILIES IS AT AN HISTORIC LOW

FIRST, WE BEGIN BY MAPPING THE SYSTEM
THIS IS CALLED A CAUSAL LOOP DIAGRAM, AND IT’S JUST ONE OF THE TOOLS
THAT WILL HELP YOU UNDERSTAND A MORE CONNECTED & COMPLEX WORLD
EXPECTATIONS
OF THE FUTURE
DISCRETIONARY
INCOME
HEALTH OF
THE FAMILY
CLARITY
OF OPTIONS
RETIREMENT
INVESTING

WE WANT TO CONNECT THE DOTS
BETWEEN OUR OBJECTIVE AND ITS INFLUENCES
AND HOW THESE ELEMENTS INTERACT WITH ONE ANOTHER
TO FORM THE STRUCTURE AND BEHAVIOR OF THE OVERALL SYSTEM
EXPECTATIONS
OF THE FUTURE
DISCRETIONARY
INCOME
O S
HEALTH OF
THE FAMILY S CLARITY
OF OPTIONS
S
S
RETIREMENT
INVESTING
ABOUT THE MAP: The lines show how one element may be related to another, and the letters ‘S’ and ‘O’ describe
how they affect each other. S for Same, O for Opposite. For example, here we think as the health of the family
increases, so will the likelihood of retirement investing. So these elements move in the same direction.

UNDERSTANDING THE SYSTEM ALLOWS US
TO IDENTIFY POINTS OF LEVERAGE
TWO GOALS HERE: TO IDENTIFY MULTIPLE PRESSURE POINTS INSTEAD OF A SINGLE
FOCUS, AND TO STUDY THE SYSTEMIC IMPLICATIONS OF ANY CHANGE WE INTRODUCE
EXPECTATIONS
OF THE FUTURE
DISCRETIONARY
INCOME
O S
HEALTH OF
OF OPTIONS
S
S
RETIREMENT
INVESTING

NEXT, OUR NETWORK GENERATES A SUITE
OF SOLUTIONS FOR EACH LEVERAGE POINT
FROM THAT MOUNTAIN OF IDEAS, WE CULL UNTIL WE DESIGN AN
ELEGANT PROGRAM OF SOLUTIONS TO ACHIEVE OUR OBJECTIVE
O S
HEALTH OF
OF OPTIONS
S
S
RETIREMENT
INVESTING

AND THOSE SOLUTIONS THAT ARE ENACTED
AND PROMOTED WILL BE BRANDED ALIKE
SO THAT REGARDLESS OF AUDIENCE, GOVERNMENT/COMPANY/CITIZEN, IT’S
UNDERSTOOD THAT ALL SHARE A COMMON GOAL AND EACH REQUIRE PARTICIPATION
O S
HEALTH OF
OF OPTIONS
S
S
RETIREMENT
INVESTING

FINALLY, AS OUR SOLUTIONS ARE TESTED IN THE
REAL WORLD, WE’LL MEASURE THEIR PERFORMANCE
WE’LL DO OUR BEST TO KEEP AN EYE ON THE ENTIRE SYSTEM, TO CATCH ANY
NEW TRENDS OR UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES EARLY IN THEIR DEVELOPMENT
O S
HEALTH OF
OF OPTIONS
S
S
RETIREMENT
INVESTING

THIS IS HOW THE MOST MASSIVELY COMPLEX
CHALLENGES OF THE FUTURE WILL BE SOLVED.
THROUGH THE COLLABORATION OF
PROFESSIONALS WHO SHARE A COMMON
UNDERSTANDING, VISION, AND FUTURE.

TODAY, WE’RE PREPARING THE FIRST STEP OF
THIS VISION – A GUIDEBOOK* THAT WILL ...
• GIVE YOU THE TOOLS AND KNOW-HOW TO FACE
COMPLEX CHALLENGES IN YOUR OWN LIFE
• GRANT YOU ACCESS TO A NETWORK OF PROBLEM SOLVERS
TO SHARE THEIR EXPERIENCE AND EXPERTISE
• ESTABLISH A COMMON UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN FUTURE
MEMBERS SO THAT WE CAN SOLVE THE MOST MASSIVELY
COMPLEX CHALLENGES TOGETHER
* BOOK IS POTENTIALLY A QUAINT WORD OF YE OLDEN TIMES FOR WHAT’S IN MIND.

BUT WAIT, THERE ARE TWO WAYS TO
START PARTICIPATING RIGHT NOW.

IF YOU SUPPORT OUR VISION,
PLEASE LET US KNOW.
Sign-up using our web form to get updates on the progress of the guidebook
and the network. The book will help you see past what H.L. Mencken called,
the “simple, easy to understand, wrong answers” of complex problems by
developing your understanding of complex systems and systems thinking.
HTTP://BIT.LY/JOINTHEBUCKET
HTTP://BIT.LY/HELPTHEBUCKET
ALSO, TELL US WHAT WE
SHOULDN’T OVERLOOK.
Use our web form to suggest topics that should be covered in the upcoming
guidebook. Specifically, tell us about systemic challenges you face, experts
you might know, or case studies that are relevant to our topic.

FOUNDERSOFTHEBUCKETBRIGADE
Neerav Bhatt, Ana Andjelic, Stephen Walker, James Sherrett, Mark Pollard, Dino Demopoulos,
Ian Lyons, Carl Panczak, Phil Gillman, James Denman, Eugene Chung, Mark Gallagher, Mike Arauz,
Matt Creamer, Helen Klein Ross, Casey Flanagan, Dave Daines, Faris Yakob, Balind Sieber,
Dan Weingrod, Mark Avnet, Mark DiCristina, Michael Monello, Anjali Ramachandran,
Bo Damgaard, Neil Perkin, Graeme Wood, Patrick Syms, Jason Oke, Andy Sandoz, Brian Jeremy,
Matt Jones, Gareth Kay, Eva Hasson, Gavin Becker, Regan Meador, Johnny Vulkan, Josh Ehart,
Fi Bendall, Mel Exon, Josh Boston, Brent Dixon, Laura Chavoen, William Shunn, Duane Brown,
Patrick Berry, Ian Alexander, Darrell Whitelaw, Sarah Blue, Derrick Bradley, Tobias Wacker,
Robin Grant, Mike Zeederberg, Adam Corney, James Robertson, John Sumser, Patrick Simkins,
Jamie Wilkinson, Anne-Mette Jensen, Scott Bullard, Heather LeFevre, Erin Dorr, Tim Leake,
Stephen Cox, Hugh Weber, Kimberly Carroll, Tobias Peggs, Sara Williams, Matthew Don,
Carmel Hagen, Jane Friedman, Jabe Bloom, Sara Ashton, Johannes Kleske, Stuart Eccles,
Utku Can, Robin Wong, Sean M Aaron, C.C. Chapman, Len Kendall, Terence Reis, Adam Wohl,
Richard Nevins, Heather Ann Snodgrass, matt gierhart, Stuart Foster, Shaun Abrahamson, Ted Sink,
Tim Malbon, Gavin Heaton, Cameron Maddux, Jurandir Craveiro, Jonathan Hopkins,
John V Willshire, Mark Earls, Gabriel Puerto, Avin Narasimhan, Dave Castelletti, Mark MacSmith,
Ben Abramowitz, Greg Christman, Ben Kaufman, APFIND, Gerrie Smits, Michael Ferdman,
Arthur Alston, Rufus Winchester, Marisa Zupan, Gary Ellis, Ian Fitzpatrick, Chris Stephenson,
Grant McCracken, James Cooper, Darryl King, Sabrina Caluori, Michael Kantrow, Tom Kelshaw,
Emma Jenkins, Ryan Jacoby, and Bud Caddell

THIS DOCUMENT CREATED BY BUD CADDELL
THOUGHTS ARE OWNED, PHOTOS ARE FOUND
APOLOGIES MAY BE OWED TO THE LATE SAUL BASS
FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT WHATCONSUMESME.COM

Solving the Most Complex Problems

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