Thinking in an Age of Complexity

How to Think: Managing Brain Resources in an Age of Complexity by Ed Boyden in Technology Review is brilliant article, excerpted herer

"When I applied for my faculty job at the MIT Media Lab, I had to write a teaching statement. One of the things I proposed was to teach a class called "How to Think," which would focus on how to be creative, thoughtful, and powerful in a world where problems are extremely complex, targets are continuously moving, and our brains often seem like nodes of enormous networks that constantly reconfigure. In the process of thinking about this, I composed 10 rules...

1. Synthesize new ideas constantly. Never read passively. Annotate, model, think, and synthesize while you read...

2. Learn how to learn, rapidly... Be able to rapidly prototype ideas. Know how your brain works.

3. Work backward from your goal. Or else you may never get there...

4. Always have a long-term plan. Even if you change it every day...

5. Make contingency maps. Draw all the things you need to do on a big piece of paper, and find out which things depend on other things...

6. Collaborate.

7. Make your mistakes quickly... Document what led to the error so that you learn what to recognize, and then move on...

8. As you develop skills, write up best-practices protocols... Instinctualize conscious control.

9. Document everything obsessively. If you don't record it, it may never have an impact on the world..

10. Keep it simple... If you can spend two days thinking of ways to make it 10 times simpler,
do it...

Jeff's MICO Presentation

The benefits you will receive from attending Jeff Davidson's presentation on Managing Information and Communication Overload:

[ ] maintain a clear desk
[ ] become better able manage all email files
[ ] have more productive workdays, day in and day out
[ ] manage incoming information to prevent information overload
[ ] minimize the deluge of information and communication from all directions
[ ] establish information management standards and procedures

[ ] stay more focused, more often
[ ] determine if you're a meglomaniac or infomaniac
[ ] organize your files, folders, documents, papers, and everything in between
[ ] manage your email inbin like a pro
[ ] quickly assess and allocate information received via paper, e-mail, voice mail
[ ] make faster, guilt-free decisions on what to retain and what to recycle or toss

[ ] adopt a potent filing system that's fast, easy, and rewarding
[ ] have more energy at the end of the workday
[ ] more easily share vital information with bosses, co-workers, or staff
[ ] use your copier, printer, scanner, and computer to diminish paper clutter
[ ] send faxes by fax/modem to eliminate paper handing on your end
[ ] employ scanning when it help to resolve your paper glut

[ ] avoid storing information in places where you'll "lose" it
[ ] have a more harmonious relationship among office staff
[ ] feel better about your job, career, and company
[ ] safeguard your office environment
[ ] be able to quickly peruse any book and find what you can use
[ ] stay on top of a several projects at once

[ ] save time by avoiding misdirection
[ ] gain a clear idea of what publications to receive and which not to receive
[ ] learn practical tips for staying off of junk mail and spam lists
[ ] break down semi-permanent piles
[ ] reclaim your desktop and other flat surfaces
[ ] vanquish the information glut, and keep it down to a dull roar

[ ] stay abreast of the latest information management tools
[ ] achieve clarity of thought
[ ] learn how to finish work on time
[ ] get your name off of junk mail lists
[ ] prevent piles and files from building up in the first place
[ ] coordinate on-line, on-disk and hard copy files