Spirals on Spirals
IBM used an image of a spiral on their Human Capital Management survey, a spiral staircase with people on it, and I chose to use a similar one to illustrate in this post.
Why? One reason: spirals are everywhere in this universe.
Another reason: I have chosen to learn and work with and within a body of work known as Spiral Dynamics integral. And a third: since I am applying the frameworks I’ve learned to IBM’s study, it seemed a consistent thing to do.
What I like about the spiral staircase image atop this site is that it also includes a “down spiral” view. That is, positioned at the this level of the spiral, the natural behavior is to look down to see what’s going on. It’s a great metaphor for how to start thinking about a business.
The image IBM uses is brilliant. The point of view of this spiral staircase is from the bottom looking up, and, it still contains a “down spiral” view. Thus a look up, is also a look down. This paradoxical view is representative of the adaptive intelligence code that is beginning to emerge in humans who are struggling with concepts, issues and problems like the ones in this report. In Spiral Dynamics lexicon, it’s called GT – Yellow. Additionally, each level of the staircase has lights pointing to and highlighting different sections of the staircase.
A staircase can represent mathematics, which is a complexity system. The more complex algorithms we use to solve problems are built on the earlier systems. So calculus is built on top of geometry, which is built on top of algebra, which depends on a solid mastery of multiplication and division, which was derived to make complex addition and subtraction simple. We still use multiplication and division when we use calculus. Likewise, the human complex adaptive intelligences are built on earlier systems and as our ability to solve more complex problems in life expands, the earlier systems remain to support us.
It’s an extremely appropriate image in it’s symbolism and meaning. The only additional element I would have like to see is that these intelligences are also within us as people, as businesses; we are not on the Spiral.
And, these intelligences (and their manifestations) are all around us in the life conditions. So, if I can superimpose that idea onto this image, it takes it even farther.
