I hope you will enjoy the last 4 topics of System Dynamics because you can all relate with

the
four disciplines: (1) personal mastery; (2) mental models; (3) shared vision; and (4) team
learning and communication.
But first, let’s discuss the individual requirements:
1. Vision Board – you are to create a vision board; the instructions will be given in the
content on personal mastery.
2. Mental Model – you need to read through the links provided and choose 1 mental model
that you can relate with (complete instructions is given below)
3. Reflection – among all the topics in system dynamics, which one had the impact on you.
Why? How can it be applied in real life scenario? What topics will you read more/ learn
more so you can deepen your topic on the particular knowledge? How did the subject
help you in your personal growth journey? What commitment will you do to improve
more on your growth?
Instructions:
1. Complete the requirements in three (3) different file. Ensure that 1 requirement will only
have 1 page single space maximum
2. Submit to my email salie.siao@dlsu.edu.ph with the subject
SYSTEMDYNAMICS_INDIVIDUALPAPER_LASTNAME, FIRSTNAME
3. Deadline: September 17, 2020/ 6:00PM

So, let’s start the discussion:

According to Peter Senge (the author of our book. “The Fifth Discipline”), small business would
disappear within 15 years and the largest companies in approximately 40 years. This begs the
question; how can organizations have continuous growth and sustainable operations?
Instead of just focusing on the traditional way of managing the organization, today’s companies
can survive when it succeeds in creating a learning organization. A learning organization – is
where people continually expand their capabilities to create good results, where expansive and
systemic ways of thinking are nurtured, where collective aspirations (team vision) is in place,
and where people are continually learning together.
In our class, we have learned the fifth discipline -- systems thinking. In our discussions, we have
talked about the following:
1. How decisionmakers think, act, and choose a certain alternative. In our first activity
about preserving establishments, you have seen how we all have different appreciation
and perspective on how to solve a certain problem. This is very evident in the case we
are experiencing right now, how countries are doing their part to solve the problem of
covid.

2. The learning disabilities (“I am my position”, “the parable of the boiling frog”, etc.) which
are harmful mindsets and way of thinking that stops us from thinking systemically.
 3. The 11 laws of the Fifth Discipline (“the cure is worse than the disease,” “the harder you
push, the harder the system pushes back”, etc.) which is used in understanding systems
and identifying behaviors for addressing complex situations.

4. Systems Archetypes (“Fixes that fail,” “growth and underinvestment” etc.) where we
have to develop observing situations as patterns of behavior so that we can anticipate
and manage them.

5. Problem solving through lateral thinking and intuitive thinking. As mentioned, we need to
use both in order to look at our problems comprehensively. In lateral thinking we both
use divergent thinking (creative thinking) and convergent thinking (logical thinking).
Intuition is a whole different topic, where we reflect inwardly and to listen to our “gut feel”
to make decisions.

For our last compressed module, we will be discussing the four disciplines. Personally, I prefer
for you to read my lecture at a slower pace and click on the materials and understand each.
Don’t rush to complete this is one sitting because you will miss out the fun of getting to know
yourself (which is how I angled the topics). Ideally, you could be reading about the discipline,
digest the learning, research more on the topic, and reflect.
THE FOUR DISCIPLINES
(A) Personal Mastery
Organizations learn only through individuals who learn. This is why we start commit to
personal development and mastery. When we say “mastery” it means we never stop in
improving ourselves. After graduation, you have to commit to yourself that you will only
be successful if you continually reflect and see how you can improve yourself.

There are basically two steps in doing personal mastery: (1) continuously clarify what is
important to you; and (2) continually learn how to see the current reality more clearly.
This is the reason why I’m asking you to create a vision board, to remind yourself what is
important to you.

Activity 1: Vision Board. Watch this video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jw8ZwoLqdPc or
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkrW3OgB9K0&t=56s
and create your own vision board. Explain in a short paragraph

To fully commit to personal mastery, one has to know himself/herself – know your
strengths and weaknesses and manage them properly. Here’s an interesting quiz to get
to know yourself better, you may take this test and reflect about the results. Please take
the following quizzes and share your results in the discussion board.
a. The four tendencies https://quiz.gretchenrubin.com/
b. Surrounded by Four Idiots quiz (I will share to you the context of the title during the
live class) https://quiz.gretchenrubin.com/
 I’ve observed a lot of people who are not committed to self-improvement because it is
more comfortable to stay where you are (comfort zone) and to just spend your life on
repeat, it’s more predictable too! But, I think, if you feel discomfort, that is when you start
reflecting and learning. To know more about the benefits of personal mastery, watch the
video on growth mindset. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUWn_TJTrnU.

As future business leaders and entrepreneurs, starting with early with committing to
personal mastery has benefits. Sharing to you one of my favorite articles on the things
you need to learn more
https://techpreneur.wordpress.com/2013/05/25/entrepreneurship-and-the-art-of-self-
mastery/?fbclid=IwAR3g9JN2avC0cdP6w52BF1cQ93PZBPYwFtpb3jnvOlDHnAEYsFN-
95vv3lA

Lastly, I have been sharing in class the concept of self-awareness. But how do you really
practice it? Here is a good way to do that:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGdsOXZpyWE

(B) Mental Models

Are deeply ingrained assumptions, generalizations, or even pictures of images that
influence how we understand the world and how we take action, a representation of how
something works. Every model can be used for thinking, deciding and understanding the
world around us. They are the best way to learn

Some of you are coming from CLA (like me) and would often associate it with cognitive
biases (https://bigthink.com/mind-brain/cognitive-bias-codex). In the same way, they
have the same purpose, it makes us more efficient with our decision making. But mental
models are much wider in scope and that’s why, I want you to explore what are different
mental models and which one do you resonate with?

Activity 2: Mental Models Reflection. Look for different mental models

in the suggested sites, pick one that you can relate. In a one-pager
reflection, explain the mental model briefly and reflect on why you can
relate with the model. You may browse through the following sites:
- https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjMKtD_3HlbQP7AI27
eNgbtaPjBMjOy1_&fbclid=IwAR30zKpMjGLXTdMvdAd9dwkD
A-71JqU9qQMWYsEfBLEG1RlU4-zLtwJEtgM&app=desktop
- https://jamesclear.com/mental-models
- https://www.inc.com/wanda-thibodeaux/successful-people-
think-small-not-big-heres-
why.html?cid=sf01002&fbclid=IwAR2zgc8nDeuQYHeYWQCW
B66pAK0dzC0v7mTsMRrSkctio61-oixh1SSziyw
-

(C) Shared Vision

When I discuss this topic, I usually ask the groups to research on specific companies
about their vision statements. Here are some examples:
NASA https://www.nasa.gov/careers/our-mission-and-values
Colgate Palmolive https://www.colgatepalmolive.com/en-us/core-values

You will notice that these organizations did not mention anything about their product or
services. Instead these companies focused more on their vision (where they want to be
in the future, which means they can change products and expand their markets easily)
and their values. In the previous activity, I asked you to watch a movie of how
companies almost collapsed but were able to bounce back, some of you chose Japan
Airlines which has a good strategy of overcoming their problems. Businesses and
individuals are expected to be bound by challenges but you will see that big corporations
who have good vision will be able to bounce back no matter what, because the
strategies that they do are not just a way to response to a certain problem but because
they have guiding principles and visions that guide them on what to do.
A good decision-maker needs to have a forward-looking capacity. First, leaders have to
resolve how they will resolve from preserving their time to more important matters than
urgent endless operational matters. Next, leaders must ask, “What’s new? What’s next?
What’s better?”—but they can’t present answers that are only theirs. Constituents want
visions of the future that reflect their own aspirations. They want to hear how their dreams
will come true and their hopes will be fulfilled. This is one possible reason why Philippines
are uneasy with the cOvid situation, because 3 weeks into the community quarantine and
we have yet to see a plan on how this will be resolved by the government.
In learning organizations, the vision should be created through interaction with the
employees in the enterprise. Many leaders have personal visions that lack transferring
them to a shared vision. The only way to create a shared vision is by compromising the
organization’s and individual’s visions. People who do not share the same vision might
not contribute as much to the organization. The effect of sharing the same vision is that
employees do tasks because they want to do so instead of they are told to do so. It
changes the relationship with the company, and it turns its performances in a learning
mechanism.
Here's a video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vp3hZwYkflQ which talks about the
reality of the challenges of leaders and this presents a good canvas for leaders who
want to build a shared vision.
(D.) (Team) Learning and Communication

Team learning requires several components to be effective. First is discussion.

Discussion is a process of exploration taken by the team members. Each member
presents and defends his view on the issue or problem facing the group.

The next step in team learning is dialogue. Dialogue, in its simplest terms, is a
conversation. It's important to emphasize that dialogue in this context is not a debate.
Team members are not attempting to successfully impose their view on their fellow
members when engaging in dialogue. Instead, team members are attempting to go
beyond each of their individual understandings of the issue presented and explore the
issue creatively from many different points of view in order to make the best decision

There is an interrelationship with team learning and other disciplines. And for the
purpose of our closing our topic, I’d like to share with you some two articles and a video
about learning:
Before we can even contribute something in an organization, we need to develop one
very important quality: emotional intelligence. https://hbr.org/2004/01/what-makes-a-
leader?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=hbr&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR1n
Nr-sNiNLKRW-sQagxvM7GI1-SOQm4OcZGTxvVfGXlCLIyjLbPN9wB5c
The last article is about developing wisdom and why the smartest people continuously
commit to personal mastery https://www.inc.com/jeff-haden/heres-how-to-tell-within-5-
minutes-if-someone-isnt-as-smart-as-they-
think.html?cid=sf01002&fbclid=IwAR0ry5gosWUdZ2K7NTxEIPfGhvhoKTaH-
EKFlGtos3DRsFL1IRhkKhLYL5k

To end the discussion, I want you to watch this video: art of improvement why most
people mediocrity (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rH94x03Wl-M&t=43s)

I hope in our short time together, you learned something about committing to personal
mastery and developing a systemic thinking. I promise that a lot of these lessons are
something that will resonate with you when you start working and observing
organizations. Maybe you are experiencing these observations now as you watch how
different governments address the covid situation.

Activity 3: Write one-page reflection paper on which topic in system

dynamics do you think is the most memorable for you. Why?