Super models

Imagine a house, with a garden, and a tree... if you did then you have created a perception model, constructed out of 3 elements: an image of a house, an image of a garden and an image of a tree. 

Now imagine a house with a metal tree and a significant garden... what would be the degree of similarity if we asked 10 people to complete this task. Now, the model of the house and the tree and garden requires an additional modeling action, a modeling of the meaning of significance in context. 

Modeling is critical to our understanding of things, and it’s crucial to our ability to imagine changes. We understand things via their models and our brains contain gazillion types of models that we use in our lives and work. To the models we have, we add subtract or modify different elements as we think and explore opportunities.

Until recently the world wasn't so complicated (or at least we didn’t perceive it as such) we could use simple models to get along: business models were business models, lifestyle models were lifestyle models, social models were... I think you probably have a model where this is going... But when we are aware of more things, as we are in present times (hopefully)... Our models become complicated and our capacity to control them and communicate them become challenging. 

Designers learn to work with models throughout their studies. They are continuously asked to describe their ideas via models and to provide models of their innovations. This is, in part, why design thinking is becoming such an important tool in business strategy and operations. In complicated situations, the first thing to do, is to establish an agreed model and to make sure everyone understands exactly what we modify and how, on our way to the next model. To do so beyond the templates of existing models.. We need people who are experienced in modeling. 

 Image: Kraftwerk cover of the single "The model (German version)" 1978 EMI Kling Klang . https://bit.ly/2dNubd5