“…minimising the energy cost of decision making”

I was fascinated and curious about this phrase I heard on a Cynefin webinar on managing complex systems with David Snowden this morning. He was talking about different types of leadership and the different domains of the Cynefin Framework. 

It really got me thinking… and found these quotes about energy gradients on  his blog post - https://www.cognitive-edge.com/on-energy-gradients/

“To create order, or maintain chaos requires energy while complexity is a natural state…The dominant, lowest energy cost domain is complex, but that requires comfort with uncertainty and a degree of self-organisation”

I’m not sure what it all means, and am busy making sense of it. David’s post did remind me of an image we created in 2010 for a blog post on leadership styles, inspired by this quote we found by General Kurt Von Hammerstein-Equord. he was the commander-in-chief of the German army between the wars, and is remembered for being a staunch opponent of the Nazi regime.  

I divide my officers into four classes; the clever, the lazy, the industrious, and the stupid. Most often two of these qualities come together. The officers who are clever and industrious are fitted for the highest staff appointments. Those who are stupid and lazy make up around 90% of every army in the world, and they can be used for routine work. The man who is clever and lazy however is for the very highest command; he has the temperament and nerves to deal with all situations. But whoever is stupid and industrious is a menace and must be removed immediately! 1933 

What do you make of it? If you are curious too, and would like a chat Id like more opportunities to make sense of this energy gradients concept and what it might mean for leadership practice in public service systems change - julian@delta7.com