1. The document discusses embodied systems thinking and using one's whole body to understand complex systems. It emphasizes moving from isolation to connection and developing the ability to intervene constructively. 2. Social Presencing Theatre is described as using body language and movement to access collective wisdom and create positive change. 3. Systems thinking is outlined as a way of viewing the world that considers relationships, perspectives, and boundaries to understand complexity and uncertainty.

1. Joan O’Donnell
Systems Practitioner
The Art of Making a True Move
With Embodied Systems Thinking
Watercolour by Sinead Cullen

2. Embodied Systems Beings
From thinking to being in systems
From thinking with our heads to understanding
with our whole-body intelligence
From ignoring what doesn’t fit, to leaning in and
learning with it
From overwhelm to developing the art of
making a true move
From isolated to creating islands of sanity

4. Social Presencing
Theatre
Social: moving from “self” to “social” body
Presencing: being present and using our
senses to access collective wisdom
Theatre: using simple body postures and
movement to dissolve limiting concepts and
revealing new possibilities
…Leaning into collective wisdom…listening
deeply....unsticking what is stuck in the
system…learning the art of making the next
right move
Photo of Arawana Hayashi who developed SPT

5. Systems Thinking
A way of
…looking at the world
…dealing with complexity
…dealing with uncertainty
…looking at inter-relationships
…working with multiple perspectives
…learning how make useful boundaries
…understanding how to intervene for best effect
Joanodonnellelford@gmail.com

6. Exploring ways of looking & being in the world
There are these two young fish swimming along and they happen to
meet an older fish swimming the other way, who nods at them and
says "Morning, boys. How's the water?" And the two young fish swim
on for a bit, and then eventually one of them looks over at the other
and goes "What the hell is water?“
David Foster Wallace

7. You can disturb a living
system; you can never
direct it
Maturana and Varela
You can’t boss life around
unless you force it to become
lifeless
Meg Wheatley
Uncertainty

8. Photo by NASA on Unsplash
A B C D
Complexity
Which is simple, complicated, complex?
Photo of Sean (do not reuse) Photo of Warry Hive Lunch

9. Getting to grips with
Complexity:
Rich Pictures
Choose symbols, scenes, images
Avoid writing
Use Colour
Create Connections
Leave out boundaries around situation
Start anywhere, put yourself in the picture
Open University Rich Picture

10. A pause…
Doodle-draw a Rich Picture
capturing as much of the
system you are concerned
with.

11. What is a System?
“A system is…
…a collection of entities….
…that are seen by someone…
…as interacting together…
…to do something.”
(Morris 2003)

12. What is a System?
INTERDEPENDENT:
a change in one part changes all parts
INTERCONNECTED:
Focus on relationships
FRACTAL:
Systems are made up of sub-systems and
function within larger systems
EMERGENT:
unfold over time

13. Creating a Systems Map

14. A pause…
Doodle-draw a boundary
map of your system

15. Three Aspects of working with systems

16. Three Aspects of working with systems:
1. Understanding inter-relationships
The world is not just a set of
separately existing localized
objects, externally related only
by space and time. Something
deeper, and more mysterious,
knits together the fabric of the
world
Tim Maudin- philosopher of physics

17. Three Aspects of working with systems:
2. Understanding multiple perspectives

18. Three Aspects of working with systems:
3. Making boundary judgements
All people are system designers, and
each person tries to determine what,
in his or her world is the largest
system and the smallest. For each
human, the system he or she designs
is their life, ie their self. The question
all of us face is what is the largest
and smallest system which
constitutes the self? Where does self-
designing begin and end?
C West Churchman

19. A pause…
Q 2.
How can you map your
system?

20. Dancing with Systems
Donella Meadows
1. Get the beat.
2. Listen to the wisdom of the system.
3. Expose your mental models to the open air.
4. Stay humble. Stay a learner.
5. Honor and protect information.
6. Locate responsibility in the system.
7. Make feedback policies for feedback systems.
8. Pay attention to what is important, not just what is
quantifiable.
9. Go for the good of the whole.
10. Expand time horizons.
11. Expand thought horizons.
12. Expand the boundary of caring.
13. Celebrate complexity.
14. Hold fast to the goal of goodness.

21. A pause…
How do these ideas resonate
with you?
What draws you?
What does not sit comfortably?

23. Where are you on the loop?

24. A pause…
Who are you in this system?
What is stuck?
What wants to move?

25. Thank you!
Joan O’Donnell
joanodonnellelford@gmail.ie
085 8886780
@joanode @systemsbeing
https://medium.com/@joanodonnell