On Sat, 20 Jan 1996 JOHNWFIELD@aol.com wrote:
> The last one is extremely close to the nature wishes of managers to find a
> way out of the thicket. It is only when they become one of the following
> that they are set up for the first three:
>
> o A mathematician or engineer who is familiar with ordinary linear
> differential equations (Systems Dynamics)
> o A mathematician who is familiar with ordinary nonlinear differential
> equations
> o A mathematician or biologist who is familar with partial differential
> equations, Einstein's diffusion theory, and the late twentieth-century
> succedents to that
>
> To be set up for the last one, you need to know that all human beings are
> fallible, and that individuals can't manage complexity alone: a central
> part of the philosophy of Charles Sanders Peirce, and a direct inference
> from Michael Polanyi.
Hi John,
I think I've got the belief that if a person engages in any type of
business without being able to manage complexity, then they are being
dishonest and unethical. Is this valid?
How do people know when someone is being dishonest, unethical and
criminally negligent as opposed to being unable to manage complexity -
i.e. they just made some mistakes?
It seems to me that having years of experience or relevant qualifications
on a resume gave people enough credibility to be able to make mistakes,
[after all when doctors and therapists go into business they call it
"private practice"] but it seems to me that as new business models emerge,
old strategies like that don't work too well.
The reason I'm asking is that I've had to turn down a lot of business
because I think that I am unable to manage complexity and I'd be dishonest
if I tried to do business without having a reasonable level of managing
complexity. I've spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to be an
honest businessman when dealing with everyone while maintaining my ability
to adapt to changing environments but in the meantime I'm near starvation.
In some cases I had to turn down blatant proposals to rip people off. In
other cases, such as Ray Harrell's proposal that I write sales letters for
Carnegie Hall, the distinctions aren't so clear - before I can honestly
write sales letters for any organization and manipulate people into doing
stuff [because that's what sales letters essential are], I have to know in
advance if that "stuff" is in the best interests of the people I'm
manipulating. Since I don't know any of their customers or prospective
customers, writing sales letters for them would be IMHO dishonest and I
can't do research into their customer base while maintaining my existing
projects.
Even though I am really clueless right now regarding this stuff, I'd like
to say that I like this listserv because it seems like most people's
hearts are in the right place. I've learned a lot.
-- Thank you, Andrew Moreno Andrew Moreno <amoreno@broken.ranch.org>