We all use funnels in our lives when we make choices. The purpose of the funnel is to have multiple options, reduce the number of options, and then make a choice. The Conservative party leadership election in the UK in is a good example of this, but we do this in our lives to – whether it’s what do we want to do as a family this weekend or which direction to take our project at work.

What if instead of funnel we focused on layers? So instead of bringing us to a finite choice of this one or that one, we asked how do the options fit together. What if we viewed the options as puzzle pieces that might fit together, we just didn’t have the picture on the lid?

What insights could be found? Would it help us be more collaborative? Would we ‘see’ or discover different parts of the ‘system’ our solutions are a part of?

Funnelling helps us reduce options and, in theory, reduce uncertainty and bring clarity of choice. Often when we are engaged in change, what we are working on is not in an isolated vacuum, it is part of a system with multiple facets. As we change one part, others are affected – there are multiple puzzle pieces.

Would it thinking about layering help?

Photo by Hans-Peter Gauster