The Blind Men and the Elephant

Table Of Contents

PREFACE: NAIVE BEGINNINGS

1: THE BLIND MEN
“The Blind Men and the Elephant” 1 Challenging Our Certainty
Confusing Ourselves
Choosing More Appropriate Frames of Reference
A Different Set of Possibilities

2: THE ELEPHANT
An Elephant We Cannot See
Masters and Slaves
Fragmenting along Predictable Lines
Disclosing Our Delusion
Liberating Ourselves
“That Each by Observation Might Satisfy His Mind”

3: THE WALL
Festina Lente—Hasten Slowly
Meeting My Wall (Again)
Discovering What I Want
Juiciness
“God Bless Me! but the Elephant Is Very Like a Wall!”

4: THE SPEAR
The Tale of a Very Bad Soldier
Monitoring My Metaphors
“To Me ’Tis Mighty Clear, This Wonder of an
Elephant Is Very Like a Spear!”

5: THE SNAKE
Who’s Here With You?
Trusting Snakes
Sorry Sort of Safety
Snake Hunting
Tit for Tat
How Badly Do You Want Them to Win?
“I See,” Quoth He, “the Elephant Is Very Like a Snake!”

6: THE TREE
“101 Reasons Why I Can’t Plan Yet”
“I Think That I Will Never See …”
There’s No Such Thing As a Project
Unavoidable Blind Spots
Imposing Disorganization
How Work Really Gets Done
Central Organizing Principle
“’Tis Clear Enough the Elephant Is Very Like a Tree!”

7: THE FAN
No One Is Apathetic Except in Pursuit of Someone Else’s Goal
Fanning the Flame or Stirring the Breeze?
Three-Part Conversation
Creating a Village Idiot
“Deny the Fact Who Can, This Marvel of an Elephant Is
Very Like a Fan!”

8: THE ROPE
Will Rogers Was an Artist with a Rope
Sitting Comfortably
Just Like the Real World
Coherence Emerges
Encouraging Coherence
“I See,” Quoth He, “the Elephant Is Very Like a Rope!”

9: THEOLOGIC WARS
A Heretic’s Homecoming
“And Prate about an Elephant Not One of Them Has Seen!”
BIBLIOGRAPHY
INDEX
ABOUT THE AUTHOR