Systems & Habits

Introducing BFNow Self-Study Module 4

This is the fourth in the series of posts introducing you to the modules in the BFNow Self-Study program. After this module, I'll be pausing this series for a few weeks and then picking it up again in May for the remaining three modules.

Module 4 combines two mutually supportive tracks: system principles and their application to habits. From the perspective of the Foundational Keys, it supports your deepening into Systems Literacy, Being Savvy about Psychodynamics, and Being Skillful with Diverse Modes of Cognition.

In the module, you'll be using the tools of system mapping to deepen your understanding of one of your habits. In the process, you'll be:

• discovering personally relevant ways to shift the habit by finding new points of leverage

• seeing how broad system principles show up in your own daily patterns

• building system-literacy skills that apply far beyond habits

• engaging your whole brain—verbal, visual, and kinesthetic—to gain fresh insights

• building experiences and perspectives that can be translated from this personal level to the "habits" of larger systems like organizations and institutions.

What you'll find here differs in significant ways from many mainstream approaches to habit change:

• While most approaches treat habits in isolation, this one is nested within the broader BFNow journey. It draws on earlier modules and functions within the Foundational Keys framework—so the learning extends well beyond habit change alone.

• Rather than relying on willpower or clever behavior hacks, this approach invites you to see yourself as a living system. The orientation shifts from manipulation to collaboration with your deeper psychodynamics.

• Many popular models aim at personal productivity or success, reflecting modernist cultural values. This approach supports those goals and connects you to something larger—co-evolution toward the Planetary Era.

There's a lot of practical value for your everyday life here. I encourage you to take a look, starting with the Overview:

• Systems & Habits – Module 4 Overview

• Diagrams & Descriptions – Exploration 1

• Timescales, Timelags & Feedback – Exploration 2

• Thresholds & Tipping Points – Exploration 3

• Connections – Exploration 4

• Character Diagrams – Exploration 5

For quick access to the other modules, please see About BFNow Self-Study. For a more detailed orientation to both the content and process of the Self-Study program, see BFNow Self-Study Orientation.