Hi dear friends, in this first post in my blog I would like to fix our attention for a couple of minutes at the concept of System - very often we perceive of such common notions as something self-explanatory and obvious, thus leaving the thoughts of digging deeper into them to those boring quaint professors in colleges... Yet, I have been thinking about Systems for years and I wonder continuously at the boundless ocean of the very phenomenon that is called System. OK, I am not going to be too academic and tedious - just several words for us to embrace the enormous scope of the System and also how it can be applied to our everyday business activities.:) First, let us have a glance at the definition of the word SYSTEM: The word SYSTEM comes from Latin word Systema and originally from Greek words "sunistanai", to combine : sun-, syn- and "histanai", set up, establish. System can be understood as a group of interacting, interrelated, or interdependent elements forming a complex whole, especially: a. An organism as a whole, especially with regard to its vital processes or functions. b. A group of physiologically or anatomically related organs or parts. c. A group of interacting mechanical or electrical components. d. A network of structures and channels, as for communication, travel, or distribution. e. A network of related computer software, hardware, and data transmission devices. 2. It can also be viewed as: a. An organized set of interrelated ideas or principles. b. A social, economic, or political organizational form. 3. And we can also understand System as: a. An arrangement or configuration of classification or measurement. b. An organized and coordinated method; a procedure. c. A naturally occurring group of objects or phenomena. d. A set of rock strata grouped by geologic time period and divided into series. e. Harmonious interaction or order. f. The prevailing social order; the establishment. All this stuff has been borrowed form a big and serious dictionary:) Looks impressive, doesn't it? And now I want to add a couple of my own thoughts about the concept of System. System is everything and everywhere, and always. You are a system. Your leg is a system. Each individual electron in your body is a system. The universe is a system, and something bigger that has created this Universe is also a system. When we speak about some corruption scheme in the government, we mean some effective system:)) If we discuss weather - it is also a system. So, I think you get my point: EVERYTHING CONCEIVABLE BY US AND EVEN SOMETHING UNFATHOMABLE IS A SYSTEM! You may say: OK, so what? Seems clever and serious, but what practical utility can I gain from this? Not so fast!:)) People spend their whole lives in efforts to embrace the concept of System and try to implement this concept into business, production, art, psychology... I will tell you right now that, in my opinion, all Systems in this Universe experience the so-called Holographic Effect - that is, in theory, the same principles should work for weather and for a country's administration, for your body and for your small family business. There is such a thought that the whole universe is reflected and manifested in a single atom. And you are a holographic manifestation of the Universe. Whether we like this idea or not, in my opinion, we are all reflections of a much larger whole. So, if the Systems we create are designated and maintained in compliance with some larger principles of larger things in the Universe - most probably, our creations will feel good:) Some might say that these ideas are too esoteric - and I completely agree!:)) You know, I love this exoteric approach since the standard logical-formal approaches fail too often! Do you know how many billions of dollars huge companies spend on consulting by those famous consulting agencies? And you naively believe all of the projects pay back? Not all, believe me... So, if even those tough smart men with a lot of MBA degrees fail at helping corporations to succeed - using all their super-developed and honed brains polished by cases and long numbers operated at short periods of time - so, probably, something gets overcomplicated? You remember how Einstein produced this famous adage that Everything must be as simple as possible but not simpler than that? I will sooner trust Einstein than a lot of consultants who tend to use same intricate formulas for very simple notions - and eventually the result does not satisfy the clients! Not always, of course, I just want to remind you that everything on this planet in elsewhere in the Cosmos is operating based on certain Laws of Harmony of Systems in the Universe - so, if we learn, at least a bit, how to embrace those dependencies and apply them to all spheres of our life and business - we will get a more harmonious System of our activity. OK, my friends, I am not going to abuse your patience for a long time - just remember a child trying to walk - the great power of the Universe is input into this physically small creature, and he or she finally walks straight! The kid did not read textbooks on Math or Consulting - but the little one is able to walk and even run! So, why don't we try to learn and emulate those rules of Harmony of all Systems and utilize them in our business - whether it is software development, or running a chain of stores, or building a social network...