The Illinois Model

If OODA is depicted (incorrectly) as a circle, it ignores so many of the pathways that keep it so universal.

When I whiteboard OODA, I draw in lots of extra pieces. One (1) of them is a crystal ball along the arrow from Decide-to-Observe. I consider it the crystal ball feedback pathway.

It's where options are pondered before commitment. It's how the actor is mentally rehearsing, simulating, modeling, forecasting, anticipating, using imagery, and even predicting.

This crystal ball pathway is where Gary Klein's Recognition Primed Decision-Making (RPD/RPDM) sits. The actor pushes scenarios through hypotheses to find a suitable match - often the first match that is reasonably fit for the current situation. It's a lightning fast cycling through OOD-OOD-OOD...until a good enough option can be released forward into a committed decision. (Commitment of course being a relative term.)



[above RPDM image attributed to Klein, 1983]
Another aspect here is that of paralysis-by-analys…

I once pulled out a pocketknife so I could shave off the plastic collar on my HDMI plug that wouldn't fit into the venue's podium panel.

I've been that guy in the audience who whipped out a dongle from my bag to save the day. I shrugged my shoulders when a fellow attendee jokingly shouts, "Who the f%&k carries an HDMI-to-VGA adaptor around with them?!?" 

We've all been there. You're in the audience at a conference and the next presenter is having trouble getting his/her laptop to connect to the projector system.

You know the script:

"Ok folks, we're having some problems up here. Hopefully we will be getting started in a few minutes...."

They call the tech support to the podium and continue to be baffled at the settings, the tangle of cords, the remote control, the sound speakers..."Hey, can you hear this in the back?"

If you've been in that situation as that speaker, you know how much more awkward it is for you than for the a…

I've been fielding more questions about hosting workshops for both law enforcement audiences & participants...and non-law enforcement! I actually really like that idea, but I'm not in a position to push them forward. It's going to have to be an on-request sort of venture. 

Want to see my philosophy & some content that would be included? Here is what you might see in a workshop for law enforcement, from a detailed proposal for a police department:


ADAPTIVE PHILOSOPHY
Law enforcement culture tends to utilize a linear, technical mindset for training, intelligence, policy, operations, and supervision.  At the same time, police officers, supervisors, and command staff continue to struggle with complications from poor decision-making and leadership. This antiquated framework is a carry over from an industrial education model primarily designed for efficiency via cost savings and the maximization of time...for training factory workers! The unpredictable modern law enforcemen…