When one undertakes to create a model there are a number of guidelines that are considered essential for consideration if there is to be a success with the model.

Part 2 demonstrates labeling of links as well as putting elements of the model in a folder. A number of previously developed models are also presented to provide an idea of what's possible.

Part 1 demonstrates Picture primitives and Links to create representations of interactions. These are made visually attractive because the Picture primitives are overlayed with images.

The Reinforcing Loop Systems Archetype is one of the two most basic Systems Archetypes. The Balancing Loop being the other one.

This is a model depicting the interactions of the Aesop's Fable "The Boy Who Cried Wolf."

Balancing Loop with Stock & Flow Diagram.

Introduce the concept of modeling and simulation.

Insight Maker is completely web based making it easy to develop and share models, allows concurrent multi-user editing, and just happens to be FREE, which a pretty good feature/price ratio.

A Limits to Growth Systems Archetype consists of a Reinforcing Loop, the growth of which, after some success, is offset by the action of a Balancing Loop.

When endeavoring to develop an understanding of the nature of something it is generally useful to create a model of some type to aid in surfacing that understanding.

There exists a well defined set of possible ways to alter an existing set of interactions. Each of these alterations will produce a particular effect depending on the relations the change is relative to. Identifying which are possible and which will migrate the interactions to produce the desired situation is the essence of the strategy.

Escape behavior often results in more stress than one escapes from.

Enabling a Better Tomorrow is a systemic approach for developing a systemic strategy which may be employed to intervene in a current situation to effect the desired results while minimizing the likelihood of creating new problems in the process.

When endeavoring to develop an understanding of the nature of something it is generally useful to create a model of some type to aid in surfacing that understanding.

This diagram presents the valid relationships between stocks, flows, and parameters. Ghosts of Stocks, Flows, and Converters can be created as needed.

Balancing Loop with Stock & Flow Diagram.

All you wanted to do was put a bird feeder in your yard to attract birds and make for a more pleasant morning. And...

A Tragedy of the Commons situation exists whenever two or more activities, each, which in order to produce results, rely on a shared limited resource. Results for these activities continue to develop as long as their use of the limited resource doesn't exceed the resource limit. Once this limit is reached the results produced by each activity are limited to the level at which the resource is replenished. As an example, consider multiple departments with an organization using IT resources, until they've exhausted IT capacity.

If we are to develop a strategy for dealing with a situation we must first understand what has caused the situation to be the way it is. If we don't know why it is the way it is then any action we take is little more than meddling and unlikely to produce the desired result.

Balancing Loop with Stock & Flow Diagram.

A quick example for creating a simulation in Insight Maker.

Developing a strategy for dealing with a situation begins with a description of the situation and the preferred state for today, not in some distant future, and the perceived implications of not doing anything.