Solving for Pattern Redux
Well, I am back at it, after being AWOL for several months. In subsequent posts I will address my absence – and my return – but in this post I would like to share some ideas I had while lounging in my bed this morning (remember the "three Bs of creativity" – https://www.theatlantic.com/video/archive/2015/11/there-is-a-creative-purpose-to-daydreaming-even-boredom/625722/)
If you go back and look at Wendell Berry's original essay, you will see that "Solving for Pattern" has three components: a process, a product, and a criterion. The product is a good solution, as opposed to a bad solution. The criterion is system health, as in the overall health of Earl Spencer's farm. The process is cybernetic, or more casually, a repetitive process of trial and error.
The examples we have focussed on in the work of the KPICD have tended to look at Solving for Pattern in relatively large scale systems, such as Williamson County Juvenile Justice, or the community of Caddo Parish, Louisiana. In this post, I would like to share some ideas about how Solving for Pattern applies to a single person (e.g., you or me).
Let's start with the criterion. One of the things that has stuck with me from reading (and studying) No Bad Parts, by Richard Schwarz, is a list he presents on page 98 of his book, with the heading "The Eight Cs of Self-Energy and Self-Leadership":
- Curiosity
- Calm
- Confidence
- Compassion
- Creativity
- Clarity
- Courage
- Connectedness
In my mind, this list is as good a description of a healthy self-system as any you will find. Of course, in order to get the full story, you will want to read the book, but this list is provocative on its own, and I find it very satisfying as a criterion, or standard, for my own wellbeing.
Next, let's consider the process. For this component of a personal approach to Solving for Pattern I will share another list, this time from the Neuroscience & Wellness Substack article (September 13, 2025), "Non-Negotiable Habits as a Neuroscientist":
- Move before the world wakes up
- Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate
- Sunshine every single day (get outside)
- Travel to learn, not just to escape (be curious)
- Whole foods, whole brain
- Smile first, science later (think mirror neurons)
- Reset Mondays (start with a clean slate)
- The to-do list (short and sweet)
Since reading this article a week or so ago, I have been doing my best follow this guidance. Some of these practices are old friends, but others – as practices or habits – are new for me. So far I am pleased with the results, and the fact that I am writing again is in part due to my efforts to make these habits non-negotiable.
Lastly, there is the product, which is (hopefully) a good solution. The solution is good if it "scores well" on the criteria being used to judge it – in this case, Schwarz's "Eight Cs". The solution is bad if it does not score well on these criteria. I will have more to say about this in my subsequent posts, especially in regards to Clarity and Courage.