GENCO MEMO: May 27, 2024
A Framework for Seeing the Two Sides of Complexity and I Share A Map of The Garden of Forking Paths
Greetings.
I try cases with maps—all types. I have found it to be the most effective way to manage complexity.
THE PROBLEM: The complexity of cases comes from the volumes of information and evidence accumulated and exchanged during the litigation. Some cases encompass millions of documents. For example, I'm trying an antitrust case in Houston federal court in August with over four million documents at issue.
It can be overwhelming.
Synthesizing all this information into a complete, consistent, credible legal theory can seem almost impossible.
So, some lawyers don't even try and instead approach the problem as "let's keep it simple" for the jury and themselves. But, this is naive and dangerous when viewed from the standpoint that the impact on the client may be huge, and you typically only get one shot at it.
There is a path to a solution if you change how you view the problem.
THE SOLUTION: There's a quote sometimes attributed to the late Supreme Court judge Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.; others attribute it to his father, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. In either case, here it is:
"For the simplicity that lies this side of complexity, I would not give a fig, but for the simplicity that lies on the other side of complexity, I would give my life."
It doesn't matter who said it. That's not important. What does matter is understanding that there are two types of simplicity–divided by a mountain of complexity.
It can be illustrated like this:
Seeing the problem like this gives a useful framework for overcoming complexity overwhelm.
Designer Jon Kolko gives a good explanation of how to understand this simple diagram.
"At the left of the diagram, and at the beginning of taking on a new complex problem, you are blissfully naive. Your descriptions of a topic are overly simplistic and reductive. They are based on assumptions, stacked on top of guesses, and are likely wrong and incomplete. You don't know what you don't know, and so when you talk about things with other people, you aren't able to fully engage."
Many stay here on this side of complexity. Some because they are unaware (i.e., blind) and others because they choose not to make the effort. But Kolko goes on to describes the process of moving right and owning the complexity.
"To move to the right of the diagram, you start to experience things and learn. Your knowledge and insight grows as you become more and more of an expert. You see things from different perspectives, and you start to from an integrative whole. As you peak in the middle of the curve, you see the meaning in the data, and you've formed your opinion about it. This means that, to some extent, you own the information–it's meaningful to you and so you can act on it."
You are now at the top of the mountain of complexity. Those that make it there stay there. But that's not the final destination because:
"...you can't necessarily communicate that information. You've integrated it for you, but that doesn't mean you've distilled it down to a meaningful, concise story for someone else, someone still at the left side of the curve...the top of the curve is the unfortunate place where people typically try to explain complex ideas. Because they have all of the data, they think other people need all of the data, and so they drop a massive document or spreadsheet on everyone else. Maybe they orate an endless meeting. Often, the audience leave more confused that when they started."
Kolko goes on to explain what is "on the other side of complexity.” It’s not only where you have internalized your understanding but a state of distilling it to a point of sharable enriched simplicity.
"But keep moving to the right on the simplicity curve. Continue to experience things, to fond that meaning in the data, and to revise and recast your opinion. Because at the right of the curve is simplicity, again. This is simplicity of the other side of complexity. It's where you've not only been able to synthesize the content into your own worldview, but you've discerned the essence of the idea in such a simple, direct way that you can communicate it to other people. And you can communicate it in a way that people with little or no knowledge of the subject matter can then themselves move along their curve, moving to the right."
Like I said before, many don't attempt crossing this mountain of complexity. And others start only to give up. They think it's too hard, will take too long, or can't see the benefit.
I see this in cases. But I also see it in business, school, and life.
A TOOL: A tool that I use in getting across this mountain is what I call a situation map. There are other tools I'll introduce later that–when combined–appear magical. But today, I want to introduce the same tool I train all lawyers at the Firm.
I have found that the easiest, fastest–and sometimes most effective–way to learn is to copy (or mimic) others.
So, I will give you an example of a situation map, but instead of using actual case maps (you know, attorney-client privilege stuff), I created a map for the short story “The Garden of Forking Paths” by Jorge Luis Borges.
Here is a high quality .pdf file to download.
Here is a .pdf of the story that I highlighted to download for educational purposes if you don’t already have it.
DIVE DEEPER: If you want more context on Borges and the story, here are some additional references:
Wikipedia article on Jorge Luis Borges.
Writing the Impossible: A 13 min video giving a general summary of Borges’ writing on mind-bending ideas.
Course Hero: A 5 min video summary of the story suitable for students and gives an overview of the story. I think this helps to watch before reading the story to improve comprehension. In other words, context before details never fails.
Detailed Analysis: Here is a 20 minute video where two book enthusiasts geek out over the story and give more discussion on how the story has influenced literature and science.
NEXT STEPS: It’s simple,
read the story,
use the map, and
reverse-engineer what I did.
Look at how I embed information on who, what, where, when, how, and why. Notice how this one map distills all this information into a multi-layered whole.
It is a tool for both understanding and communicating that understanding to others.
See if you can try creating your own map from other stories, TV shows, or movies. That’s how I practice and try new ideas before using them in trial.
I consider a situation map as a foundational tool in developing a "skill stack" that will get you to the other side of complexity–whether legal, business, or life.
That is all.
Have a good holiday, and I'll talk to you later.
P.S. I'm still experimenting with different topics and formats for sharing around the intersection of business, law, and strategy. I would be grateful for some feedback so I can refine it further.
Hit the like on memos you like or prefer. Or write a comment. If you do, It will make my day!
Thanks.
This concept of mapping has been my secret weapon for understanding the immense volume of information thrown at me during my time in Law School. I'm very grateful you trained me to use it. It continues to pay off the more I practice it.
The map(s). I think it is the best way to illustrate of what being on the right side of simplicity means.