Chapter 4 Use Landscape Images W hen we walk through an unfamiliar city for the first time, we navigate using landmarks, pathways, and our innate spatial awareness. We note the tall buildings in the dis- tance, recognize patterns in streets, and naturally develop a mental map that helps us find our way. This spatial intelligence is deeply embedded in our cognitive architecture—a product of our evolutionary history as hunters and gatherers who needed to navigate complex environments to survive. Yet when we enter the realm of business strategy, organizational change, or market competition, we often abandon these powerful spatial mental tools in favor of abstract frameworks, matrices, and linear think- ing. We reduce rich, multidimensional business environments to simpli- fied flowcharts and bulleted lists, stripping away the very complexity we need to understand. The next common sense recognizes that our innate capacity for spatial thinking—for understanding landscapes—provides a powerful resource for making sense of today’s complex business environment. By deliber- ately employing landscape imagery and metaphors, we can leverage our brain’s natural pattern-recognition abilities to perceive relationships, iden- tify opportunities, and navigate challenges that might otherwise remain invisible.
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