The Unseen Edges: How Boundary Choices Shape Outcomes

In the rush to solve problems or meet objectives, it's tempting to tighten the boundaries around how we define challenges.

I’m hearing this in my work across the public, tertiary education and corporate sectors - as the fiscal environment contracts the boundary around challenges is getting redrawn to focus on financial efficiencies.

Keith Johnston explains how leaders make boundary choices all the time. Thinking about boundaries and what is included or excluded is at the core of systems thinking. Leaders who are aware of complex systems make conscious choices about boundaries.

While focusing on immediate goals or clear outcomes isn’t problematic, it’s important not to forget how we’ve chosen to draw the boundaries, and to pay attention to what unintended externalities this may have caused – eg impacts on staff wellbeing, quality care.

The way we frame a problem influences everything—our thinking, our options, and ultimately the outcomes. If we draw the boundaries too tight, we miss the complexity. We might reduce the problem to something that is finite, with clear rules and easier to manage, but we can also miss the deeper opportunities and cause unintended consequences.

Why Infinite Thinking Expands Possibility

How often do we consciously consider how we place boundaries around challenges? Last newsletter we looked at finite and infinite mindsets. Embracing an infinite mindset, we can understand boundaries not as fixed, but as choices that we make.

Systems thinking is a discipline for seeing wholes. It invites us to see how everything is connected and to pay attention to the interconnectedness and the relationships between the parts.

“There are no separate systems. The world is a continuum. Where we draw the boundary depends on the purpose of the discussion.” Donella Meadows

When we take an infinite approach, we see that any challenge is part of a larger, interconnected whole.

Be Aware of Hidden Boundaries

Boundaries can be subtle, unspoken, and deeply ingrained. You know you've hit a boundary when there is something you want to say but know it would be counter-cultural, even impossible to say. These are the "unspeakable" issues—the ones that challenge implicit, unquestioned values.

This could look like a business decision where the focus of discussion is on the financials. The climate of the meetings makes it impossible to raise questions about the environmental impacts, or the effect of the decision on the local community or staff. These implicit boundaries shape how decisions are made, often narrowing the conversation and the scope of possibilities.

Leaders with an infinite mindset create the kinds of environments where it’s possible to shift these boundaries, to zoom in and zoom out when needed to open new possibilities.

Playing the Infinite Game: Creating Lasting Impact

At the heart of infinite mindset is the understanding that success isn’t about winning today — it’s about creating lasting change.

Leaders who play the infinite game know that boundaries aren’t rigid constraints; they’re choices we make about how we see the world that are constantly in flux.

So, the next time you’re faced with a decision, ask:

What boundaries am I putting around this problem?

What have we left out? And

What happens if I expand them?

Do you want to take a more systemic approach to progress leadership challenges? Get in touch to learn more about how we could do this.

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"There are times when I catch myself believing that there is such a thing as something; which is separate from something else". Gregory Bateson