Introducing: the Co-Existence of Contradictions – the philosophy which helps entrepreneurs to solve problems
“Only the paradox comes anywhere near to comprehending the fullness of life”
The 3P Model is a framework and 360-degree business development tool for startups and small businesses, and the Co-Existence of Contradictions (CEOC) is the all-encompassing paradigm that constructs the 3P Model. It is what shapes its structure, its research approach and methodology.
To explain what ‘paradigm’ means on the practical level, imagine putting coloured lenses over your eyes, while looking at and dealing with your business. The lenses make you see things in a certain way and cause you to act accordingly. The CEOC paradigm does the same thing. As a ‘philosophy’ or ‘world-view’ it constructs the way in which we see our businesses and ourselves, as its leaders.
According to the Co-Existence of Contradictions:
Nothing in life is 100% ‘good’ or ‘bad’.
Every social phenomenon in the world consists of ‘things’ and their ‘opposites’ (this assumption is broader than and includes the previous one). Examples of pairs of opposites:
Positive – Negative;
Formal – Informal;
Feminine – Masculine;
Freedom – Constrains;
Planned – Emergent;
Internal – External; etc.
This co-existence of opposites, or ‘contradictions’ is not at all ‘strange’ or ‘paradoxical’, but rather a natural element in life. By using the CEOC we’re just observing life as it is. This ability is called ‘ambidexterity’ which means using both left and right brain hemispheres equally.
The opposites in each ‘contradictory’ pair are complimentary to one another. One can’t exist without the other and it’s only their co-existence that makes things complete.
This co-existence of contradictions is constantly dynamic. The opposites aren’t static but rather continuously change towards themselves (because nothing in life is static), but also as a reaction to a change in the other opposite. That means that every change in one ‘opposite’ also brings some kind of a change in the other ‘opposite’.
The dynamic interplay of the opposites is how we evolve. This evolution is never linear.
Sounds complicated? In fact, It’s not. The beauty of the CEOC is that it can be simply applied on everything. It is so flexible that one can use it also in a very basic and lean way, without reducing its impact and depth.
Why even considering a philosophy in startup management?
There’s a vast research on how the CEOC leverages management and leadership skills. It helps decision makers to grasp a fuller, bigger picture of their business ‘reality’ and hence, enables them to navigate in a more efficient, smarter way. The CEOC is the only managerial point-of-view which enables business leaders to capture complexed situations, with contradictory demands and constant pressure to make the right decisions within very short time slots.
The 3P Model humbly brings this ancient wisdom into the world of startups and into business and personal development of entrepreneurs.
Ancient wisdom brought into the startup world
The Co-Existence of Contradictions is used in Organisational Management Theory to deal with managerial challenges in corporations and other big organisations. In the 20th Century this theory became more and more popular and was known as ‘Organisational Dialectics’, ‘Organisational Paradox’, ‘Ambidexterity’ and other streams of this rich world-view.
In the 19th Century scholars and philosophers such as Fichte, Hegel and Marx used dialectics to analyse sociological phenomena and historical events. Before them ancient Greek philosophers such as Zeno, Socrates and Plato dealt with paradoxes and dialectics to better understand ideas and to get closer to ‘the truth’.
However, the earliest origins of CEOC are rooted in eastern philosophies such as Chinese Taoism (with its yin-yang symbol) Buddhism, Hinduism, Sufism and Kabbalah which are using CEOC to discuss natural phenomena and the relationship between man and God, and set out, in many different ways, that opposites need not to be resolved, but rather embraced and transcended. The 3P Model humbly brings this ancient wisdom into the world of start-ups and into the business and personal development of 21st Century entrepreneurs.
How is CEOC applied into the practice?
Find out about how COEC is being used by startups and business leaders in the following short article.
Interested to know how to level up your entrepreneurial and management skills with the CEOC? There are many ways in which you can do that. Contact us to find out how.