Shape Shift - The Compass
The Art of Applied Visual Thinking
The official newsletter of Applied Visual Thinking SUPERHEROES. Vol. 6 No. 18, August 29, 2025
Navigate with Clarity
Welcome to the Shape Shift Series – Part 7
In our last issue, “Shape Shift – The Flag,” we explored how to mark your wins, milestones, and key ideas so they stand out. But once you’ve planted those markers, how do you know you’re moving in the right direction? How do you stay connected to both your past and your future?
That’s when you turn to the compass.
A compass is a shape with purpose—helping you orient your thinking and navigate with intention. It keeps you grounded in where you’ve been, aware of where you are, and focused on where you’re going.
A Story of Orientation
I confess, I hit a roadblock working on my next course. It's not that I had no ideas, it's that I had too many all at once. Every time I picked up the project, I felt pulled in every direction, unsure where to focus.
The compass gave me an idea. Instead of pushing harder, I stopped and drew a quick compass in my notes. I labeled the four directions:
- South – Where I’ve been
- West – Where I am
- North – Where I’m going
- East – What’s next
Seeing it mapped out gave me perspective. I realized I was spending all my energy looking east—chasing the “next thing to do”—without thoroughly understanding where I was or honoring what I’d already accomplished. That compass sketch reminded me to rebalance, and to do it often.
Why Use a Compass?
In visual thinking, the compass helps you do more than just choose a direction. Use a compass to help you:
1. See the whole picture – Balance past, present and future perspectives.
Example: Map your relationship to a work habit you'd like to shift. If you want to find greater focus towards your writing projects, for example,… South - note your past approaches, feelings and observations towards writing. West - record a snapshot of the same factors at present. North - add what might be different after the shift. Finally, to the East - identify a few immediate steps you can take.
2. Stay grounded –
Avoid
being pulled only by
urgency, others' priorities or reactionary thinking.
Example: South - name one achievable but complex task, set of mini-tasks or portion of a project you absolutely need to get done today. West - what you've done/gathered/thought about so far in relation to this task. North - why completing this task is mission critical. (If it's not, pick a different one!) East - the next steps you need to take to get focused, get started, stay on task and celebrate success when it's done.
3. Choose wisely – Make decisions aligned with your true direction.
Example: Take inspiration from the Balanced Scorecard and change the four directions to "Customer," "Financial," "Internal Processes" and "Learning and Growth" to look at where your organization's current status. Reflect on how these categories might pair with the directions, such as South - our comfort zone, West - where we've put in the most work recently, North - the stretch goals, and East - a good next focus.
Try This: Draw Your Compass
Next time you feel scattered or stuck, sketch a compass and label the four directions:
- South – Where I’ve been
- West – Where I am
- North – Where I’m going
- East – What’s next
Then, notice where your attention lingers—and whether it’s time to shift focus.
Coming next: Shape Shift – The Map → Connecting the journey
Now that you’ve oriented yourself with the compass, we’ll explore how to map your path—so you can see the journey at a glance and chart progress with clarity.
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