Architecture of Intention
Orientation · Criteria · Real-world testing
Uncover what you can build on.
You may be holding several plausible directions, roles or projects at once, or none you can name right now. What are you steering by, and where should that take you? Architecture of Intention uncovers what is already there and turns it into a foundation you can act from.
What you want becomes criteria for making decisions, a map of the system you are moving in, and a first step you test in practice.
You need criteria.
When several options make sense at once, what decides is the measure you hold them against. What should take priority? Which consequences are you willing to carry? What belongs inside your direction, and what falls outside it?
The work begins before any single decision. It turns your desires, priorities and limits into criteria for assessing what comes next.
These criteria take shape in thinking, in conversation and in contact with your actual circumstances. A concrete step brings feedback from practice.
What Architecture of Intention is
Architecture of Intention is a method for turning unsorted desires into a direction you can work from. It moves from careful observation through priorities and criteria to a map of the system you act in, and to a next step you can test.
The method is bigger than any single offering. In the ten-session group format, its six movements form one coherent process.
What you will have at the end
You leave with a personal decision framework. You know what takes priority, what to hold a decision against, what falls outside your direction, and which next step you actually want to try.
- a prioritised direction
- criteria for decisions
- clear exclusion criteria
- core statements and guiding questions
- a map of the relevant system
- identified leverage points
- a next step you have actually tested
The decision framework remains useful when new questions and possibilities emerge.
Six movements of the method
01
See what is there
Separate observation from interpretation.
02
Formulate your desires
Put them into words before reason and realism step in.
03
Test what holds
Examine consequences, costs and contradictions.
04
Turn it into criteria
Develop priorities and exclusion criteria.
05
Read the system
Make relationships, resources, rules and habits visible.
06
Take a real step
Intervene, receive feedback and keep learning.
Where the approach comes from
The work with desire at the heart of the method goes back to Marianne Brün and the School for Designing a Society. Between 2012 and 2014, I lived and worked with the School in Illinois and West Virginia, went through the process several times myself, and contributed to parts of the work.
Years later, when I began to redirect my long career in film, the very statements I had developed then gave me something solid to work from. They made visible what had priority and what was shaping my decisions.
At the time, I designed workshops, worked in Herbert Brün’s archive, translated and interpreted notes, and developed sessions drawing on the work of Joseph Campbell and Bert Hellinger. Over the past two years, I have made the approach more accessible and connected it with methods from online facilitation and agile practice. I also draw on two frameworks of my own: the Living System Framework and Continuum.
Facilitation is another part of the approach. Each session draws on a broad repertoire of embodiment and meditation practices, chosen according to what the group needs that evening. This keeps the work anchored in the body while the thinking becomes more precise.
The elements are tried and tested. What is new is their composition in this group format.
Why work in a group
The group is both a sounding board and a working structure. Other people notice assumptions, omissions and contradictions that are easy to miss on your own. Unfinished thoughts can be spoken and examined before they harden into answers.
Between the shared sessions you observe, write and experiment, which connects the work in the group with your everyday life.
Who the work is for
For people holding several plausible directions, roles or projects at once, and for people who cannot name one right now.
This may include self-employed people, freelancers, founders and employees between chapters, as well as people reordering personal, professional or community responsibilities.
Several projects are competing for attention.
A previous direction no longer feels viable.
The next direction is beginning to emerge but remains unclear.
No viable direction has emerged yet.
Assumptions need to be tested in practice and developed through feedback.
The process needs time for observation and testing. Acute crises and decisions that have to be made within a few days are better served by a different setting.
Curated groups
How a group comes together
I bring each group together around experiences and questions that can inform one another. We then agree the schedule together. People working in related contexts can engage more directly because less background needs to be explained.
In a small online group you move through the six movements, keep working between sessions, and take a real next step of your own.
Once five people have confirmed, we agree the time and start date within two weeks. The group begins four weeks later.
There are two ways to take part. You can apply individually, and we will see which forming group might be a good fit. Or you can bring a group you already work with.
Format
Start
Four weeks after the schedule is agreed
Schedule
Ten weekly sessions
Rhythm
Weekly, time agreed with the group
Location
Online via Zoom, a shared Miro board and a group chat
Working language
English or German, depending on the group
Group size
Five to twelve people from related contexts
Lead time
Once five people confirm, we agree the schedule within two weeks and start four weeks later
Contribution
The contribution reflects what is financially possible for each participant.
According to your means
We agree the amount in a personal conversation before you commit, taking your current situation into account.
For groups you bring
A group agrees one total amount and decides for itself how to divide it.
Why no price list
A fixed price would exclude some of the people this work is designed for. We therefore agree the actual amount in conversation.
There is a low minimum contribution so that participation remains a genuine commitment.
Apply on your own
Two short questions, then I will get in touch for a personal conversation. We will look at whether the work fits your situation and which forming group might be a good fit.
Bring a group
If you already work with a group, you can go through the process together. A circle, a collective, an ensemble, a network of freelancers, a training cohort. You already share a context and can work directly with your own questions.
As a group steward, you take part free of charge, learn the process from the inside and explore how you might use elements of it in your own work later. Write to me and we will talk it through.
FAQ
What is Architecture of Intention?
A method for turning unsorted desire into criteria, a prioritised direction, a map of the relevant system and a next step you have tested in practice.
When does the next group start?
Once five people have confirmed, we agree the time and start date within two weeks. The group begins four weeks later.
Who is this for?
For people holding several plausible directions, roles or projects at once, and for people who cannot name one right now. Both start from what they actually want and develop a direction they can act on.
How long does it run, and in which language?
Ten weekly online sessions, so around ten weeks. Each group works in English or in German, depending on who comes together.
What does it cost?
The contribution depends on what is financially possible for you and is agreed in conversation before you commit. Groups you bring agree one total amount and divide it internally.