Mapping the Edges of Possibility

Mar 25

I led a really powerful practice with my clients recently that is too good and juicy to not share it with you. We worked with a visualization exercise I called Mapping the Edges of Possibility. It’s a way to see and expand the limits of what we believe is possible.

Institutions (academia, corporate, traditional creative spaces) often frame the future in zero-sum terms—as if only a few people or ideas will “win.” As such, we are often trained to see limitations first. Instead, relational creativity teaches us to ask, “What else is possible?”

Grab a piece of paper or your journal, and try it yourself:

🔘 Step 1: Inner Circle – Current Possibilities
Draw a small circle in the middle of your paper. Inside, write what you currently believe is possible for your creativity, career pivot, current project, or life transition. What feels within reach?

🔘 Step 2: Outer Circle – Beyond Reach
Draw a bigger circle around the first circle. If you had a magic wand, what would you actually want? What possibilities feel just outside your grasp? Add those to the space between your first circle and the bigger circle.

Pause here and ask yourself:

What keeps me within my inner circle?
What fears or beliefs hold me back from stepping into the outer circle?
Where in my life have I been taught that there is “not enough” creativity, resources, or space for what I want and my ideas?
How have institutions (academia, corporate, or societal expectations) shaped my beliefs about what is possible and what’s impossible?

🔘 Step 3: Mycelium Mapping
Your edges of possibility are like a mycelium network—hidden connections bridging what you think is possible and what could be possible. Draw lines stretching from your inner to your outer circle. Label them with resources, potential collaborators, or small actions that could help bridge the gap.

Ask yourself: