ABSTRACT
During the development of the Model, the significance of credibility checking emerged very early on, as soon, in fact, as I had interviewed my first research colleagues. One of them, Alan, the finance specialist working on Wall Street, emphasized the importance of ‘critiquing’, telling oneself the truth. ‘Kick your own tires! Close the office door so no-one hears or sees you, and say it like it is.’ His phrase ‘kick your own tires’, a very American, car-based society phrase, stayed with me from then on. He meant, of course, make sure that you are proceeding safely, that what you are learning makes sense, and that what you are planning will work – and be totally objective, facing up to possible errors, nonsense, or wishful thinking.
