I suspect that you will get as many answers as there are folks on this list ... but I always feel that my job (overtly) is done when the group has posted all of its issues and is engaged in market place negotiations. At that point I know I need some air (or a nap) and the people will get on just fine. Prior to that, I do keep my eye on the wall -- and if post-is are not in evidence on a issue paper, I suggest that even though Open space is wonderful there is still a need for a time/space meeting point. with very large groups (500+) it is helpful to have some helpers standing by the wall. They should do as little as possible, but two functions can be helpful: 1) post-its 2) Suggest that people spread out their postings instead of arranging them vertically. If the papers are too close and too tall -- the wall gets very chummy and short people have a very hard time when it comes to signing up.
Harrison ----- Original Message ----- From: Raffi Aftandelian To: osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu Sent: Sunday, July 18, 2004 9:34 AM Subject: point of non-intervention Thanks to the folks who congratulated me for my "first time." Yes, Harrison, it indeed is going from bad to worse. And I only have myself to blame! Oh well. Here I am with another question: When I attended the OS facilitator training with Birgitt, we were asked to frame for ourselves what we understood the essence of OS to be. The answer I came up with then immediately (which is no longer adequate for me) is "profound non-intervention." I don't think here I need to expand on why I thought that was OST's essence. What I realize, though, is that it's not entirely clear to me at what point that "non-intervention" (I'm not sure I would call it that at this point; holding space and time might be closer to what the facilitator does; even that isn't quite exact in my book) begins. Is there consensus on that? Another way of framing the question is "at what point can one consider that the facilitator has "opened" the space? I put this word in quotes because I realize more and more that there are times when indeed there is no need for a facilitator to even "open" space. There is no need for a "facilitator". That self-facilitated open space already exists (and has existed) for millenia. -Does the "opening" end at the explanation of how we will work? Thus, the facilitator can just leave the room then (before the topics are announced and put up)? -Does the "opening" end when the facilitator sees that all topics have been put up and then he/she can leave the room? A secondary (but maybe not that secondary) question is does the facilitator have any role in the Marketplace? If someone forgets to put a post-it on a topic, can the facilitator remind the participant about this? Do you follow the process of putting up topics? Or it just varies? I have come to understand that once I have given the explanation, that's it. I have no place to interfere in any way. If someone forgets a post-it, it's not my place to do anything. Or if all the sessions have been taken with topics and there is a desire to announce more sessions, it is not my place to create, for example, a third concurrent session. Since this is OS, I imagine it is up to the group to imagine and come up with the possibility of a third session. Raffi * * ========================================================== osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist * * ========================================================== osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
