Hi all Thinking on this the other day, it struck me how fantastic a thing the OSonOS is in itself. That so many people voluntarily arrange, host and attend an annual international meeting of this kind is very rare, and is proof of the power of Open Space and self-organization.
The fact remains, though, that in its current form the OSonOS ain't working for me :-) This may be a fault of the OSonOS or it may be because I haven't quite managed to navigate that gathering, or even because I have unresolved issues with myself. I frankly don't know. All I can do is acknowledge my frustration and put my observations out there, and I'm perfectly open to the possibility that "maybe it's just me". :-) Distilling some of the reactions both on the list and at the conference itself, I see two lines of thinking turning up repeatedly, which are: 1: The OSonOS is a place to meet fellow OS'ers and learn and exchange experiences. As Harrison wrote: They came because they wanted to be with friends and colleagues in Open Space, share stories, deepen their understanding of the approach and applications, and I am sure many more things. 2: The OSonOS could benefit from a powerful theme, which might invigorate the discussions and lend a sense of purpose to the conference. As Gabriela wrote: it came into my mind, that I missed something like an exciting "main theme". Of course it is an OST on OST. But from my personal point of view I would prefer to have each year a new "powerful question" on top of >OSonOS<. This title should give enough space for diversity, but could give an orientation and direction for new and deep conversations (space for sharing deep experiences, for telling stories, and for creativity). And while I definitely subscribe to #2, my main point is that these two are not contradictory. They are complementary. My main learning from the OSonOSes I've attended (and thanks Zelle for asking about it) is that OST-meetings do indeed require a sense of urgency to work. What draws me to these meetings, is the passion and the sense of community that comes from working together on something that is critically important and must be done now. And the OSonOS'es I've seen don't supply that. This makes the whole experience seem a little "flat" although still undeniably pleasant and worthwhile. My problem isn't so much with what the OSonOS is - it's the gap between that and what it could be, if it had the intensity and energy I know from OST-meeting that do have that sense of urgency. If nothing else, taking a closer look at the OSonOS may help us to define somewhat closer it's purpose, even if we decide not to change a thing. Cheers Alex (loving it right here on this planet :-) ) Alexander Kjerulf [email protected] http://www.positivesharing.com +45 2688 2373 Tagensvej 126, lejl. 613 2200 København N * * ========================================================== [email protected] ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of [email protected]: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
