Marty, I said this was rich -- and here is just a little response. You wrote: "But that person is certainly not letting go of control. That person is making massive control look easy, and we are thrilled because we know how hard it is."
Having spent some considerable time in the presence of the sorts of people you are talking about -- I rather suspect that they are so good that they have fooled you -- which is OK -- but if they fool themselves as well, then they are in real trouble. There is no question that a great CEO/MD is dealing with an infinity of variables and details. Their "command" of the situation is awesome in terms of the special knowledge they possess. But I have never seen a really good one who thought for a minute that they were in control. Indeed, the incredible detail of their knowledge, combined with a certainty that there is an infinity of detail not in their knowledge, helps them to understand as little else could -- just how impossible the notion of full control really is. What you don't know about you certainly can't control. And when they really pull off "a big one" -- everybody goes WOW! But if you ask them how they did it, I have never heard one say that their action was based on a detailed analysis of all data. The usual culprit is identified as "The Belly" -- as in "My gut told me." One of my favorite Senior Executives was Jack Chase who had responsibility for a small operation: All Veteran Health Care in the USA. That consisted of 350 hospitals and clinics, 250,000 employees, in excess of 3.5 million patient visits each year plus a 7 billion dollar budget. And to keep all this going he had to deal not only with the Veterans Groups, but also the US Congress, The White House, and the US medical establishment (medical schools provided many of the physicians and residents.) Talk about complexity. And Jack knew the system better than anybody. And he was also keenly aware of what he didn't know. And when it came to action he would essentially open a space in which the appropriate parties would gather to find their own solution. Watching Jack at the top of his game was rather boring in a way, because you rarely if ever saw him make a move. Under the best of circumstances, he was totally invisible. One day he confided to me that if he ever had to use direct power and authority (which he possessed in abundance on paper), he considered that a failure. Harrison Harrison Owen 7808 River Falls Drive Potomac, Maryland 20854 Phone 301-365-2093 Skype hhowen Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org Personal website www.ho-image.com OSLIST: To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives Visit: www.listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html -----Original Message----- From: OSLIST [mailto:osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu] On Behalf Of Marty Boroson Sent: Wednesday, March 29, 2006 11:28 PM To: osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu Subject: Re: Chaos/Juggling curve ball..question Hi Phelim First of all, I want to say how thrilled I am that you are on this list. Having seen "70 Hill Lane" and "Shockheaded Peter", and other Improbable pieces, I believe that you are one of the most wonderful and pioneering and important theatre artists on the planet. (I've been meaning to say that for a while.) On the subject of juggling... At first glance, the juggler is like a very "successful" corporate exec or administrator. The rest of us just sit there and say "wow" as we see him or her so successful at controlling a lot of complex factors and competing directions. But that person is certainly not letting go of control. That person is making massive control look easy, and we are thrilled because we know how hard it is. But I assume that the juggler is actually in a flow state, which involves a high level of challenge as well as ease. It's about being happy on the edge. Like any performer, this juggler must be very relaxed and trusting within the context of his very highly developed skill. Who knows? Maybe he would say that, in order to perform, he has to get out of the way completely, and open space for the spirit of juggling to speak through him. It's often said that OST involves letting go of control, but I believe that that is somewhat disingenous. In OST, we are letting go of control with the help of very subtle and finely honed structure. (There's a T on that OS!) What I like most about OST is this structure which makes letting go of control so wonderful and productive. Without structure we would have, well, just nothing. (We certainly wouldn't have this wonderful list-serv.) If we were all to just "let go" without appropriate social structure or ego structure, I think there would just be a kind of psychotic formlessness. However if we can let go within (and supported by) an appropriate social structure and ego structure, there is transcendence. (OST, in my opinion, is the minimum possible structure for the best possible result.) >From a performance point of view ... I believe that there are different kinds of performance. Or maybe a continuum. On the one hand there is the technical skill variety -- from certain olympic sports to juggling, which occasionally includes some kind of corny music or lighting effect to make it look more like an art. On the other hand, there is acting, which is more in the lineage of shamanism, and thus involves a great deal of spiritual and emotional openness and vulnerability, as you suggest. Maybe the real juggling act is between skill on the one hand and art on the other. Or between structure on one hand and freedom on the other. I am also struck by the fact that this juggler is certainly creating and holding tension and suspense, which is the essence of theatre, or at least entertainment. [I believe that "entertainment" actually means "to hold between".] Surely there is art in that. Creating a space that can hold a certain level of tension and suspense also seems to me to be at the heart of OST. "Walking the circle" doesn't just focus the energy, it builds the energy. When the space is opened and everybody starts posting issues, there is a burst of freedom that surely is commensurate with the amount of tension (and conflict) the group had been holding previously. More tension leads to more freedom. Phelim, when you say: >On the other hand great performances make you think: I could do that too! and you want to jump onstage yourself. ... I assume that you are speaking as an actor! When I was involved in theatre as a writer/producer and saw a great performance, I would think: "I want that person in my play!" But most of the time, when I am seeing a great performance, I hope that I don't think at all--I am just immersed in the world being created for me. I love what you said about vulnerability and an actor's relationship to the unpredictable. To me, the closest analogy in Open Space is "not knowing". But I don' t believe that "not knowing" is simple humility however. Most OST facilitators, I imagine, have learned to "not know" the hard way. Just as most actors have worked hard to become so vulnerable. Most OST facilitators, I imagine, have spent a good portion of their lives trying very hard to know, and given up. When Harrison speaks about having an open, clear and vacant mind, I imagine that he speaks from a lot of experience. :) I have spent many years trying to juggle a thousand balls: it seems to be my nature to try. But then sometimes I fall down and drop the balls, and I am suddenly in awe of the complexity of the created universe, and am unable to fathom ever coming to grips with it, and am amazed that I tried, and amused that I tried, and I realize that I never really was in control, and that in spite of having fallen down and given up, I still exist and everything's still okay, and this is because I was really only ever just one of the balls being juggled. This, to my mind, is "not knowing". But back to juggling! This juggler--who calls himself Chris Bliss--is certainly playing his part in reminding me how wonderful the world is. He is certainly bringing his enthusiasm to the theatre of life. And he does make me want to take out my balls and see if I can keep them in the air for more than 30 seconds. I confess to a fondness for juggling because I just love the weirdness of the circus, and am a clown at heart. Fondly, Marty Boroson * * ========================================================== 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