Hi Suzanne
Reading your list what comes to mind is:
the gift of time
a return to "boundless time"
Throughout my life I have noticed that I regularly return to a space
in which time seems to have no hold.
When I was younger I noticed that there were certain key points that
my watch would actually stop working and I wouldn't notice (looking
down at it I would say to myself, oh, only ____ o'clock, still lots
more time to go). Often this would happen around creating art work.
Today this still happens for me regularly, most often around creating
art work,
There is something about the open space "set-up" that seems to
provide a doorway for people collectively to step into this boundless
space together. In my experience Open Space, in as much as it is a
"format" seems to help us (human beings) step into "flow" as a group.
Denise
On Dec 20, 2009, at 6:31 AM, Suzanne Daigle wrote:
From Harrison's posting and the replies, I see pieces of a puzzle,
so like the picture in my mind which ebbs and flows between clarity
and confusion, theory and action, thinking and doing in this
journey of my life.
Open Space 24 X 7...oh the dream of it!
Invitation is where it all begins
Letting go to let be
One less thing to do
May not be perfect
Magic happens (perhaps because we suddenly realize this important
fact that none of us and nothing is perfect and this more than
anything releases us to be and do)
Oh what fun
The party has been going on for 25 years
Reaching back to bring forward
Helping people notice (others)...or experience what can be?
From the core...the "coeur" i.e. the heart
Invitation is where it all begins
But does it really begin there or in the conversations we have
every day, opportunities to nourish and seize
How can we exponentially grow what we do as a collective because we
all feel and know that the timing now feels different somehow
And then finally, is Open Space about speaking less (not pressing
the send button) and listening more...or speaking now because
there is so much work to do and we have this opportunity to nudge
but never force an awareness of consciousness that happens when we
open space.
So I decide again to press send with gratitude for others who do too.
Suzanne
On Wed, Dec 16, 2009 at 2:14 PM, Michael Herman
<[email protected]> wrote:
yes, exactly, about 'fails'. guess that should have been in
quotes. it's same as we always say about posting an issue and
nobody comes. it can't fail. there's always information in it.
and several choices about what could do next.
reminds me too, that i've often described the process of open space
as a cascade of invitation. part of the power, i think, is that a
leader or leadership groups somehow launches the "invitation" to a
meeting, then he or she take the first three minutes of the meeting
to share what i always suggest to them is "the story of how we got
here."
sometimes it's the short form of the history of the whole org,
other times it's a quip about how we all made it here in the middle
of this snow storm. then, the invitation is for each person to do
what the leader has already done... make an invitation, name and
issue, pick a place and a time, and then kick off the conversation
with three minutes (i always bow to michael pannwitz for '8:00am to
8:03' sponsors introduction) about why the issue they posted is
important to them... how they got to here, to caring about this issue.
so the first bit in the cascading is that the leader invites, and
then invites everyone else to invite. great power, i think, in
asking folks to do what they themselves have already done. (for
this same reason, this is why i always hand-write my posters, cuz
i'm about to ask participants to scribble their own issues, so i
figure that mine should be scribbled too.)
next part of cascade is that particpants capture and process their
notes, which i often refer to as 'an invitation to action, or at
least an invitation to others who weren't part of the conversation
to get involved.' and many times some of the actions will be 'have
another meeting.' and so i point out that the invitation to those
next meetings don't need to be hardly anything more than the
scribbles that made the breakout meetings possible.
so the coherence and integrity that come from a leader modeling
what he/she is asking others to do, and then supporting the
relative ease of convening a breakout or followup meeting, are two
important dimensions of 'being inviting' as a leader. implicit in
these the first is some stablility or confidence in the value of
their own example, their own presence, and a comfort with who they
are and what they can and can't do or control personally. and the
wisdom to support in the simplest ways possible, like tape,
markers, circle, for everyone else to pick up and do their own
part. self-organizing. this comfort, clarity, integrity,
confidence, i thikn, lets the caring come through, and suddenly
they are "being inviting", not just "doing it".
practice implies doing it again and again until we can 'be' it
without the props of the doing. and over time controlling leaders
become inviting leaders. i was saying just the other night at my
neighborhood association, talking about invitation, and pointing
out that if we bring more and more invitations to the fore, if this
is how we do neighborhood, then what we get over time is a more and
more inviting neighborhood.
so this gets to my last point about invitation (at least for the
moment!) ...if we live in open space and open space is inviting...
then we must live in the midst of invitations, a whole bunch of
things just trying or waiting to happen. at the neighborhood
group, it's common to bemoan the lack of volunteers to do things...
but that's really a lack of volunteers to do what a few board
people think should be done. meanwhile, people are convening all
kinds of little things that could benefit greatly by being
supported with a community bulletin board. on bowen island that
bulletin board is what chris corrigan calls "invititation corner",
a vacant little piece of land just off the ferry, where posters of
all sorts go up and invite gathering.
and i always go back to your very first words to me, ever,
harrison... when i asked in the kickoff of my first open space
breakout session about how to, in a word, organize people/work/
organization... you said "i don't. i go in and ask what's working
and then ask how to grow more of that." what's working is
inherently inviting. "working" and "inviting" are not separate.
and i've always found this to be true... when i look for what's
working, that's where i always find the bits of language, story,
structure, action that are the fodder for inviting more of what works.
so the only failure possible might be a failure to notice what's
really working and why?
m
--
Michael Herman
Michael Herman Associates
http://www.michaelherman.com
http://www.ronanparktrail.com
http://www.chicagoconservationcorps.org
http://www.openspaceworld.org
312-280-7838 (mobile)
On Wed, Dec 16, 2009 at 9:48 AM, Steve Cochran
<[email protected]> wrote:
Thanks for opening this dialogue, Harrison.
I'm wondering how any invitation can be regarded as failing if we
enbrace the 'whoever comes...' principle?
Best to All - Steve
On Wed, Dec 16, 2009 at 10:15 AM, Harrison Owen
<[email protected]> wrote:
Good Stuff Michael and Denise -- And I wonder about "failed"
invitations. If failure means that we didn't get precisely the
folks we wanted to come -- there could be a number of reasons for
that, not all of them bad. For example it could be that the issue
we were so excited about really didn't have all that much going for
it. And all those folks who failed to respond positively were just
brighter than we were. Our "failed" invitation simply saved a lot
of time and energy which might better be applied to something else.
And just suppose all those folks did come out of some sense of
"should" or "ought" -- and the whole affair turned out to be just
as flat as they thought it might. Now -- how happy are the folks?
And what do you think would be the likely response the next time
you offered an invite?
Harrison
Harrison Owen
7808 River Falls Dr.
Potomac, MD 20854
USA
Phone 301-365-2093
www.openspaceworld.com
www.ho-image.com (Personal Website)
From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST@LISTSERV.
BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of Michael Herman
Sent: Wednesday, December 16, 2009 12:09 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: Opening space 24X7 --Wave Riders Unite!
oh this is fun.
for me, this business of inviting has long been the center of the
ongoing practice of opening. what i noticed some time ago is that
"inviting" is something that we can *do* as a business practice,
somethign we can try and repeat and refine. but it's also
something that we can, as individuals, *aspire* to *be*. the
practical inviting is essential for performance. but the latter,
the aspiring, is where spirit shows up. if we are a space for that.
as for the accepting or not. being trained in economics and
finance, straight through a rather serious mba program, i have
always understood invitation in terms of markets and prices. any
invitation is just like a bid or offer in any market. the text of
an invitation is like a price. it's got to be stated, announced.
but it also might need to be adjusted. i like what denise says
about getting to "core" because core is from french coeur, heart.
when an invitation fails, it's usually because i've started from
something other than heart.
the way i think of markets, despite the financial training, i
mostly think in terms of farmers markets. the guy who brings
tomatoes or blueberries or whatever has poured some chunk of his
life energy into tending and harvesting that crop. it's him. it's
his care. his responsibility in those baskets. it's what he has
to offer. so invitation is the same. it just has to be offered.
the danger is not that an invitation might be declined. the danger
is in caring, in being full of somethign, and not sharing it,
letting it go to waste.
so the invitation to a meeting or simply into relationship in a
passing smile on the street, is about being a space that doesn't
know what will happen next, but shows up anyway. alive. ready.
enough. and inquiring.
anyway, these are some first thoughts that didn't want to rot.
m
--
Michael Herman
Michael Herman Associates
http://www.michaelherman.com
http://www.ronanparktrail.com
http://www.chicagoconservationcorps.org
http://www.openspaceworld.org
312-280-7838 (mobile)
On Tue, Dec 15, 2009 at 9:59 PM, Denise Tennen
<[email protected]> wrote:
Harrison
For me, when an invitation I extend is refused, I take another look
at the invitation (especially when I think the person and project
would be a good fit). In some ways it feels like my whole life is
about learning to extend vibrant, inspiring invitations (this often
helps me get to the core of what I'm trying to accomplish), as well
as receiving the response with acceptance and love.
I also notice that it is useful to reconnect with my own sense of
inspiration about the project - that seems to make a difference in
the whole interaction around the invitation - whether or not the
invitation is accepted. My being centered and inspired helps
retain the relationship regardless of the response. I am always
thankful for a clear no...
On Dec 15, 2009, at 3:32 PM, Harrison Owen wrote:
Denise --
So this is all great! And my question is how can you do the same
thing every day with every project, organization start-up, whatever…
I think you are hinting at the problem of making a REAL invitation…
Not the sort that we all have received knowing full well that we
will be shot at dawn if the invitation is not accepted. Or at the
very least -- FIRED!
So what would happen if all our invitations were real? Which means
they could be refused. And then what?
Harrison
Harrison Owen
7808 River Falls Dr.
Potomac, MD 20854
USA
Phone 301-365-2093
www.openspaceworld.com
www.ho-image.com (Personal Website)
From: OSLIST [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of
Denise Tennen
Sent: Tuesday, December 15, 2009 2:17 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: Opening space 24X7 --Wave Riders Unite!
Harrison
Thanks for these thought-provoking words.
As far as invitiation - in my work as an artist supporting large
groups to come together to create collaborative works of
"permanently" installed art for their (the participants')
communities - Invitation is the only thing that works.
My underlying belief is that engagement in artistic endeavors is a
useful piece in the puzzle of creating a peaceful world. I've
found that eople creating art together generally aren't engaged in
fighting
here are the ingredients of invitation, for me, that I believe
contribute to good flow:
1) getting the word out is critical,
2) the "stickiness" (see Malcolm Gladwell and more particularly,
the brothers Heath in their book Making It Stick) of the invitation
and project description heavily affects the outcome in terms of
participation and engaged-ness of participants.
3) having the setting ready before the participants arrive so I'm
not distracted by DOING and can keep my attention on BEING PRESENT
with the participants
4) having a structure in mind and at the same time being willing to
let it go at any moment
5) keeping participation voluntary (a bit tricky when I am
operating in a classroom setting where the children are basically
in the position of being "sitting ducks")
As far as the invitation, my on-the-ground work is lots of word-of
mouth, who knows who. Increasingly via internet - helps spread the
word quickly, although in the end, nothing beats the realm of the
personal, one by one invitation.
Different age groups respond to different methods (snail mail/flyer
vs internet etc)
my beginning thoughts on this for now...
Denise
On Dec 15, 2009, at 7:26 AM, Harrison Owen wrote:
Several days ago I sent a note to what I thought was going to be a
small group of friends, inviting thinking about opening space every
day, what that might mean, and how to accomplish all that in
specifics. In effect, I was taking off from my book "Wave Rider"
which is my best shot on the subject to date -- with the
expectation that there is much more "out there" in terms of ideas
and actions. Along the way I did suggest that OST (as the meeting
approach) might be getting in the way of the larger discussion.
Even worse, I facetiously (jokingly) invited everybody to join "The
Imperial Society of Wave Riders!" Well you can imagine the uproar
this caused. Here I am suggesting that we eliminate OST and become
imperialists! Not a good day -- but I do think the proposed
discussion has merit. In fact from where I sit it may just be the
most important discussion we could have.
Given the state of the world (no need for detailed analysis)
superior human performance achieved in a peaceful fashion seems
like a very good idea. Or put another way how do we find the
intelligence and energy to deal with the massive issues we face
without killing each other? I believe that the 25 year Open Space
experiment has clearly shown that superior performance in a
peaceful manner can be achieved any time we open space. It may not
be perfect, but it works better than just about anything else, and
for sure it is a lot less work. The reason for all this is that we
are not really doing anything. Rather, we are inviting the system
(business, family, organization) to do what it can do all by
itself. Self organize. We are just helping people to notice that --
and when they do magic seems to happen. Peace and high performance
show up. If we are honest about it, I think we might realize that
OST is in some real ways a fraud and a joke, at least it becomes
all that if we take credit for the power and effect of the process,
and the special way that we might "do" it. Rather like taking
credit for the power and effect of gravity -- which will continue
no matter what we do!
Anyhow, I believe the community that gathers here online (and
anybody else who cares to join us) is uniquely positioned to engage
in this discussion not just at a theoretical level but at a very
solid practical level. We have the shared experience of hundreds of
thousands of Open Spaces. And we have something else -- the shared
experience of life in our community. As the world might see it the
"Open Space Community" is a pretty strange thing. It has no
boundaries, no formal organization, leadership, or corporate
status. Membership is pretty much whoever shows up -- and the party
has been going on for 25 years. Odd but very effective. Indeed
there are multiple formal organizations in the world who with might
greater effort have accomplished substantially less. Think about
it! Multiple Global and regional meetings. A world wide reach. More
training programs than you can name. And absolutely nobody is in
charge. There has never been a Business Plan, and if a budget
exists it has never been found. Is it all just a gossamer dream, a
fanciful delusion, or something much deeper and more important? I
vote for the latter. I think this is a conversation that needs to
happen, not to the exclusion of all others, but this is where my
passion is.
Anyhow I invite you to share and think about our common experience
-- and let our experience be our guide. As a starting point we
might just begin with invitation. What would happen if all our
projects began with invitation as opposed to assignment?
Harrison
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--
Steve Cochran
Sustainability Strategies LLC
National Center for Sustainability
US Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development
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NuFocus Strategic Group
7159 Victoria Circle
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FL 941-359-8877; CT 203-722-2009
www.nufocusgroup.com
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