Harrison - this made me hoot with laughter! The fundamental pathology showed up. I often think of an Open Space as a Rorschach Test. You remember the funny ink blots that can tell you if you are crazy? Same sort of thing, I think.
We have the most perfect Winter's day in London. So all is well with the world Is anyone familiar with the concept of Pathological Altruism? I have found it really fascinating and particularly this book which I really recommend. Pathological Altruism Edited by Barbara Oakley, Ariel Knafo, Guruprasad Madhavan and David Sloan Wilson http://www.oup.com/us/catalog/general/subject/Psychology/Social/?view=usa&ci=9780199738571 It reminds me of a conversation I had many years ago with a lovely Tai Chi master who suggested to me that: 'no one should never give to anyone, something, which if it is (has to be) taken away will leave them floundering.' That has always struck me as a profoundly important but hugely difficult approach to life and work which is why I really love the practice of OST. Greetings to all, Amanda Commercial Mediator www.AmandaBucklow.co.uk www.blog.AmandaBucklow.co.uk +44 207 121 8772 P Save a tree ... please do not print this e-mail unless you really need to On 18 Feb 2013, at 20:28, Harrison Owen wrote: > Tricia – thanks once again for the honest “after action report.” I think you > covered every possible sin of omission, commission, and remission (whatever > that is). I think it is also true that you are being much too hard on > yourself. I totally agree with friend Suzanne, (who thought she actually had > a disagreement with me J --“Well I might disagree a tad, sd.”). It is more > than possible to “do” an Open Space when you are scared to death, if for no > other reason than that the process “does” you. After all, I’m the guy who > said that anybody with a good head and a good heart can “do” it. But just > because you can do it is no reason to subject yourself to the sorts of pain > and anxiety you experienced. Especially when there is a very effective > alternative: Careful self preparation. > > Deep breathing, meditation, a good walk, all that sort of stuff. I find this > to be true for any Open Space – but particularly those that you KNOW are > going to “interesting.” The source of anxiety may be your own inexperience, > but there are also those situations where there is no experience because it > has never quite been done before. I can’t begin to tell you how many Open > Spaces I have done, but I can definitely tell you that when I had the > privilege of opening space with 50 Palestinians and Israelis, including > operational types (military and security) – I knew I was in uncharted waters > for me. I did a lot of Deep Breathing, and truth to tell there were any > number of moments when I wasn’t sure we were going to make it. But at every > moment, and certainly by the end, there was a real sense of deepest learning > and a remarkable feeling of peace and joy. > > Now maybe to come to the heart of the matter: Was your Open Space a failure? > I really don’t think so, and I suspect that after the dust settles and you > have a chance to reflect on what really happened, you will agree. If I recall > correctly, the whole purpose was to enable your groups of folks to take a > good hard look at who they were, what they were doing and where to go in the > future. I think they did that in spades, although the picture certainly > wasn’t a pretty one, and the final results were not what one might have hoped > for or expected – but what else is new? Be prepared to be surprised! > > Space was opened. You did that! An invitation was issued. The opportunity was > there. What happened was a very accurate portrayal of how things were in all > of its dysfunctional splendor. The fundamental pathology showed up. I often > think of an Open Space as a Rorschach Test. You remember the funny ink blots > that can tell you if you are crazy? Same sort of thing, I think. There is no > content in Open Space – what you see is what you got. In most cases, the > participant group is much more competent than its reputation – and so given > the opportunity (invitation) they perform very well. They demonstrate who > they really are. BUT – there is an old phrase, “You can’t make a silk purse > out of a sow’s ear.” I think you had a “sow’s ear.” > > At this point for all participants – a painful question. Do you really want > to be that miserable? Is that the way you choose to spend your working hours? > No more hiding and pretending that it really isn’t that bad. It’s bad. Where > everybody chooses to go from here on out is up to them. Were I in their place > (your place as well, I guess) I would be thinking along the lines friend > Corrigan suggested: Fire the client – or more accurately, I suppose, Fire the > Boss. Never a pleasant thought, but having been there on several occasions, I > can honestly say I have no regrets. When the space is closed and I can’t > breathe I just have to open some doors and windows and go through them. But > that is probably just me. > > Thanks so much for telling your story, and being patient while I/we told ours. > > Harrison > > > > > Harrison Owen > 7808 River Falls Dr. > Potomac, MD 20854 > USA > > 189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer) > Camden, Maine 04843 > > Phone 301-365-2093 > (summer) 207-763-3261 > > www.openspaceworld.com > www.ho-image.com (Personal Website) > To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of OSLIST > Go to:http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org > > From: oslist-boun...@lists.openspacetech.org > [mailto:oslist-boun...@lists.openspacetech.org] On Behalf Of Tricia Chirumbole > Sent: Monday, February 18, 2013 1:42 AM > To: World wide Open Space Technology email list > Subject: Re: [OSList] Sticky dots Q - San Fran event reflections > > I just noted that there was some interest in a reflection after my first Open > Space event in San Fran that I reported as going awry at the beginning. Note: > really long description continues! > > So, the event did not blossom into a proper Open Space and was "taken over" > part way through on Day 1 and Day 2 OS agenda was cancelled at 2am-ish by > email. No closing. > > The group struggled with taking on the responsibility and getting in the > flow. They were not all entirely slow to get started with posting, but to my > surprise, as soon as I invited people to the wall - half of them left! > bathroom, cell phones....then many held back and never made it to the wall. > > The main issues in retrospect were: > 1) There was not buy-in/understanding by the principles - one was in and > open, the other said he was in, but in the same breath kept trying to drive > his own agenda and maintain control. > 2) This group's negative reaction to the "differentness" of just the circle > configuration and the "crunchiness" of all else was validated by the renegade > principle's being the lead heckler and rebel. I love my friend's term of > "bamboozle" to describe what he was doing at every step of the > process...someone in the group even actually added a "principle" to my one > poster, which I didn't even realize until today was really rude - my family > made those and I was going to reuse them! > 3) There was not enough communication and planning prior to the event. (one > phone call and a few emails that I didn't get responses to, as well as a > planning meeting that the principle (the "in" one) did not make it to - so > we went straight to a loooong lunch on the first day (day prior to OS day 1) > w/out ever figuring out the basics, such as what schedule they wanted and > what I needed from them. > 4) My planning and personal preparation was weak - I tried to do it with rush > approval (got the go-ahead 5 days before the meetings started) and while I > was sick, then didn't allow enough time the morning of b/c of a morning call > that I couldn't get out of - I still tried to prepare myself, but it was > challenging given the circumstances and also given my desire to do a good > job, and for good things to come AND my preceding desire to do an OS! - yep, > I guess you can't have some detachment and I was only prepared for things to > not be perfect...and also not understanding how much you really need to give > to prep, depending who you are and where you are..... > 5) I did it for free > 6) I agreed to facilitating because of my enthusiasm about OS despite the > fact that: > - I knew there were too many open ends, buy-in/understanding was > questionable, there was very little lead time, there was no invitation sent > (I tried to get an email sent prior to event, but the renegade wanted to take > charge of selecting the final theme, but then didn't do it), poor history of > communication and follow thru on part of mgmt......................so, yeah > > More details fwiw: People were struggling to get the basic process and I > needed to give a number of reminders for every aspect of the basics - more > than I anticipated. Not conclusive why that was. I think they just really > weren't giving a lot of attention to the first explanation, were probably > distracted by the two conversations that broke out in the circle during my > opening, and then further distracted by the more boisterous participants who > were starting detailed session discussions and negotiations while in front of > the wall before most people could even get started. This was rowdier than I > expected. > > I think I did an ok job of giving direction in a gentle way, made a joke > about their rowdiness, and had to get a little sassy with one of the > principles once to shut him up, which was well received and effective, but > only temporarily. > > The renegade Principal posted over half of the sessions and then went to > bring out the priority project list...yes, I cringed at that, but said it was > ok, as long as people still continued to post stuff. He kept trying to talk > about combining sessions, which sessions would be valuable for everyone, > timing of sessions, etc even for everyone else's posts.....I reminded the > conveners of their responsibility, but few were responding to that. > > People started to move items to lunch and dinner sessions, from my > perspective, because they were being viewed as not as important and > interfering with other things that other people wanted to do - ok, I didn't > interfere and tried to remind them that this was their schedule when they > kept asking me what they could and couldn't do (the renegade principle also > kept referring back to me and my process and asking me if we had "opened > space" and if it was over, etc....). MY concern with the moving of the > sessions to meal time was that it seemed to be done under pressure from the > forces that be that were advocating a certain way of doing things....that all > being said, none of the lunch or dinner sessions happened. Some people > mentioned them ex post facto. > > These unrealized sessions were unfortunately a trend throughout the day. We > actually ended up with not all sessions filled even for day 1 and then a > number of people just never convened their sessions. I am not sure if I > interfered too much or not enough, but I rallied to encourage people to go to > the other breakout room to do a posted session...although this was posted by > an employee, it ended up being led by the renegade principle and yes, ended > when food arrived in the other room (I asked them about a different food > process and the "in" principle responded at last minute that he could have > someone send me the menu for morning food, but that afternoon food was > already coming - once again, too little, too late - I figured that was not > that big a deal, but it did end up having an impact, I think) > > After that, everyone was hanging around in the main room, some asking if > there were other sessions or what they should do, others eating, others half > participating in the one ongoing main room session. There was one pending, > and unfortunately it belonged to the renegade principle. I encouraged him to > convene, but he felt it was one that would be good for everyone.....so, > that's what we did. We waited for the main room activity to finish up, we all > dutifully sat down, and we had a bitch fest/work interest inventory during > our "what makes project success?" session. We were all there, it went too > long, people had to start to leave, I did not do a close - thought about > suggesting it, but at that point felt pretty demoralized - they had been > making fun of the process and renegade dude had been subverting it all day. > They can close themselves....I was considering it.....I also really wished we > had had the opportunity to do the Appreciative INquiry workshop on Satisfying > and Successful Projects that I had put together for them, also last minute at > their request, and yes, embarrassingly, for free - The "in" principle had > requested this, seemed really excited by it, but then, despite my detailed > agenda suggestions, he chose not to work it in on the first prelim night in > preference to longer individual intros (though most of the group knows one > another) and a "primer" on Open Space, which as I mentioned before I tried to > tell them was not necessary and would be delivered the next day...I tried to > keep it very short, but they pushed, and then renegade took control - he > asked my opinion, but he didn't really want it. > > > On Mon, Feb 18, 2013 at 12:44 AM, Tricia Chirumbole > <tri...@investorswithoutborders.net> wrote: > Thanks so much to Harrison, Lisa, and all on the list for your feedback and > support - it all definitely helped me to learn and grow more in the > situation, as well as maintain/regain a broader, more detached perspective. > ...and, yes, it helped me battered ego :) > > As Harrison wrote, "You can’t open space if your space ain’t open." I do hope > I won't have to relearn that lesson, but I at least have a better sense of > what conditions I need in order to agree to participate in opening a space - > internal and external. > > > On Tue, Feb 12, 2013 at 4:50 PM, Harrison Owen <hho...@verizon.net> wrote: > Tricia – You just learned THE most valuable lesson. Lesson #1 > > You can’t open space if your space ain’t open. Chris said it more elegantly, > but that is the gist. And from what you said -- seems like your space was in > lockdown. 5 days with little sleep, racing about, worrying, “fixing things”… > No space for nothing. Painful for sure, but you will never have to learn it > again. I am positive. And THANK YOU SO MUCH for sharing! > > The only pre-work that is really essential is your own. Or put a little > differently, if you don’t do your own preparation nothing else really matters > that much. At least as far as you are concerned. People kid me about not > doing very much, which is absolutely true. But what they don’t see is what I > do do before they ever see me. Everybody will have their own way, but before > every Open Space, particularly the “dicey” ones, my day starts early. > Beginning with a good meditation, followed by a walk and then on to the venue > at least an hour and a half (better two) before “Show Time.” I sit in the > center, before anybody is there, and if people do wander in, I invite them to > join me in the silence. No talking, no planning, no fixing. Just the space > and silence. After a bit, I get up to complete the site preparation, if that > is needed. No hurrys – sort a walking meditation. I particularly enjoy doing > the Post-its especially for a big gathering. It is really “zenish,” if that > communicates. A half hour before “Start” I stop everything. Maybe I look at > my watch, but I don’t recall doing so…just seems to happen that way. At that > point, I leave the venue, go outside if possible – and return at the > appointed hour. When I stand at the edge of the circle to invite the > festivities to begin, I am about as clear and focused as I can be. It feels > wonderful. Something about doing nothing and everything gets done. > > Harrison > > Harrison Owen > 7808 River Falls Dr. > Potomac, MD 20854 > USA > > 189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer) > Camden, Maine 04843 > > Phone 301-365-2093 > (summer) 207-763-3261 > > www.openspaceworld.com > www.ho-image.com (Personal Website) > To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of OSLIST > Go to:http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org > > From: oslist-boun...@lists.openspacetech.org > [mailto:oslist-boun...@lists.openspacetech.org] On Behalf Of Tricia Chirumbole > Sent: Tuesday, February 12, 2013 2:47 PM > To: World wide Open Space Technology email list > Subject: Re: [OSList] Sticky dots Q > > shame on me! I messed up the flow, buy-in, and positive energy, by messing up > one of the simplest parts....the sticky notes time and session areas. Not > totally my fault, but each time I tried to remedy on the fly, made another > mistake!! > > 1) I was a little behind in some final preps bc of early call and have been > sick and have barely slept for past 5 days and then people came early..fine, > I'll put them to work...also, facilities had not removed the table and > equipment, so actually would not necessarily have been behind. > - people were a little hard to get to help and a bit distracting and spent a > lot of the time standing around, watching me, and making sarcastic jokes > about the circle, the principles, the notes, etc....very distracting...I was > trying to manage people, go fast, ignore people, and get other work done...so > my mind was distraced and I messed up some of the time slots which messed > everything up... > > PLUS, I got resistance in the team picking out breakout rooms in advance and > so filled out day 1 notes w/ just the area indicators: 1, 2, 3...finally got > them to do it, but it confiused everything..... > > just whining....will try to salvage! Now I see already however that despite > all of the ideas I know everyone has, we have only 2 groups for the morning > and people def sitting around and not being engaged, but I don't want to mess > much more and start adding to many new topics myself (Iam unfortunately an > independent contracter "worker", so I am already violating by participating..) > > On Tue, Feb 12, 2013 at 11:08 AM, Chris Corrigan <chris.corri...@gmail.com> > wrote: > I just want to add, that although I have dispensed with sticky dots years ago > as well, I HAVE used them since where they made sense. It's impossible to > say what tools are important and what should be jettisoned, but context > matters. If your senior people would like the group to prioritize the action > plans that were raised, you can create a process to do that that respects the > work that has been done and works within the constraints. There are all > kinds of ways of doing that. > > Open Space is an empty frame. We know what it does and how it works. But it > does not stand alone. You are using it in a context to accelerate something > in an organization and a community. I have found that it isn't wise just to > come in and do an open space the way I want to do it without being sensitive > to the need behind the call or the context in which you are working. > > For example a learning Open Space is very different from a product creation > Open Space which differs from a strategic planning Open Space which differs > from an engagement Open Space. The basic process works the same but the > invitation and harvest are very different and the pre-work with the > leadership team helps to set the ground for the most successful > implementation of ideas. > > For me if that means we use sticky dots, because that's the best thing to do, > we use sticky dots. > > Chris > > On 2013-02-12, at 1:46 AM, Koos de Heer wrote: > > > Hi Tricia, > > > > I stopped using sticky dot voting in Open Space sessions years ago. > > > > In the beginning, the agenda process is perfect and does not need any > > voting. > > > > During the Open Space, if a topic needs more time, people will decide they > > are not ready and continue to do what needs to be done. > > > > In the end, when it comes to action planning, I find it much more elegant to > > reopen the space for action planning topics. > > > > So trust the process, trust the people and trust yourself. Take a deep > > breath and be present and it will roll (and rock). :-) > > > > Koos > > > > -----Oorspronkelijk bericht----- > > Van: oslist-boun...@lists.openspacetech.org > > [mailto:oslist-boun...@lists.openspacetech.org] Namens Jeff Aitken > > Verzonden: dinsdag 12 februari 2013 08:52 > > Aan: World wide Open Space Technology email list > > Onderwerp: Re: [OSList] Sticky dots Q > > > > reminds me that the difference between a brainstorm and an open space agenda > > creation is that the latter is based on passion and responsibility. > > > > some items on the brainstorm list may not make it to the open space agenda > > wall if the person doesn't actually feel very passionate or responsible > > about it after all. > > > > or it may make it to the wall, but then nobody comes to the session, and the > > convenor writes a short report to handle it and moves to another topic. > > > > jeff > > > > On 2/11/13, Jeff Aitken <r.jeff.ait...@gmail.com> wrote: > >> I would allow the open space process to do the work. I don't see a > >> reason to do anything else. I could be misunderstanding of course. > >> > >> if you are using a 'standard' open space agenda creation process, > >> inviting people to put a topic on a sheet of paper and post it on a > >> wall with time and place, then i'd allow the wall to be filled with > >> topics, and then explain the process of moving topics around based on > >> the wishes of the convenors. and let them move things around. > >> > >> let the law of mobility take care of the rest. and then reflect at the > >> end of the day, and they might add and delete and move topics for the > >> second day. > >> > >> jeff > >> > >> > >> On 2/11/13, Tricia Chirumbole <tri...@investorswithoutborders.net> wrote: > >>> ok, so I just asked a question re: the need for prioritization of > >>> issues and an overwhelmingly large pool of issues in my previous post. > >>> > >>> I guess part of the answer is sticky dot voting. Cool. I will have to > >>> improvise asking people to keep track of their dots using markers > >>> since I will have no time to get dots, but that should be ok in a > >>> small gorup of 13...not ideal - other thoughts on this are welcome. > >>> > >>> my questions are - is it ok to do prioritization at outset of day 1? > >>> And, if so, would it be better to first generate a marketplace w/o > >>> times selected and prioritize them, then have initiators select > >>> time/place? or vice versa - neither sound ideal to me. > >>> > >>> thanks so much!! > >>> > >>> -- > >>> Tricia Chirumbole > >>> US: +1-571-232-0942 > >>> Skype: tricia.chirumbole > >>> > >> > > _______________________________________________ > > OSList mailing list > > To post send emails to OSList@lists.openspacetech.org To unsubscribe send an > > email to oslist-le...@lists.openspacetech.org > > To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: > > http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org > > > > _______________________________________________ > > OSList mailing list > > To post send emails to OSList@lists.openspacetech.org > > To unsubscribe send an email to oslist-le...@lists.openspacetech.org > > To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: > > http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org > > _______________________________________________ > OSList mailing list > To post send emails to OSList@lists.openspacetech.org > To unsubscribe send an email to oslist-le...@lists.openspacetech.org > To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: > http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org > > > > -- > Tricia Chirumbole > US: +1-571-232-0942 > Skype: tricia.chirumbole > > > _______________________________________________ > OSList mailing list > To post send emails to OSList@lists.openspacetech.org > To unsubscribe send an email to oslist-le...@lists.openspacetech.org > To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: > http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org > > > > > -- > Tricia Chirumbole > US: +1-571-232-0942 > Skype: tricia.chirumbole > > > > > -- > Tricia Chirumbole > US: +1-571-232-0942 > Skype: tricia.chirumbole > > _______________________________________________ > OSList mailing list > To post send emails to OSList@lists.openspacetech.org > To unsubscribe send an email to oslist-le...@lists.openspacetech.org > To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: > http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org
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