Death and dying are essential. In the 1990s, there was an amazing
economy in the USA happening. And I remember discussing with Roberta my
wife "....this can't go on forever." And she said, and we together
continue to say exactly what you said Harrison... "...everything has a
beginning, a middle and and end."
My sense is, and I think the sense of many others, is that worldwide, we
are near the "middle of the end" of all the cherished
institutions....and the "standard narrative" that has worked for so
long. It's over.
"To get a good job- get a good education."
"Work really hard and you'll be prosper more than you parents did."
Really? How's that story working for us these days? Now what's
interesting is the wave riders..."wave people" seem to be doing OK.
"... A ronin was a masterless samuri during the feudal period
(1185–1868) of Japan. A samurai became masterless from the ruin or fall
of his master, or after the loss of his master’s favor or privilege.
Since a ronin doesn’t serve any lord, he is no longer a samurai. A
samurai is a “servant”, since the noun came from the verb “/saburau/”
which is the Japanese for “to serve”.*The word **/ronin/**literally
means “wave man”* – one who is tossed about, as on the waves in the sea..."
Daniel
On 3/24/15 11:33 AM, Harrison wrote:
Dan – Should it be true that self organization is a core function of
life, and that Open Space is a way to access that core function, it
would follow that life in all of its aspects would show up in one way
or another in Open Space. And the only thing we know for certain about
life is that it ends. Everything else is up for grabs. The 5^th
Principle (When it’s over, it’s over) acknowledges as much. If
something changes, something else ends. Happens regular as clockwork.
Ending can also be called Death.
Death, however, sends most people scurrying for the sidelines. Until
very recently we weren’t even supposed to talk about it, and those who
did were thought to be obsessive, morbid, and weird. I guess I can
understand this, but the price is a heavy one. We end up with a very
monochromatic, idealized sort of life – void of the deep ebb and flow
that makes life so varied and interesting. That sort of life may
appeal to lovers of certainty, which would include most of us and
particularly managers and executives. Unfortunately it is pure
illusion. Never happened, never will. Fact of the matter is, at least
in the world I inhabit, everything has a beginning, middle and end.
Ending is almost always painful, but it seems to be the essential
precursor for beginning. No ending, no beginning. Which would also
mean that evolution, change, transformation, growth and development
all would be out of the picture. But there is no getting away from the
pain. It is there and real, and if we as human beings are to continue
our growth and development that pain must be dealt with. In my
experience, it is the Griefwork Process that enables us to do just
that. Not only in extreme moments, but every day as the changes/death
marking our growth as individuals and collectives pass on by.
So does death, change, ending, grief, renewal take place in Open
Space? I dearly hope so, and if not we should chuck the whole deal.
Harrison
Winter Address
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*From:*OSList [mailto:oslist-boun...@lists.openspacetech.org] *On
Behalf Of *Daniel Mezick via OSList
*Sent:* Sunday, March 22, 2015 12:46 AM
*To:* Harrison; 'World wide Open Space Technology email list'
*Subject:* [OSList] Death, Grief and Birth in Open Space
The SPIRIT book covers grief and grief-work in some depth. I find this
theme of death and dying ("passing") to be a major part of what is
typically unspoken and typically going on in an Open Space... when and
where the stakes are /high/.
There is a death/"annihilation" going on there, that seems to be part
of what it takes to actually get from here to there.
Harrison uses these terms and words in the post below:
* "terminal"
* "last rites"
* "damaged org"
* "survival stuff"
Ouch. That smarts! "Birth" seems an obvious aspect of
healthy-and-well-functioning Open Space...does this go for "death" as
well?
On 3/21/15 4:18 PM, Harrison wrote:
Dan --- Our organizations are definitely stodgy. Even the best of
them seem to clunk along when compared to what they might be
doing. God knows how you could ever produce any numbers to prove
this assertion, but I have yet to met anybody (even the wildest
enthusiast) who would affirm that their organization was running
in top form. Good yes... but with lots of room for improvement.
But I suspect that the critical issue is NOT a matter of “low
level of development,” rather it is a case of self inflicted
wounds causing radical sub-optimization. The “cure” would then be
to stop the wounding, at least until we could see how things might
go. Of course, *if the situation really is terminal*, then by all
means, Bring it on! That could be SCRUM, Facilitation, *Last
Rites*, whatever...
So what would an organization look like if it stopped being shot?
How would it perform?
Sounds pretty abstract and difficult to visualize... but I do
believe we get the picture in wild living color, every time we
have the privilege of *opening the space for a damaged
organization*, where the trouble is real and palpable. I’m not
talking about the two hour Open Space on some frilly, safe topic.
I mean the real deal where the stakes are seriously high.
*Survival stuff*.
My experience is shared by many, and the stories are often told.
My most recent encounter was with a very large US federal agency,
which according to its director was so dysfunctional that “most of
the people could not find their rear ends with both hands” (That’s
a direct quote). They were in trouble by any standard, and the
Chief was so out of options that Open Space sounded like a safe
way to go – even though he had never seen one.
Well we did it... and the organization I saw bore no relationship
to the one that had been described to me. The people were all the
same, the issues were familiar... but the behavior was brilliant.
Total flowing conversation with real engagement and workable
solutions. Mind Bending! And the chief was blown away – walking
around with a silly grin on his face.
I invited him to lunch because I wanted to feed him several drinks
and ask a question. We had the lunch, and after the drinks, came
the question: “What are you doing, Sir, as a matter of everyday
business that converts 177 bright, engaged, competent people into
blundering fools?” He looked a little surprised and I said, “I
think you might want to stop doing it.”
Dan – That’s my point. Before we do anything more, different, or
otherwise – I sincerely believe we need to stop and appreciate
what apparently happens very naturally, all by itself, with
minimal or no assistance. And after that appreciative moment, we
might think of a few things to do, but only a very few.
Harrison
Winter Address
7808 River Falls Drive
Potomac, MD 20854
301-365-2093
Summer Address
189 Beaucaire Ave.
Camden, ME 04843
207-763-3261
Websites
www.openspaceworld.com <%20www.openspaceworld.com>
www.ho-image.com
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--
Daniel Mezick, President
New Technology Solutions Inc.
(203) 915 7248 (cell)
Bio <http://newtechusa.net/dan-mezick/>. Blog
<http://newtechusa.net/blog/>. Twitter
<http://twitter.com/#%21/danmezick/>.
Examine my new book:The Culture Game
<http://newtechusa.net/about/the-culture-game-book/>: Tools for the
Agile Manager.
Explore Agile Team Training
<http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-training/> and Coaching.
<http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-coaching/>
Explore the Agile Boston <http://newtechusa.net/user-groups/ma/>Community.
--
Daniel Mezick, President
New Technology Solutions Inc.
(203) 915 7248 (cell)
Bio <http://newtechusa.net/dan-mezick/>. Blog
<http://newtechusa.net/blog/>. Twitter <http://twitter.com/#%21/danmezick/>.
Examine my new book:The Culture Game
<http://newtechusa.net/about/the-culture-game-book/>: Tools for the
Agile Manager.
Explore Agile Team Training
<http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-training/> and Coaching.
<http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-coaching/>
Explore the Agile Boston <http://newtechusa.net//user-groups/ma/>Community.
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