Long, long ago I described Holding Space as being “totally present and absolutely invisible.” A paradox for sure, but that is my experience. With a little practice and intention you can be totally immersed in the group and be miles away. Don’t ask me how that happens…I don’t have a clue – or at least any sort of useful clue for the situation. But it does happen and I have 35 years of experience… which proves little except possibly that I am nuttier than the next guy. On a slightly more serious note some bright soul computed that 95% of all communication is non-verbal. How she/he arrived at that figure, I don’t know, but it works for me. It seems to me that (often) 100% of facilitation is verbal. I think there might be a conflict somewhere? Could it not be the case that in our attempt to facilitate communication we in fact get in the way?
I assume that your AVP doesn’t have any children? If she did would know all about “eyes in back of the head” Every woman’s got them, and I am sure that my Mother had at least 4 pairsJ Men seem to be a little bit impaired in the department, but they can learn (or un-learn as the case may be.) ho From: OSList [mailto:oslist-boun...@lists.openspacetech.org] On Behalf Of Jake Yeager via OSList Sent: Saturday, February 8, 2020 1:45 PM To: World wide Open Space Technology email list Cc: Jake Yeager Subject: [OSList] How do you "hold space?" Many questions these days. Thank you for entertaining them. :) This past week, I facilitated an eight-hour Open Space split across two half-days. The attendees were an Organizational Development team, of which I am a member. My AVP sponsored the event, because we had recently merged with another group, and there was lack of clarity. So, our theme was: "Who are we, and how do we collaborate to drive success?" Also, my AVP--who is a leader in Learning & Development--wanted to experience Open Space in order to understand it better as it is new to my firm. Since I am a fledgling facilitator, I chose not to participate in the breakout sessions, even though I am part of the group. I wanted to make sure that I provided the best experience for everyone, and participating would have dampened my focus. I shared this with my manager, after she inquired after the first day why I had not participated. Long story short, after the event, my manager had major concerns how I facilitated the event. I had gone for long walks while the group was working, and she felt that was very risky. I told her that the facilitator's role is to remain "invisible" to allow the group to build its capacity for self-management. She said that our firm's culture is very hierarchical and that "baby steps" are needed. She suggested even intervening in a group if it gets "stuck." I believe I mentioned that intervening is not part of Open Space facilitation. So my question is: how do you "hold space?" I found Chris's description on his website: "an Open Space Technology facilitator is neither seen nor heard, but his or her presence is 'felt.'" I guess by going for long walks and not being in the room, my presence was not "felt." One of my colleagues provided feedback that by not being there, it didn't seem like I cared. This is definitely not the case. I went on long walks as an act of love, not negligence. Anyway, would love your thoughts. Thanks, Jake ________________ When the mind is quiet, the sun of your heart will shine once again, and you will be free of problems. - Robert Adams <http://www.robert-adams.info/>
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