Day 2 Bounce

[Jay Vogt]

Greetings:
I have observed a delightful phenomenon in my last two open space events and I
wonder how commonly it occurs for the rest of you.  One of these was my reason
for not being in Monterrey (sort of a good excuse
)

Both were two day events.
Both were with intact organizations of about 30 folks or so.
One's theme was to create a vision and plan for an organization, while the
other's was to implement a vision given by leadership and the marketplace.
Both leaders were supportive, although many participants were sceptical,
feeling they had more work to do than time to do it in.

Here's what I observed:
On day one, both groups wrestled directly with tough issues, and for many it
was slow going, but at least they felt they were talking about the right
things.  In one group, a free-floating discussion on mission lasted through
four rounds until they thought they had it right.  The day ended with folks
feeling excited about the process, and their connections, but very aware of
how long it had all taken, and how much was left to be done.

This energy appeared to cook overnight in a big way, in both cases, judging by
what happened next.

On day two of both events, I sensed people came in charged up to tear through
the remaining issues in a BIG WAY.  The energy and excitement to get at things
was palpable, and intoxicating, in both cases, at least to me.  As
facilitator, I briefly helped frame the tension between what folks had come to
do, and what they had actually done.  What happened next surprised everyone:
people tore up the tracks.  Tons of work got done in no time flat -
particularly in the morning.  In one case the group was actually able to
finish ahead of schedule, and adjourn early.

For me it was an experience of the eternal surprise of open space, and of the
elasticity of the NOW.

I saw that the anxiety that fuels day one can give way to a passion to make
things happen that, in these cases, fueled day two.  The frustrations of
talking about the right things, but not making enough progress on them, on day
one seemed to fuel rapid progress on day two.  Of course there was a ton of
alignment by then,too, fueling this speedy work.

How common is a day two BOUNCE of surprisingly rapid productivity, in your
experiences?

Thanks for your thoughts, Jay Vogt