my intentions regarding Open Space Technology

[Birgitt Williams]

Dear friends and colleagues in Open Space Technology,

A friend in Open Space in Australia sent me this anecdote from the Irish
musician, Mary O'Hara:
'One day last summer, after I'd been working on some songs, I left my harp
before the open window. Suddenly I heard the sound of distant and very
lovely music. It lasted only a few seconds and left me very puzzled. When it
happened again I noticed that the sound came from the instrument and was
caused by the gentle breeze from the open window playing on the harp
strings. At times prayer can be like that harp, by allowing sufficient calm
to gather round us so that the Holy Spirit, the Breath of God, may play his
music on us. It was a very gentle breeze and could be heard only because of
the surrounding stillness.'

I thank you all for your comments regarding my response to Laurel's posting
and the powerpoint presentation. My special thanks to those who responded on
the list. Most responses were off-list, which always seems to be the way,
and saddens me. The many responses brought clarity to me about my thinking,
my feelings, and my intentions about my work with Open Space Technology. My
initial response to Laurel was from the depths of my heart, from the initial
response stage in the grief cycle--shock/anger. The powerpoint presentation
came to me after I had done so much soul searching of my own about the
future of Open Space Technology and how I could assist and also how I did
not want to add to what I am increasingly experiencing as negative reaction
to Open Space Technology in the world. So grieving was big and got bigger
with most of the responses.

I have always believed in enabling newcomers to Open Space Technology to
benefit from a good foundation and then to take the foundation, duplicate it
a few times to get consistent results and to develop personal mastery, to
develop their own perception and interpretation of Open Space
Technology--the form and the essence. My belief is that once this is done,
the unique shifts that an individual makes in their personal practice have a
solid foundation and every Open Space Technology meeting will be
recognizable as Open Space Technology complete with the uniqueness and the
unique gifts of the different facilitators. I also believe that there are
different requirements of facilitation/facilitator depending on why the Open
Space Technology meeting is happening. If the OST meeting is for personal
learning, community building, or data gathering, it is effective even if it
is Open Space Technology in its simplest form (no reports, no computers, no
givens). If it is for conflict resolution, clear and detailed actions beyond
the meeting within the corporation and so on, I believe that more is
required, including pre-work and debriefing with the sponsor. I have written
about this to the list before. My keen interest with Open Space Technology
is the Open Space Organization, an interconnected learning organization. And
so, I always view each and every Open Space Technology meeting (except for
those designed for personal learning or data gathering only) as needing to
be attended to thoroughly for ongoing impact in the organization.

So, with respect that there are many different viewpoints and many different
truths, I will simply say two things.

First, for me I am deeply saddened (griefwork) by the impact this powerpoint
presentation will have in the world. It is my viewpoint, my perception only.
I am saddened because while Laurel would have done a good job with her group
I am sure, this presentation will be used not only by people on the list,
but also by people who this is forwarded to, and then by others who download
it from the worldwide web site. They will feel that they are trained in OST
and will train others. The good news is that there can never be too many
trainers in OST so that OST spread as much as possible in the world. The bad
news is that the spreading through this presentation as a training, will be
watered down each step of the way and still called Open Space Technology. I
wish the presentation were called an orientation to OST, to be used with
organizations to introduce them to OST, rather than giving the sense of
training. Many of the slides are Harrison's. For me, I attended his training
7 times before I got the level of nuances involved and in between, I worked
with it and worked with it always learning. And finally felt that I really
comprehended. The simplest things in life are usually the most complex to
grasp. And in grasping the complexity, I now can work with simplicity from a
mindful place.

Secondly, my intentions for my work with Open Space Technology are to do the
following:
1. to offer to the world Open Space Technology meetings that are inclusive
of all of the essential ingredients that we have learned over the years that
brings about the most long lasting results. To offer Open Space Technology
meeting facilitation that is duplicable, so that when a client hires Open
Space Technology, they can expect a certain standard of facilitation that is
recognizable as Open Space Technology. To pass work on to only those
colleaugues in their geographic areas who will work from this same standard,
each bringing his/her unique style and gifts to ensure that when a client
hires Open Space Technology, this is what he/she is getting.
2. to train facilitators/consultants/leaders in Working with Open Space
Technology,  introducing them to the key ingredients of Open Space
Technology that produces results consistently in even the most conflicted
situations. And within the training, to challenge participants to develop
their personal definition, perception and interpretation of OST as a whole
and of each component part exploring both form and essence. To do this in a
way that enables each and every participant in the training to go into the
world, facilitating OST meetings from a place of personal understanding that
enables the minute by minute decision making that all facilitators are faced
with keeping the integrity (wholeness) of OST.
3. to ensure that I am walking my talk. I will only state what I really
experience as deliverable from an Open Space Technology meeting. I am
currently looking at the list of deliverables supplied by Harrison and
realizing that they are true for Open Space Technology meetings of at least
two days in length but not likely true for others. I am also looking at
statements that would lead a client to believe that an Open Space Technology
meeting brings about lasting change and transformation, that Open Space
Technology is a vehicle for change. Again, this is likely only true from  a
limited number of Open Space Technology meetings. I want to be careful that
I am not so enchanted by Open Space Technology that I err in claiming it
delivers more than it does. I want to find the words that truly reflect the
accurate deliverables. Open Space Technology does achieve amazing results. I
just want to be more accurate about the deliverables.

I would like organizations to have lasting benefits in very tangible and
measurable ways directly attributed to Open Space Technology far beyond that
which has currently been recorded. I would like facilitators to be well
equipped to handle even the most difficult situations by still keeping the
space OPEN. I would like Open Space Technology to do well in the world. This
is my viewpoint of how to get there. Some may join me in this endeavour.
Others will have different approaches and those approaches at the end of the
day may turn out to be more successful. I must follow my passion, my heart,
my path. I will always refer to what I do as "Open Space Technology within
the Genuine Contact Program" so that there will be no confusion that my
perception is the perception of the community of Open Space Technology
practitioners. The training manual we have developed is careful to note the
contribution of Harrison Owen so that people have original source
information to follow his thinking (Harrison had asked me in an e-mail two
months ago to be sure that I was giving proper credit to original sources
and I agreed and was even more vigilant than I had been about this) on an
item by item basis, as well as our notes of how we work with it from our
learning. We also include the items that I contributed over the years--the
givens, the notion that OST brings about grief reaction even around good
happenings, the shift in the organization with repeated frequent use of OST,
and the development of the Open Space Organization.

These are my intentions pertaining to Open Space Technology as I work with
it through the Genuine Contact Program, developed to assist organizations
lead as though God matters and people are precious, while at the same time
bringing about real results to the bottom line. A key component is Open
Space Technology--my experience with Open Space Technology, the Open Space
Organization--and what has worked and not worked for organizations over the
years. I have learned equally from what went right as from what did not,
constantly with mindful practice so that I could capture the learning and
duplicate best practices.

Blessings,
Birgitt


Birgitt Williams
Make Genuine Contact!
Dalar Associates: organizational
effectiveness consultants

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