it works!

[Harrison Owen]

At 01:49 PM 7/1/01 +0400, you wrote:
>Hi folks!
>no matter that friday night it took place in a grungy old private school
>under repairs, that the chairs were dusty, that one break out room two
>hours before curtains smelled like cat pee, that sat. we started an hour
>late. The bottom line is that my first OS: Developing a training program
>for Moscow Public Schools: issues and opportunities was successful.

It Works -- you said. Reminds me of a time in South Africa about 10 years
ago. I had done an OS in Tembesi (near Jo'berg) and returned to Capetown
that night. Next morning VERY EARLY -- my phone rang. Male voice at the
other end --         IT WORKS, IT WORKS, IT WORKS! After I gained
consciousness I said something like -- who are you, where are you and what
works. Turned out it was a participant from the day before who had opened
space with his PTA group that night. As he said -- there were 200+ folks
sitting in a circle -- and they came alive after 5 years of sitting. It
WORKS!  So congratulations! And so -- what else is new?

>Some questions:
>
>1. When preparing for an OS, what expectations do you have/communicate
>to the sponsor re: people's participation. Can people come for just a
>part? If you leave, can you come back? To a certain degree there was a
>fair amount of coming and going?

I always say -- Come for it all -- or you will be frustrated/disappointed.
But if you got to go -- Go!

>2. What are people's criteria for "space grabbing"-- the point at which,
>as I understand, the facilitator should intervene, albeit in a pretty
>inobtusive way (on the surface)? I saw quasi-space grabbing behavior at
>the meeting. But my gut told me to hang back and things indeed worked
>out. (thank you, Birgitt, for really getting us to think about what the
>essence of OS in Novosibirsk, bc i go back to the two words for me--
>profound nonintervention)

You gut is always right. There is no precise definition -- just when the
"folks" (ie participants) have had enough. Space invaders are to be
tolerated until they are not useful. And the people will tell you -- if you
listen.

>3. I noticed there was a fair amount of confusion when it came to action
>planning. people wondered what to do with all the ideas. I said several
>times I will explain, but people were very nervous. I wonder if my
>mistake was when it came to asking people to read all the reports if I
>should've given an overview of the remainder of the meeting so that
>people would know what was happening. the energy for a while went low,
>people checked out, flew away (butterflies). I just hung in there.
>Finally I was able to explain to most folks (after only less than half
>the folks participated in the voting! yep I didn't comment outloud on
>this.) the future planning. some people got it.

I always explain this stuff at the beginning, in the middle and at the end.
But there is always a questions. Do you really need to take this trip? IE
is convergence useful? It certainly is essential when action is
essential... but if what you needed was a good conversation and you just
had that -- why work so hard????

>so thanks for your support, prayers, and I'm off to organizing my next
>OS!

So thanks for sharing! And while you were doing all that Jean Pierre
Beaulieu and I were up there in Montreal with 125 folks who put their lives
on the line every day for Human Rights around the world. My God they were
impressive people. real privilege to open space for them.  And guess what?
I works.

Harrison



Harrison Owen
7808 River Falls Drive
Potomac, MD 20854 USA
phone 301-469-9269
fax 301-983-9314
Summer Phone 207-763-3261
Summer Address
189 Beaucaire Ave.
Camden, ME 04843
Personal website www.mindspring.com/~owenhh
Open Space Institute website www.openspaceworld.org
Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com
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