Local currency OS

Ralph Copleman earthdreams at earthlink.net
Fri Jun 29 07:03:09 PDT 2001


on 6/28/01 6:14 PM, Todd Saddler at Laurietodd at aol.com wrote:

> Dear OS Friends,
>
> Earlier this week my husband Todd Saddler facilitated an Open Space which I
> organized for our local currency organization, Ithaca Hours.  Our thanks to
> David Koehler, Ralph Copleman, Eddie Palmer, Joelle Lyons, Everett Blake
> Mills, John Engle, and especially Harrison Owen and Laurel Doersam for their
> helpful advice and encouragement a few weeks back as I was beginning the
> planning process for this event.

(You're welcome.)
>
> First the negative part.  Some people were a bit late and we were trying to
> get started.  The caterer was all set up with a nice simple meal that we
> wanted folks to graze on in the course of the evening.  Some (but not all)
> folks jumped in for food as soon as they came in the door.  Then just after
> we "rang the chimes" and were starting the welcome, others went up for food.
> So then we all had to wait for them before starting the explanation of the
> process.

Where did you place the food?  I've learned (through experiences like the
one you cited) never to have food in the same room as the opening circle.
It's too inviting.


>
> On to meatier things-one of my questions to this list had been on developing
> a theme.  After some discussion with the president and vice-president of the
> board, we struck upon the idea of "How Can We Support Each Other in Promoting
> Ithaca Hours?"  This came out of the expressed need for a greater sense of
> teamwork and camaraderie and community spirit.  I thought it struck a nice,
> positive tone.
>
> Interestingly, however, I can't say that many of the topics really addressed
> this theme directly.  Topics like "What should our web page contain?" and
> "How can we encourage landlords to take Hours for rent?" posed important
> questions, but only in the broadest sense were they in line with this theme.

Hey, it's open space.  People are free to not know what you had in mind and
concern themselves with their own issues, on or off point.
>
> I am wondering now how important the wording and specificity of a theme really
> is.  Any thoughts on this?

There's an old saying: if you make something so perfectly clear that no one
could possibly misunderstand it, somebody will.  Words in an invitation, no
matter how well they express your intention, are not an impenetrable fence.
I think mit's important to be as clear as you can be AND expect that not
everyone will abide by what the organizers have in mind.  Those who show up,
are, for sure, the right people, so what they want to deal with must be the
right stuff.
>
> The event was attended by all the board members and four other community
> members, most of whom have worked closely together for quite some time.  It
> was interesting to watch the dynamics once the space was opened.  They were
> quite different from my other experiences of organizing open spaces,

(Every time I open space, it's the same different meeting.)

 > and I
> think it was exactly because these people had such a long history of working
> and meeting together.  They hesitated before writing topics, their topics
> were really wordy and involved, they hesitated before signing up, somebody
> criticized a topic saying, "We already have a committee working on that."
> (Although others jumped in and defended the convenor's right to post the
> topic in this setting)
>
> I was disappointed that the moment of creating the agenda was as stressful
> and draggy as it was.

My friend, your "disappointment" is irrelevant.  Stressful and draggy to
you, perhaps, but how do you know the others experienced it that way?  And
if they did, so what?   Open space is not designed as a stress- or
anxiety-reducing technique.

But once the break out sessions started things went
> well.  People bumble-beed a bit, relaxed, had some good conversations, came
> up with some great ideas and got energized.  The closing circle was full of
> really positive comments and energy.

See?  They lived through their anxieties just fine!  The community, because
it has strength and resilience, managed to integrate ALL manifestations of
its energies into a clearly productive session.  Congratulations!
>
> But there were also a number of people who read the notes from their
> break-out sessions in the circle, and a few others who seemed to want to do
> so, or to at least hear notes.  This didn't feel too productive or
> interesting to me, nor I think to many others.

Yeah, but everybody lived through it just fine.  Notes-sharing may have been
uninteresting to some ­ and VERY interesting to others.  We cannot manage
these situations so everyone is happy all the time.  That wouldn't be real.

> Or am I just not letting go enough again?

Hmmm...
>
> All in all, however, the evening was a fine success and people were very
> pleased and wanted to Open the Space again!

Of course it was a success!  You obviously did a fine job.  People behaved
like people, and you made it possible for this group to move forward while
feeling even better about itself.  Way to go, and keep up the good work!
>

--
Ralph Copleman
609-895-1629

*
*
==========================================================
OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
------------------------------
To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options,
view the archives of oslist at listserv.boisestate.edu,
Visit:

http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html



More information about the OSList mailing list