SV: 2 Day OS - reflection (longish)
Thomas Herrmann
thomas at openspaceconsulting.com
Sun Apr 6 11:59:12 PDT 2003
Hi Brendan
It´s good to hear you out here! I hope everything is fine "down-west under".
Thanks for sharing your wonderful experience! I like your idea with silent
reflection, talking with a peer and then reopen the space. I have started to
try out the reopening space and I like it too.
Last tuesday when I let a group of 250 participants reflect on the four
directions of the medicin wheel, just before closing. We didn´t have much
time but anyway, I invited them to share their thoughts with another for one
minute and then I called the bells and asked if anyone would like to share
with the group. We did this for the leadership, vision, community and
management, and it worked nicely. Quite noisy during that minute but it
seemed to work really good. When I have a bit more time at the end of my
next OST I will let them reflect for themselves too.
Take care!
Regards
Thomas Herrmann
-----Ursprungligt meddelande-----
Från: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU]För BrendanMcKeague
Skickat: den 6 april 2003 16:25
Till: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Ämne: 2 Day OS - reflection (longish)
G'day folks
I have a need.....to share this beautiful experience with you
My client - a Govt dept with whom I have been working for two years -
invited me to facilitate a two-day OS gathering for all its workers - about
100 good folks working with people with disabilities in the community. All
the orthodox ingredients for a successful OS were present -
great venue - large, spacious function centre overlooking the beautiful
Swan River in Perth, Western Australia, 100 eager souls, the director and
management team behind the process, brilliant weather, great food and a
plethora of passion upon which to open a scrumptious space...and it was just
fantastic - an experience to lift the spirit of all present - at least that
what it felt like in the Closing Circle...
We had the first day's reports printed overnight and distributed on
everyone's chairs as they arrived second morning - fascinating to feel their
surprise (even tho they had been told this was going to happen - don't think
they really believed it would), their excitement and their focus on
reading - it was intense for the first half-hour - then the morning news and
few new conversations - there were only four and five topics posted for 100
people for each of the two sessions and everyone participated intently
(seemed to me) in each one - as though they had really named the most
important issues for the group....
What I did differently from previous experiences? Two major changes come
to mind:
1 I had an 'apprentice' alongside me - (is this is an appropriate
term) a trainee who had participated in an training programme last year and
who took on a role of the logistical support - helping at the Mkt Place,
News Board, computers, liaising with the venue staff....this left me
completely free to hold the space for everyone else (including the trainee)
and devote most of my energy to this...I was very loose and relaxed
throughout
2 As well as form of convergence, I re-opened the space and it
worked wonderfully - using the suggestion of Michael Pannwitz ..thanks
After lunch we had a time for reading all the conversations on the News
Board and a 'red-dot prioritising process' that highlighted the top five-six
issues for the group - we left them there on the wall recognising them as
the areas that the gathering felt most passionate about at this time - then
I plugged into mmp's suggested process, something like this...
Gathered together in the cirlce once again
"Please put your books down....what you have worked on and written up is
prelude for action...it is like a backdrop for the things you might want to
do...before you start possible planning take 7 minutes to reflect just on
your own what all the things you have experienced and worked on mean to you
personally, for your work, your family, your neighborhood....to assist your
reflection here are some pens and paper to jot down some notes, just for
yourself ...after six minutes I will sound the temple bells...some of you
can do this kind of reflection with the greatest din going on others require
silence..."
There was complete silence and it felt intense - some folks eyes closed,
others gazing out across the river towards the city skyline, others writing
at various pace...(many people referred to the peace and the power of this
time during the Closing Circle)
After six minutes I sounded the temple bells in the faintest way I know
how to and people come back into the presence...
Then I continued like this:
"Now that you have reflected, here is one more chance to use the
resources and treasures in this group. Find someone, this might be the
person sitting next to you or someone across that you haven't really met yet
but wanted to contact all along....and use that persons questions, insights
and wisdom to more clearly understand what you have reflected on and then
let yourself be used by your partner...I will sound the bells after ten
minutes..."
Within 10 seconds everyone was talking, laughing...pretty noisily in
contrast to the intense silence just before this step..one person walked
right across the space to speak the person sitting next to me, saying: "I
don't really know you - how about we share on this?" - beautiful.
"Ok, now that you have worked all day yesterday, produced a book of
proceedings, read and discussed it all and have reflected alone and with at
least one other person what this all means to you the time has come to see
what ideas have hands and feet and head and heart. If there is something you
feel you need to act on just jot it down put your name to it and post it.
And don't forget: The Law of Two Feet is still in force...so if you find
that you are neither learning nor contributing...."
People then got up, rather slowly - announced their project and posted
it on the walls around the circle. It took about 10 minutes for all posts to
be up and then I continued:
"This is the time to go walk to the project you are eager to act on and
see who else gathers there and find out what the next step is. This is not
the time for a new discussion or a complete strategic plan, just the
concrete next step you want to take. You have 20 minutes...we also posted a
sheet you can fill in with the name of the project, who all participates,
what the next step is, when a meeting might be and who takes on the role of
the contact person. These sheets will all be sent to you as "Next steps" in
a few days along with the other reports from today's conversations."
We then gathered again to listen to the brief reports from each of the
five groups that has formed and, after a short stretch break began the
closing circle which was awesome....
Time-line for Day II went something like this
9 - 930am Gathering and reading reports
930 - 1000 Morning News
1000 - 1100 Conversation
1100 - 1130 Morning Tea
1130 - 1230 Conversation
1230 - 130 Lunch
130 - 200 Reading, dotting and prioritising reports
200 - 230 Quiet reflection and partner share
230 - 315 Action Planning
315 - 340 Afternoon tea (this is Australia)
340 - 400 Report back
400 - 500 Closing Circle
And so ended a wonderful open space.....thanks to all who contributed to
the space opening within me
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