outcomes

[Chris Corrigan]

Hi Reinhardt:

Well, as for the visual in proceedings, that is not uncommon for me.  I
usually have piece of flipchart paper or poster board and markers
available.  Depending on the event, people will use them or not.  One
example is here: http://www.chriscorrigan.com/sweetspace/

I usually facilitate using mind maps outside of OST events, and although
my drawing ability is certainly not up to yours, the visual reference is
grand.

We certainly privilege written notes in Open Space, although as I say,
that will depend widely on the context.  In fact, a lot of the written
notes in the proceedings I have seen are as unintelligible to the
general public as that moose drawing is in the above link.  But no
matter, if we are opening space again for action.  The notes in the
proceedings don't need as much life as the actual action, in my opinion.
Therefore, it is pretty important to get space open for action if you
can, either through convergence or non-convergence methods.  This gets
the group working on the outcomes that they really want to see, be it
change, project initiation or group forming.  The written (and drawn)
records are only a representation of a slice in time.  Useful to refer
to perhaps, but relatively unimportant as time goes on when compared to
the results that groups manifest.  Often these action results happen
faster than anyone can write them down, which is why I encourage
sponsors to use wikis or other forms of knowledge management to keep
teams connected.

As for your second point, that is exactly the one I am writing about.
Earlier this year I did an OST for 60 Aboriginal youth in Winnipeg
around the theme of "making a difference for Aboriginal Youth in
Winnipeg" or something like that.  The sponsor group, a committee of 10
Aboriginal youth responsible for handing out nearly $1 million in
project funds every year, invited youth to create ideas in Open Space on
a Saturday and then come again on a Sunday and attend a workshop they
offered on proposal writing and project development.  Youth brought
their ideas back, work-shopped them and produced proposals which were
then submitted to the committee for consideration.  It worked really
well, very much in the spirit of the OST event Don Ferretti recently
wrote about.

So I agree with you.  Open Space has the possibility of changing
everything.  It's the least we can do to encourage sponsors to really
dig into that idea and create further space for things to actually
change.  We can open space in both the event and the organization and in
the individuals as well, including the sponsors and those with their
hands on the money and power in the organization or community.

And, by the way, I think Harrison is right.  Once the sponsor is clear,
and the markers and paper are in the middle of the room, trusting the
process is the only thing that works.  To return to the cynic for a
moment, if you can't trust that a new world IS possible, you better not
fool around with a process that just might create one.  :-)

Chris

---
CHRIS CORRIGAN
Bowen Island, BC, Canada
http://www.chriscorrigan.com
chris at chriscorrigan.com

(604) 947-9236






> -----Original Message-----
> From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of
Visuelle
> Protokolle
> Sent: Monday, December 01, 2003 3:13 AM
> To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
> Subject: AW: outcomes
>
> hello all,
> Chris , you got me again, like several times before.
>
> I was thinking of leaving this list serve, because  since months I got
> bored
> more and more . I felt to be in the wrong group. a group more and more
> interested in talking again and again about all the little steps of
the
> method, and more and more meeting oneselves in OsonOsonOssses, and
then to
> show the family pictures around. Sorry, I don't  want to offend
someone.
> But
> I remember a time when I was curious every morning to look at the
incoming
> mails from the OS list, and learned a lot from the freshness of your
> mails.
>
> I never was leading a OS session myself, so I always looked at your
> discussions somehow from the outside. From this point of view I felt,
> already some years ago,  that this beautiful method has two weak
points.
> Maybe you are interested in this view from an outsider with a little
bit
> of
> insight from about 12  OS I could participate in, so I tell you my
> opinion:
>
> One weak point as I see it is the way you gather the outcome in hand-
or
> pc
> written protocolls, documents of the same low quality as in most of
the
> traditional meetings. I never opened one of the books that sometimes
were
> produced.  Since I am a Visual Facilitator, you won't wonder that I
> recommend strongly to produce handdrawn notes of the outcome, as I did
in
> a
> dozen or so of Open Space conferences, to the great pleasure of the
> participants, as a group memory and base for next steps. Since
everybody
> is
> walking from group to group without an overeview, such a sample of
> drawings
> could bring the whole scene into everybodys sight.
>
> And since rather often it will be too expensive to engage another
person
> (Graphic Recorder, Visual Facilitator) to produce images during the
> conference, the emphasis should be layed on images the participants
draw
> themselves. I see a huge possibility to develop something beautiful
here.
>
> The second weak point, as I feel it, is the next stage after the
> conference.
> I see that Birgit Williams is doing a lot there. I felt from the first
OS
> I
> took part that this next step was a very important condition for
success.
> Several times I made the proposal, that the owner of the process
should in
> advance declare his support for the following stage. For example the
> people
> standing up with a theme could be encouraged, could be given time and
> maybe
> money, and official support to continue with their theme in the
> organisation
> afterwards, and meet again after some weeks to report, hopefully
together
> with the person leading the OS.
>
> The image document I mentioned before could give a real good base for
this
> process.
>
> I remember making this proposal to Harrison Owen some four or fife
years
> ago, but he only told me I should trust the process.
>
> So I am looking forward whether there will be discussion in your group
> about
> these items, and whether I will get inflamed again.
>
> Greetings
>
> Reinhard
>
> Mit freundlichen Gruessen
> Best regards
>
> VISUELLE PROTOKOLLE
> Kuchenmueller & Dr. Stifel
>
> Munich Germany
>
> Tel: +49-89-202 447 48
>
> www.visuelle-protokolle.de
>
>
>
>  Re: the flash in the pan thing.
>
> I'm concentrating a lot right now on what happens afterwards with
clients.
> I'm growing increasingly reluctant to stage one off OST meetings
unless we
> have really dealt with post-event follow-up to support what gets
opened in
> the organization or community.  I'm focusing my efforts on working
with
> clients to find ways to support the responsibility part of OST, which
is
> the
> challenge.  Without it, passion is all you have and that's fine, but
not
> usually enough to make things happen.  OST invites responsibility and
> passion and so we need to create outlets to take that flow in the
> organization or community or we cut short many of the benefits of the
> process, and especially those benefits that the cynics might find most
> attractive.
>
> Think of it as releasing the storage of water in a reservoir.  If you
have
> not properly dug irrigation channels and prepared for how the water
will
> be
> used, much of it will simply run away to the sea.  I'd rather
carefully
> prepare irrigation channels for the amount and quality of the energy
> released in OST than to simply open space and hope the organization or
> community catches on to what's happening.
>
> This is certainly not to say that I am in the business of determining
> outcomes.  It's more like shining a light on the really powerful
potential
> outcomes, like organizational and personal transformation and ensuring
> that
> the leadership is prepared to support these should they arise.
Resourcing
> action plans is easy.  What happens if everyone in your team suddenly
gets
> passionate and decides to take the whole enterprise in a new
direction?
> Saying "no" or "maybe we'll look at that" is sometimes not the best
> answer.
>
> Chris
>
> ---
> CHRIS CORRIGAN
> Bowen Island, BC, Canada
> http://www.chriscorrigan.com
> chris at chriscorrigan.com
> (604) 947-9236
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of Mike
> Copeland
> Sent: Sunday, November 30, 2003 2:29 PM
> To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
> Subject: Re: outcomes
>
> G'day Chris
> I get this cynical stuff a bit myself:  "OST is just another theory or
> gimmicky facilitation method."
> I believe OST is not just a process or a new theory but possibly the
way
> humans work best when they tap into their inner most being and work
from
> there.  When one gets use to working from one's core (passion,
> response-ability) after a while there seems no other way to be!
Strange
> thing is, because this way of being is soooooo... foreign to most
people
> they will say and do anything to avoid working from their inner self.
Its
> part of the human journey:  "to slay the dragon upon whose every scale
are
> the words 'thou shalt!'" (Joseph Campbell)
> I've come to realise resistance, criticism and cynicism are
reflections
> more
> of the people's relationship to themselves than any inherent flaws in
OST.
> My response is usually to accept their complaints and realise this is
> where
> they are at and "the space is always open."(Helen Patterson)
> I must admit to feeling that whenever people say there are faults in
open
> space they are still fixed in a "Thou Shalt" mode, still waiting for
> someone
> to come up with the one, right, true way.  There is no such thing!
"The
> way"
> is within each of us.  There is nothing in open space that will tell
you
> what to do. The limitations are only as limited as your imagination.
> I also here you about the one off nature of an OST meeting. I felt
this
> after our initial team meeting back in August.  No sooner had we
finished
> what was a memorable two days of talking and meeting, like I have
never
> experienced in our team before, than we all ferreted back into our
little
> cubby holes to get back to the 'real' work.
> This "flash in the pan" experience is why we are trying OST as an
> organisation wide practise. Some people want it, others are open,
others
> see
> it as some wacko gimmick. I'd say we are all at different levels of
> slaying
> that dragon, and that's fine.  Whoever comes are the right people,
> Whatever
> happens is the only thing that could have.
>
> If open space is singing you as much as it has me, a one off meeting
will
> not suffice. Get out out of the frying pan and into the fire!
> All the best
> Mike Copeland
>
>
>
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