intro & question-visioning during opening of OS?

Joelle Lyons Everett JLEShelton at aol.com
Wed Dec 10 10:41:19 PST 2003


Florian--

The place where visioning has been most useful to me in the past is in
working with organizations with a lot of internal conflict.  If I begin by asking
them to work with images instead of with words, it seems to bring up some of the
places where they are in agreement, and this provides a basis to begin
working together.  It seems to provide some hope that the group does have shared
dreams.

HOWEVER, the last time that an organization asked me to help them develop a
vision statement, I insisted that first we should have an Open Space conference
to provide a place where people could talk freely about their concerns and
fears about coming changes.  The work groups found workable solutions to many of
the things that were preventing them from moving ahead.

After the Open Space, the whole group worked together (the last hour of that
day, and during their staff meeting the following day) and collaboratively
created a vision statement.  They produced a "Book of Visions," with the vision
statement on the cover and reports from the breakout sessions inside.  And
every recommendation was implemented during the coming months.

You are absolutely right that visions are mostly about what presently exists.
 And that the self-organizing of Open Space creates a synergy that can lead
to new possibilities.  Thanks for stating it so clearly!

Joelle

*
*
==========================================================
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