The NEXT Paradigm

[Therese Fitzpatrick]

Thank you, Michael Herman, for pointing out that OS is a practice,
much more than a tool.  You captured something I have been trying to
write to the list each time I read folks speculate about what the next
paradigm might be.

The next paradigm, for me, is conscious organizations.  And, for me,
the practice of conscious organizations is the practice of open space.

In the Spirited Work (SW) community, which has been an ongoing,
collective practice of open space for seven years, we have found that
there is a significant, tangible quality to any work any members of
the community do with each other.  By consciously aspiring to live in
to the principles of open space together, we have created richer
selves and richer collectives/work groups.  Practicing open space
consciously in a collective is, I think, analogous to collective
meditation.

Larry Pederson (sp?), a prominent OS practitioner and member of this
list, visited Spirited Work (SW) last summer.  I saw Larry at a
meeting this spring and he told me that he was very glad that he had
visited SW because he had been able to feel the energetic field we had
created.  It meant a lot to me to have an 'outsider' validate what we
have learned:  that a conscious, collective aspiration to 'be' and
'do' differently can be achieved.  I believe any organization can
achieve a collective, energetic consciousness by doing what we have
done in SW.

For me, the next paradigm is to open more space.  If I had a magic
wand and I could do any work in the world that I might wish, I would
choose to work with an organization to design a collective practice of
open space with the intention to create a more conscious organization.
 I am an expert, having several years practice stewarding SW and
working on many work groups composed primarily of other SW alum.

One does not have to do SW to achieve this shift in consciousness, of
course.  There are many ways a person can achieve individual and/or
collective conscious growth.  But for me, I will always prefer to
collaborate with people who have integrated the practice of open space
(or something very closely like it) into their being and doing.

For me, the next paradigm is more open space.  It fascinates me that
some people think the grass is greener on the other side, that there
must be something new or different just beyond our grasp. Or that some
people think OS is not enough, that there must be something more.

I follow all the trends.  World Cafe, Appreciative Inquiry,
Evolutionary Salons.  Everything and everyone is moving towards open
space.



--
Warmly,
Therese Fitzpatrick, MS, JD

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