Another newbie excited about Open Space

[Jasmine Lamb]

I just joined the list serve this evening after a long day of researching
and reading about Open Space.  It is reassuring to see that their are real
people out there really doing this.  I'm moved by the generosity of all I
read about open space and the generosity I see in only the first few posts
I've received on this list serve.

This summer I used Open Space for the first time within an organization I am
a part of.  We used it as our staff orientation for a two week summer arts
program for high school students.  We have a relatively stable staff that
have been coming together to create this project for many many years.
Everyone is artists and passionate about this work.  For years though our
orientation left us a bit drained and remembering what annoyed us about each
other.  This year with big changes imposed on the project and determined to
have a good time if nothing else, I introduced everyone to the concept of
open space and we spent the day engaged in the most passionate conversation,
silliness and fun we've ever had together.  Plus we all took care of
ourselves taking breaks (I got a bunch of work done in the office) going
down town for ice cream, catching up with each other.  Together we not only
generated more and better ideas than ever before, we fell in love with each
other again and proceeded to have the very best program ever.  I wasn't
going to write all this but I just couldn't help sharing my testimonial.

I'm committed in my life at the moment to exploring and deepening my
understanding of effortlessness.  Just allowing my life to unfold with out
trying to manipulate it into something.  I just got called to do a
facilitation for a local faith organization and after meeting with them and
hearing about the conflicts their community is in, the sense of frustration
they are experiencing, their need to make specific decisions soon, I heard
myself suggesting open space effortlessly!  And they immediately were so
excited about it.  So now I am about to facilitate as on outsider my first
open space meetings.  I'm excited and nervous and particularly concerned
about how to ensure that certain decisions get made in a collaborative,
constructive, thoughtful way.  Right now we have half day meetings scheduled
about a month apart.  I'm hoping to make the meeting times a little longer
on each day and thinking that at the end of the first day I'll invite people
to continue or initiate new conversations to have between our meetings.
Then at the second meeting (when I hope lots more members will come who did
not attend the first meeting) I have to decide how to incorporate specific
decision making into the day or trust decisions will emerge?  yikes?  Maybe
I should just wait and see how meeting number one goes and what emerges
before worrying about how a convergence type process will take place.

Sorry to go on so long...it is a sign of my excitement. Maybe my questions
will become more specific as I move through this process.

Jasmine Lamb
PO Box 274
Montpelier, VT
05601
jasmineopal at verizon.net
 
"I get up every morning determined to change the world and to have
one hell of a good time.  Sometimes this makes planning the day difficult"
                                --E.B. White




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

To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs:
http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.openspacetech.org/pipermail/oslist-openspacetech.org/attachments/20060904/52c49588/attachment-0015.htm>