Facilitator must be part of the conversations
Alan Stewart
alanmstewart at gmail.com
Mon Aug 6 22:01:40 PDT 2007
Dear Doug and All
You certainly have triggered lively and constructive conversation from your initiating and pursuing this thread.
I posted a contribution to it (below), rather hurriedly, without properly explaining what was underlying my seemingly whimsical thinking.
Briefly, when I raised invoked the notion of how an opera 'emerges' what I neglected to add
was: "See what happens when you transpose 'open space' for 'opera'each time you see this in the quote ."
I wonder what you notice when you do so?
I will likely develop ideas on this under a new thread such as 'Opening space as artistry', some
time. (I am off tonight to London, UK, to visit with family members there and with my friend
Romy Shovelton just before she leaves the big city to live in Wales).
For this I could draw on a piece I wrote some time ago - as yet unpublished - on 'The leader as conversational artist.'
And invoke images of the swirl of dance, music, symphony, orchestration .
In doing so suggest that, while there may be artistic dimensions to 'what is going on' when a person opens and holds space which may be beyond our conscious awareness and knowing - as Lisa, Mark and others refer to - these may be taken into account through the manner of being of people who dwell in open space.
Does this have a bearing on 'The facilitator must be part of the conversations'? :-)
Looking forward
Go well
Alan
The music that can deepest reach
And cure all ill, is cordial speech. R W Emerson
... A fresh, coherent view emerges. Participants become the "music" as it is being created. and it is heard
so deeply that it is not heard at all. Cited by Keith McCandless.
Date: Wed, 1 Aug 2007 10:23:11 +0800
Reply-To: OSLIST <[log in to unmask]>
Sender: OSLIST <[log in to unmask]>
From: Alan Stewart <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: Facilitator must be part of the conversations
Dear All
Following on from Lisa's comments here is an excerpt from an interview with
Peter Sellars, the American theatre director with whom I happen to have a
fine personal connection. Hence my 'noticing' Peter's statement in the
context of this thread initiated and pursued by Doug.
Which may go some way to providing illumination for your searching, Doug :-)
The full interview can be seen at
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/questionofgod/voices/sellars.html
Interviewer: You've said that opera has always been about the gods. What
exactly did you mean by that?
PETER SELLARS: Well ... human beings need permission, and usually that's
metaphor, to recognize that there are many layers of reality moving at any
given moment, and that every small gesture has very large consequences. So
opera is this amazing form, which takes a gesture, and understands it
through music, poetry, dance, visual art, all at the same time.
"The artist's work is to lift people out of their usual sense of their own
cosmos into a higher vision of what's going on up there."
A whole galaxy is in place around these four actions. You thought you were
just writing a letter to someone, but in fact, there was a whole symphony
orchestra playing. In fact there was a chorus singing. In fact, it's like a
bigger deal. Opera constantly gives you that perspective shift; that glimpse
of spiritual activity inside of the simplest and quietest moments ...
Go well
With love
Alan
----- Original Message -----
From: "Lisa Heft" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, August 01, 2007 4:21 AM
Subject: Re: Facilitator must be part of the conversations
> Hello, all, and thanks for this conversation --
>
> Personally, it is very important for me to be aware of the inherent power
> dynamic I carry with me. Whether I see myself as this or not, others can
> often see me (the facilitator) as the expert, the person who knows so
> much, the person who has wide experience in the field. Again - whether it
> is true or not. And culturally, some in the group may feel that the
> teacher (or whomever) is to be respected. And / or that s/he may have
> extra words of wisdom. And so on.
>
> Also, for me, it is very important that if the group is working on some
> issue I really need to be involved with - that I find a colleague to
> facilitate instead of me. That I make a decision to either be a
> participant or a facilitator / space-holder for the group.
>
> To me, that is serving the group. To be a clean and clear holder of space
> so that they can do their best work.
>
> Might I have some content information that can help them? Sometimes. But
> I can always tell them that after the meeting. Am I interested in what
> they're talking about? Maybe passionately. But I can always read their
> notes in the Book of Proceedings - I can even sneak around and pick up
> coffee cups a bit more often in their area. Do I want to listen in on
> their conversations? Possibly. Even when I am drawn closer to listen, I
> try to be aware of my body language - to stand to the side and not
> directly face the group, for example (because it can distract them) and
> then to be sure that I leave soon. Why? Because it is their work, not
> mine.
>
> Even when someone calls me over to a group - for example it's about AIDS
> education and someone might say 'Lisa, can you tell us what you do when
> you teach this in prison?' or whatever -- I will come and answer their
> question, even (if they know me well) share thoughts for a minute - but I
> will make sure to then get up and leave before I find that the
> conversation is question and answer with Lisa.
>
> There are breaks, sometimes lunch - other times in which folks may find me
> for some conversation - and to me that is a bit different than their work
> in sessions. Still, I am careful not to direct or recommend content,
> rather I am happy to engage in conversation.
>
> When the group knows me *really* well I do not carry any power dynamic
> with me - they don't care - don't see my input weighing any more than any
> one else's. Still, I don't stay in group conversations. I alight, if
> anything. Because my role that day is to hold space for them.
>
> And I never post sessions when I am facilitating. If I have something I
> want them to talk about - to me, this would be my attachment to where they
> go and what they talk about - and that, to me, is an indication I should
> have brought in someone else in the facilitator role so I can jump on in
> as a participant.
>
> Some of you do things differently and I welcome that - this is just
> explaining what my inner thinking is for why I do or do not engage as a
> participant.
>
> And I don't feel it is witholding my fullest self - I feel it is offering
> my fullest self...in service to them, to their work.
>
> Just another thought from someone who may do this as you do or not do this
> as you do, dear readers,
>
> Lisa
>
> [log in to unmask]
> http://www.openingspace.net
>
About the OSLIST
Date: Wed, 1 Aug 2007 10:23:11 +0800
Reply-To: OSLIST <[log in to unmask]>
Sender: OSLIST <[log in to unmask]>
From: Alan Stewart <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: Facilitator must be part of the conversations
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
reply-type=original
Dear All
Following on from Lisa's comments here is an excerpt from an interview with
Peter Sellars, the American theatre director with whom I happen to have a
fine personal connection. Hence my 'noticing' Peter's statement in the
context of
this thread initiated and pursued by Doug.
Which may go some way to providing illumination for your searching, Doug :-)
The full interview can be seen at
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/questionofgod/voices/sellars.html
Interviewer: You've said that opera has always been about the gods. What
exactly did you
mean by that?
PETER SELLARS: Well ... human beings need permission, and usually that's
metaphor, to recognize that there are many layers of reality moving at any
given moment, and that every small gesture has very large consequences. So
opera is this amazing form, which takes a gesture, and understands it
through music, poetry, dance, visual art, all at the same time.
"The artist's work is to lift people out of their usual sense of their own
cosmos into a higher vision of what's going on up there."
A whole galaxy is in place around these four actions. You thought you were
just writing a letter to someone, but in fact, there was a whole symphony
orchestra playing. In fact there was a chorus singing. In fact, it's like a
bigger deal. Opera constantly gives you that perspective shift; that glimpse
of spiritual activity inside of the simplest and quietest moments ...
Go well
With love
Alan
----- Original Message -----
From: "Lisa Heft" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, August 01, 2007 4:21 AM
Subject: Re: Facilitator must be part of the conversations
> Hello, all, and thanks for this conversation --
>
> Personally, it is very important for me to be aware of the inherent power
> dynamic I carry with me. Whether I see myself as this or not, others can
> often see me (the facilitator) as the expert, the person who knows so
> much, the person who has wide experience in the field. Again - whether it
> is true or not. And culturally, some in the group may feel that the
> teacher (or whomever) is to be respected. And / or that s/he may have
> extra words of wisdom. And so on.
>
> Also, for me, it is very important that if the group is working on some
> issue I really need to be involved with - that I find a colleague to
> facilitate instead of me. That I make a decision to either be a
> participant or a facilitator / space-holder for the group.
>
> To me, that is serving the group. To be a clean and clear holder of space
> so that they can do their best work.
>
> Might I have some content information that can help them? Sometimes. But
> I can always tell them that after the meeting. Am I interested in what
> they're talking about? Maybe passionately. But I can always read their
> notes in the Book of Proceedings - I can even sneak around and pick up
> coffee cups a bit more often in their area. Do I want to listen in on
> their conversations? Possibly. Even when I am drawn closer to listen, I
> try to be aware of my body language - to stand to the side and not
> directly face the group, for example (because it can distract them) and
> then to be sure that I leave soon. Why? Because it is their work, not
> mine.
>
> Even when someone calls me over to a group - for example it's about AIDS
> education and someone might say 'Lisa, can you tell us what you do when
> you teach this in prison?' or whatever -- I will come and answer their
> question, even (if they know me well) share thoughts for a minute - but I
> will make sure to then get up and leave before I find that the
> conversation is question and answer with Lisa.
>
> There are breaks, sometimes lunch - other times in which folks may find me
> for some conversation - and to me that is a bit different than their work
> in sessions. Still, I am careful not to direct or recommend content,
> rather I am happy to engage in conversation.
>
> When the group knows me *really* well I do not carry any power dynamic
> with me - they don't care - don't see my input weighing any more than any
> one else's. Still, I don't stay in group conversations. I alight, if
> anything. Because my role that day is to hold space for them.
>
> And I never post sessions when I am facilitating. If I have something I
> want them to talk about - to me, this would be my attachment to where they
> go and what they talk about - and that, to me, is an indication I should
> have brought in someone else in the facilitator role so I can jump on in
> as a participant.
>
> Some of you do things differently and I welcome that - this is just
> explaining what my inner thinking is for why I do or do not engage as a
> participant.
>
> And I don't feel it is witholding my fullest self - I feel it is offering
> my fullest self...in service to them, to their work.
>
> Just another thought from someone who may do this as you do or not do this
> as you do, dear readers,
>
> Lisa
>
> [log in to unmask]
> http://www.openingspace.net
>
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