FW: The challenge of "luminaries"

Mon Aug 20 08:06:05 PDT 2007

Catherine - I would be a little careful with "witnesses," especially if
those "witnesses" are what you might call "power figures." Several years ago
I was called in to facilitate an Open Space which had been arranged by
somebody else. It seemed that the original facilitator had become sick or
something, and I was called in at the very last moment knowing little more
than the date and place. The purpose of the gathering was to re-energize and
re-direct a very large federal program, and the participants included the
federal managers as well as the non-federal  people (citizens) who related
to that program either as grantees (they received funding from the program)
or as representatives of external (non-federal) organizations and
associations whose cooperation was essential for the program's success. The
organizers, unbeknownst to me, had told all the Feds that they could be
present, but not say a word (witness) - all on the assumption that the
Federal silence would insure free and open discussion. The result was quite
the opposite. 

This was a two day program and all during the first day I had the feeling
that the whole group was simply going through the motions and doing so in a
very sluggish way - sort of like walking through thick molasses. I didn't
have a clue what was going on, but I did know that never before had I seen a
group behave that way in Open Space. The mystery remained for me until the
last session of the day when I noticed one group that was particularly
dysfunctional. The subject was important and yet when the convener would say
a few words he would be greeted by total silence. It turned out that most of
the people in that group were Feds who had been sworn to silence!

That was an extreme situation, but the other groups were not doing a lot
better. After the evening news I overheard a conversation that went
something like this - Two non-federal people were talking to each other and
remarked that having the silent feds in their groups really made them
nervous because they seemed to be sitting there in silent judgment. And when
you tried to talk to them either they would not answer or answered
evasively. Big Brother was watching!

The situation improved radically on the second day after I removed the gag
from the feds - with the organizers' permission. My learning in the whole
things was simply this. There are only participants in Open Space. Some
people will say a lot, some very little, but each should feel free to
participate in their own way. 

Subsequently in other situations I have found that the problem you are
anticipating just never really happens. I suppose that if there was 75%
professional cancer specialists and 25% patients you could have difficulty,
but if the vast majority are patients, and it is made very clear that this
is a "Patients Meeting" - no problem, just Open Space.

Harrison

  _____  

From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of Catherine
Pfaehler
Sent: Monday, August 20, 2007 2:14 AM
To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Subject: AW: The challenge of "luminaries"

Peggy, great question!

I am in a similar situation preparing for an Open Space with cancer
patients. The preparation group has decided that a few health care
professionals & experts will be invited, but with the explicit task to be
there as witnesses only. They will be asked not to answer individual
questions, as this would re-create the situation they are all used to -
experts speak, patients listen. This Open Space is a patients forum with
reversed roles, it belongs entirely to the patients.

Individual pre-talks are most valuable to explain the situation to
luminaries beforehand (the experts in our case will even get a briefing in
the morning). Plus, for journalists especially, who might be used to
observing situations from the outside AND Open Space not being a spectator
sport, it could be difficult for some to really become part of the system
and experience its assets first hand - because this would mean they have to
step out of the spectator role, and this could be a role they might not all
be aware of functioning in during most of the time of their lives. 

Also, some people who are used to the traditional conference format where
impulse speeches give input before anything else happens, have difficulties
to imagine how they could possibly translate one of their speeches into a
group workshop. Even if I always mention, in relation to the law of 2 feet
(and of self-responsibility, I add), that when they look at the wall and
find a topic missing, it might be exactly them who should add it to the
listed topics. This has happened to me with a journalist in the HIV+ Open
Space last year. The man then talked to me and deposited his ideas with me.
I later decided to bring his main question (a real taboo topic) into the
post-conference email-forum, and there it did trigger quite a big
discussion. (Of course he could / should have done this himself, but I
wasn't sure if he was at all part of this mail-forum, so I decided to bring
it in.)

Catherine

Catherine Pfaehler Senn

lic.oec.HSG

Open Space Begleitung

Kellersriedweg 8

CH - 2503 Biel

+41-(0)32 - 365 68 41

c.pfaehler at bluewin.ch

  _____  

Von: Peggy Holman [mailto:peggy at opencirclecompany.com] 
Gesendet: Sonntag, 19. August 2007 02:25
Betreff: The challenge of "luminaries"

Along with Stephen Silha, I just completed an Open Space with 150
journalists.  Actually, it was a mix of mainstream journalists, media
educators and students, and citizen journalists.  It is the 5th gathering of
the "system of journalism" that Stephen and I have done in the last 2 years.
It was also the largest.  Along with the size, it brought a new twist to our
journalism work.

We have developed a positive reputation and as a result, attracted a handful
of people considered expert in the changing landscape of journalism.  These
"luminaries" are used to being on stage, the ones others turn to as the
experts.  And, while ego may be a factor for some of them, they truly do
bring particularly valuable insights.

Following the conference, we head from one of them, who was quite turned off
by the whole experience. Here's an excerpt:

> Instead I was at a New Age, "open circle" conference where
> the questions were as flat and meaningless as possible so no one would
feel
> excluded.  

Just so we don't dwell on this individual, a variation of this luminary
situation occurred with the Nexus for Change.  In that examploe, I spoke
with one of the "luminaries" who had originally planned on attending.  She
cancelled at the last moment because she just didn't see a role for herself.
She described herself as a high introvert and without a role, felt she would
not be comfortable there.

So, here's my question:  these folks (even the ones with egos) have gifts to
offer.  What experiences have you had in creating conditions where
luminaries/elders/experts actually see a role for themselves and make a
productive contribution to an Open Space?

(In retrospect, my current thought is to talk to them beforehand and
encourage them to post a session on a question they wish to explore or, if
they don't feel the others present are sophisticated enough for their
question (whether that is actually the case is an entirely different
question), at least post a session on a subject they believe others would be
interested in learning about from them.)

thoughts?

curiously, 

Peggy

________________________________
Peggy Holman
The Open Circle Company
15347 SE 49th Place
Bellevue, WA  98006
(425) 746-6274 

www.opencirclecompany.com

For the new edition of The Change Handbook, go to: 
www.bkconnection.com/ChangeHandbook 

"An angel told me that the only way to step into the fire and not get burnt,
is to become 
the fire".
  -- Drew Dellinger

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

*
*
==========================================================
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/20070820/46dda98f/attachment-0016.htm>