doing self-organization

Harrison Owen hhowen at verizon.net
Thu May 24 12:38:36 PDT 2007


You are right Michael -- the passage was taken out of context, and since the
whole book is about High Performance in all dimensions, everything you
mention (and more) is included. The logic I have followed is something like:
High Performance occurs in human systems (towns, villages, families,
countries, businesses, etc) when those systems are able (enabled) to
function in a manner congruent with their essence (self-organizing). System
function diminishes, and may cease, when arbitrary controls and structures
are imposed. In other words we get seriously in trouble when we try to
organize a self-organizing system. What happens in Open Space (I think) is
that the system and all its constituent elements (that's us, folks) are able
to be themselves. We don't have to organize it, we don't have to structure
it, and we certainly can't control it. Seems to happen pretty much by
itself. All of which makes it fun, productive, energetic, and spirit filled.
I don't know that I would call it "doing self-organization" -- but BEING
self-organization might be close.

Harrison

Harrison Owen
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-----Original Message-----
From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of Michael
Herman
Sent: Thursday, May 24, 2007 12:22 PM
To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Subject: Re: doing self-organization

and harrison... looking back at your language about essentials, "the
process of self organization
can be enabled and sustained by paying careful attention to eight critical"

...it occurs to me that i'm not much interested in "the process of
self-organization... enabling it... or sustaining it.  more interested
in enabling high performance, sustaining life in neighborhood
communities, leading change in organization, or other purposes... but
no doubt this issue is only popping up because this bit you've posted
is taken out of context, so it's lost the links to these and all the
other "good" things that we would ever want to invite.  i imagine that
high performance and the rest are already wrapped up inside of what
you mean when you say 'self-organization' above.

m




On 5/24/07, Michael Herman <michael at michaelherman.com> wrote:
> hi doug,
>
> seems to me that your first question assumes halfway state.  "if there
> is such a thing as self-org" then leaves open the question of whether
> or not there is anything else.  once we notice that it is, AND is
> everywhere, then the need for knowing or creating the conditions seems
> to dissolve, maybe into harrison's beer.  we need to know more,
> perhaps, if we want to make a better beer, but probably not about the
> "conditions" for refrigeration, but about refrigeration as the
> condition for beer.  so the conditions that matter are the conditions
> for high performance or productive work.  and when we ask that, i
> think we can quickly dissolve most of what people say into what
> happens in our principles and law and circle and invitation and...
>
> inviting, like marshall rosenberg's 'non-violent communication,
> emphasizes choice.  invitation is request for attention, not demand.
> even in writing an invitation with a leader/sponsor, i'm not ever
> trying to make the invitation go a certain way, but i do invite
> attention (theirs) to focus on various bits of what i'm
> hearing/sensing in them and their situation, exploring the 'rightness"
> of these bits to see what dimensions of everything they'd like to
> invite others to focus on with them.
>
> my two cents.
>
> m
>
>
>
> On 5/24/07, douglas germann <76066.515 at compuserve.com> wrote:
> > Michael, Harrison, Joelle, Andrew, Pat, Raffi, and all--
> >
> > (Sorry for the previous posting--somehow hit the send key before I was
done.)
> >
> > Would you be interested in entertaining a couple of musing questions?
> >
> > If (some people in command and control mode might still use the word
> > "if") there is such a thing as self organizing, what would be its
> > conditions?
> >
> >         This seems to be to be a fruitful inquiry, and it goes beyond
> >         our usual important, complex, diverse, conflict, immediacy list.
> >         For me it perhaps overlaps but is not precisely the same as
> >         Harrison's list of 8 essentials.
> >
> >                 For instance, is invitation necessary for self
> >                 organizing? What level of freedom? What order of
> >                 equality of the participants? Are there physical
> >                 conditions? Or is it just two or more gathering?
> >
> > Closely related: What is the difference between trying to control what a
> > group does and inviting? (Harrison, you hinted at this in a post today
> > when you say "I believe that there is an infinitely better possibility
> > through which we may discover deep ways to realize our full potential as
> > human beings, as well as doing something very useful and good in the
> > world.") Is it simply a matter of degree, or is the difference
> > qualitative?
> >
> >                 For instance, when Birgitt writes of "givens," or I help
> >                 someone write the theme for their invitation, we are
> >                 consciously directing the attention of the participants
> >                 to something we want to examine or change. So for
> >                 instance, we are inviting people to make positive change
> >                 in the area of X, or to explore the issues and
> >                 opportunities of X, and this necessarily takes their
> >                 attention off Y, Z, Q and J.
> >
> >                                 :- Doug.
> >
> > *
> > *
> > ==========================================================
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>
>
> --
>
> Michael Herman
> Michael Herman Associates
> 300 West North Ave #1105
> Chicago IL 60610 USA
>
> phone: 312-280-7838
> email: michael at michaelherman.com
> skype: globalchicago
>
> http://www.michaelherman.com
> http://www.openspaceworld.org
> http://www.chicagoconservationcorps.org
>


-- 

Michael Herman
Michael Herman Associates
300 West North Ave #1105
Chicago IL 60610 USA

phone: 312-280-7838
email: michael at michaelherman.com
skype: globalchicago

http://www.michaelherman.com
http://www.openspaceworld.org
http://www.chicagoconservationcorps.org

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