Advice on running Open Space with 250-300 people

[Harrison Owen]

Aslak -- It occurs too me that Jack's comment about his "batty" state may be
more about learning style and differences in generations than about Open
Space. Never having experienced several hours of Lightning Speeches I must
say that just the thought of it is sufficient to bring me into Jack's
corner, although I may well have been Batty long before. But I must confess
that I have much the same reaction when attending music/video productions by
my son and his friends. Call it sensory overload or whatever but the
experience of several hours of simultaneous multiple images and sounds is so
overwhelming (to me) as to be mind numbing. And yet it is quite obvious from
the reactions of everybody else that they are in a very different place --
They love it. Probably the 'ol Curmudgeon Syndrome.

Harrison

Harrison Owen
7808 River Falls Drive
Potomac, Maryland   20854
Phone 301-365-2093
Skype hhowen
Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com 
Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org
Personal website www.ho-image.com 
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-----Original Message-----
From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of aslak
hellesoy
Sent: Saturday, January 05, 2008 1:31 AM
To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
Subject: Re: Advice on running Open Space with 250-300 people

On Jan 5, 2008 12:08 AM, kerry napuk <k at napuk.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> Alask
>

It's Aslak

> One wonderful thing about Open Space and the OSLIST is to hear
> different views without feeling comments are personal.
>

Thanks for sharing that. I incorrectly assumed in my previous email
that you were suggesting we did something "wrong". Sorry about that.

> I assume people came because the invitation and theme interested them.
> If so, they probably wanted to discuss issues of direct interest.
> Otherwise, they might as well attend a lecture and sit in rows theatre
> style, not circles.
>
> The difference between LGPs or LGIs is that all are bottom up,
> participative processes,  reversing conventional and deadly top down
> approaches of control freaks.  It's not that "messages from the top"
> are inherently bad but the fact that most organisations fail to allow
> anything else.
>

I have experienced the same. When I introduced OS in my own
organisation (200 people) a year ago there was lots of scepticism, but
in retrospect people enjoy it and practice it frequently now.

> I am glad your event was successful, but hearing "experts" presenting
> rapid fire one to ten minute presentations for a whole morning would
> have driven me batty.
>

I don't know where you got the impression that the people giving
lighting talks are so-called experts. I've been at several different
events that use Lighting Talks, and what is common for the vast
majority of the speakers is the exact opposite. They are not experts,
don't claim to be it and are not regarded as such by the audience. The
people giving LTs are usually completely unknown in their community.
They just have a story to tell that they think is valuable to others.
The LT format lowers the barrier for unexperienced speakers to tell
their story. It's not a lecture.

LTs are probably unsuitable for fully converted orthodox OS
practitioners, but that's not the audience most people are targeting
with an event. Our audience was mostly new to both LT and OS and from
what I can tell the many LTs had a positive effect on the OS sessions.
I encourage you to attend a pecha kucha night (look it up) near where
you live to learn more about it.

Cheers,
Aslak

> Regards
>
> Kerry
>
>
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