Thoughts on a Town Crier

Tree Fitzpatrick therese.fitzpatrick at gmail.com
Mon Jan 14 10:54:52 PST 2008


Greetings to all. Before I respond to Peggy's 'town crier' post, I pause to
remind all who might be reading that when I share my opinion, I am not
putting down others' comments. Sometimes when I have commented on this list
(and others) people seem to hear me putting down others' ideas when I am
simply saying "I think this".  I am feeling unusually sensitive this morning
so I offer this caution.

It is fascinating to me, Peggy, to see this post from you today.  Last week,
I was thinking about open space time and how it works best when we trust
ever more deeply within our own selves without regard to others timing.  As
you know, Peggy, you and I met in person on Friday and we did not discuss
open space time but it was alive in my etheric. Perhaps it was alive in me
because it was alive in you because of your recent work with Jon. Or perhaps
open space time was alive last week and we both tuned in.

The above paragraph might sound off-topic but to me, it gets to the very
heart of self-organization.  The more I believe that things unfold exactly
as they ought, well, my goodness, the more they do.

Last week when I thought about 'open space time', each time, I thought of
you, my dear Peggy.  I have worked with you on several multi-day OS events
and several times I have been grateful to hear you softly remind the design
team 'we are in open space time'.  It is my recollection that you have said
this when the design team was feeling a time crunch, fretting that we
couldn't get in all that we had to get in and then you would say 'we are in
open space time' and an ease would settle upon us.

We are always in open space. We are always in open space time.  As an open
space facilitator, I think much like Tova has described in her response to
you, Peggy. The quality of how the facilitator holds the space is really the
work of facilitation.  We are not timekeepers or town criers.  If a
facilitator does remind participants of session times, this will be just
fine because in open space, there is no right or wrong but I think
announcing times is a subtle failure of trust. To me, the work of open space
facilitation is much deeper than any particular event and much more
important than a client's deliverables. To me, giving a group the
opportunity to collaborate in open space on a shared intention is always
about much more than the stated goals in the event's invitation. Yes, when
we are accountable to a client who has hired us because they wish to achieve
goals, sometimes we will calibrate our choices to give the cilent
satisfaction. But mostly, I guess I think of  open space facilitators as
cultural capacity shamans. The human race urgently needs to learn how to
trust that all is well and to trust our inner inklings/guidance and the best
wya for the human race to develop these skills is to spend time in
openly-acknowledged open space.  If someone comes to an OS event and 'all'
they get out of the event is that moment when they noticed an inner click
that said to them 'it is time to move to another session', well, that is an
amazing thing, that is the whole point, that is evolution unfolding.  If
someone calls the time, we are depriving participants from knowing for their
own self what time it is, where they should be, what they should be doing.
What an awesome gift to give someone. I will never forget the first moment I
got that click when I was in an OS event and I perceived within myself that
I was in the wrong room and hey I could follow that inkling until I stood in
the place just right. That is os facilitation, if you ask me.

I know the above can sound highy impractical to a client with workplace
goals to achieve in a 2.5 day open space or a two hour open space. . . but
for me, having each participant in an os event begin to better discern their
own wisdom, well, it is the whole point.

Coming to you from cold, overcast, and windy Whidbey Island. Puget Sound and
the Olympic Mountains are within my view, just past the computer screen. I
see lots of white caps. It is way cold.  I miss my warm, sunny home in
California and I have another week of Northwest winter ahead of me.  There
is a reason I am very cold this week. I am sitting here waiting for that
reason to be revealed to me. My fingers are like ice. I write to keep warm.

On 1/14/08, Mickey Averbuch <averbuch at post.tau.ac.il> wrote:
>
> for me it was letting go of the notion that there is "a way to do it
> right". I started by being very puritan"by the book" and I am very
> glad I did. it helped me a lot in stating to live open space in my
> daily life and uncovering what open space is. Being the one to bring
> the use of OST to Israel had put me both in a position I had quite a
> lot of figuring out to do and, at the same time, felt I have to be a
> puritan if I am "carrying the message". The lean choice was also a
> constant dictate to do "one thing less each time" and I believe that
> as long as we practice this principle, we are on the right track.Beinf
> fortunatr enough towork and play with many of you, learning from
> coleagues and freinds all over the world, seeing quit a number of
> styles, my personal openion is that it is more the presence we ofer
> than the actual personal wording
> these are my two cents of the day
>   a happy new year to all, though with some delay
> Tova Averbuch
> Holon, Israel
>
> Quoting TYASTO <tyasto at sapa.nsk.su>:
>
> > Dear Peggy, Michael, Elena and others!
> >
> > I will support Elena and tell why we are doing this in our part of the
> > world. We have the lucky opportunity to introduce OST to different
> > categories of the state and municipal civil servants here at the
> Siberian
> > Academy for Public Administration (SAPA). It's written in their program
> as
> > Business game with the theme on improving their work.They come to us for
> 3
> > and often for only 2 hours. It gives us only 30 minutes for each item:
> > Introduction (including moving tables and putting chairs into the
> circle), 2
> > sessions and Closure (in case of 2 hours). In 3 hours I have some time
> for
> > reports, voting and convergence and after it Closing circle. As I call
> it
> > Voluntarily-compulsory participation in  OST. Great majority of our
> > participants have no idea what to expect from this event and we have a
> very
> > short time to invite them and explaine it as a good way to have
> > conversations about issues and opportunities of How to improve their
> work.
> > In first 30 minutes they have a collective cultural shock while they are
> > sitting in the circle and facilitator going inside telling them what
> they
> > can do and everything is OK even to go away if they don't like it ( in
> this
> > case it is voluntary participation). Common reaction is : We all will be
> > butterflies today. Then, as Harrison said it happens always everywhere,
> some
> > people begin to write the topics and all works well. When people at the
> > Market place are trying to realize what to do and where to go I wish
> them
> > all well and say when we will meet again in the circle and go out. But
> then
> > I usually come back at the time of change between sessions to see if
> they do
> > it or not.  Sometimes they can do it themselves, sometimes little bit
> later
> > than on the schedule. But their shock of freedom is so big and they have
> > such a fun talking in their first groups and leaders of the second
> sessions
> > are too weak to break it, that mostly they expect someone to take the
> lead
> > and say - now it is time for the second session or they miss it at all.
> I do
> > the same as "Town crier", saying - it's time for the second session, but
> > it's up to you what you are doing now. Then they can move or not. I
> agree
> > with Elena that when we have such short time we have to encourage them
> to
> > take the lead and organize second groups. Sometimes they come all into
> one
> > big circle and discuss all issues alltogether. The energy is high, they
> have
> > great fun, but some issues even discussed, don't get the reports.
> > I learnt to take it easy and let them  do whatever they want during this
> 2
> > or 3 hours, because I know that at the end they say - it was the best in
> our
> > 2 weeks here and it should be at the beginning of the course. Each time
> > somebody says "I will do it at my working place". I give them short
> written
> > instructions.
> > What else you don't do normally - listen the reports - I do it every
> time -
> > have them in the circle to share briefly their reports. I have a 3
> minutes
> > sand-glass and show to them, but don't interrupt. They have chance to
> ask
> > questions or discuss something. If it goes longer I show the principle
> "When
> > it's not over it's not over" and say that it needs additional
> discussion.
> > Because my class takes place normally at the end of their 2 weeks course
> > this sharing in the circle is the only way they could really see the
> results
> > of their work and feel their collective wisdom. They always say that
> they
> > learnt more from each other than from all their other classes.
> > You will be surprised, but I also collect their reports and type them
> and
> > give them back to take home with them as tangible "Collective wisdom",
> > because it's no other way yet - they don't have access to computers.
> >  So, you see, we really do some more things than you and probably do it
> in a
> > different way. But I realized that even 2 hours in open space is more
> > powerful than two weeks of passive learning from teachers. That is why I
> try
> > to use every opportunity to introduce OST to every possible group. The
> > shortest one I had OST in 1,5 hours with a group of trainers, where we
> all
> > worked very fast, but had all 4 items - opening, 2 sessions and closing.
> If
> > i don't have much time for closing I send the bell and ask people to say
> one
> > word or two. It's always positive and inspiring. I believe that we have
> > homeopathic influencing on the civil servants in Siberia through these
> short
> > OST classes at SAPA. Some people come and say "I've heard about a
> workshop
> > which is must to participate". We help people to feel happier, more
> > self-confident  and be leaders. If additional ring of the bell helps us
> to
> > do this, we will ring. By the way, for the Russian people tibetian bells
> > work magicly. I also like the arrow, but someone have to come and move
> it.
> > With warm greetings from cold Siberia,
> >
> > Marina Tyasto
> > tyasto at sapa.nsk.su <mailto:tyasto at sapa.nsk.su>
> >
> >  -----Original Message-----
> > From: Elena Marchuk [mailto:marco at mail.nsk.ru]
> > Sent: Monday, January 14, 2008 8:25 AM
> > To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
> > Subject: Re: Thoughts on a Town Crier
> >
> >
> >
> > Dear Peggy,
> > I wish I could NOT ring the bells and let participants to work as they
> care,
> > but most OSs I provide are very limited in time, and several time I
> missed
> > the time by chance (though not much...) I could see, that people are
> just
> > seeting and talking in a previous groups. If I had the time to give them
> a
> > 'teach' that it is their way of doing things and will have time to
> 'spread'
> > time for another quant of session, I would probably do, but I'm affraid,
> may
> > be it is ok to be, and just do, but I'm afraid, that we would have just
> no
> > time for the next session, so I usualy ring, though say in opening, that
> it
> > is up to them, how they will work, I would just be a Town Crier, as you
> > say...
> >
> > thank you for the question
> > warm hugs from -25 C Siberia with a lot of snow, though sun shining :)
> >
> > elena marchuk
> > novosibirsk
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: Peggy Holman <mailto:peggy at opencirclecompany.com>
> > To: OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU <mailto:
> OSLIST at LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU>
> > Sent: Sunday, January 13, 2008 11:22 PM
> > Subject: Thoughts on a Town Crier
> >
> > Has anyone noticed more milling about before people move into sessions
> over
> > the last few years?  I'd been noticing enough of a trend this way that I
> > always intend to explicitly tell people that there won't be anyone
> telling
> > them when to move, that it is up to them to follow their own rhythms and
> > interests.  I haven't quite internalized this yet, so I usually forget.
> > Anyway, I think I may have figured out what is going on.
> >
> > I just did an OS for a friend for a group of about 50.  He uses OS a lot
> but
> > wanted to be able to really participate in this one.   He told me that
> he
> > was a little surprised when the first round of breakout sessions was
> > starting that I didn't tell people it was time to get started.  He came
> to
> > me when the first round after lunch were scheduled to start and asked me
> > wasn't I going to ring a bell and let people know?  I basically told him
> > that I never did that.  The participants were adults and could figure it
> out
> > for themselves.  He was floored and a little upset.  He said he always
> lets
> > people know.  And then it dawned on me:  there are more and more people
> who
> > have experienced OS.  Perhaps there are many practitioners doing what
> Jon
> > does - telling people when it is time to start the next session.  I
> realized
> > that since most of these folks came at Jon's invitation, they were
> probably
> > enculturated to responding to a bell.
> >
> > So I took what seemed a middle ground to me and rang a bell, saying,
> "It's
> > 1:30 and all's well."  I figured a town crier was a minimalist thing to
> do
> > -- providing information without attachment to how people used it.
> >
> > I then spoke more with Jon because I wanted to understand his
> perspective.
> > He said that to him, what is posted, like the session start times, are
> part
> > of the commons and when he is holding the space, that is part of his
> > contract with the group, to give them the information.  He doesn't care
> what
> > they do once they hear it.  So, it strikes me that Town Crier is a good
> > description of what he does.
> >
> > Given the trend I mentioned, I suspect Jon isn't the only one doing
> > something like this.  I'd love to hear other thoughts on providing
> > information that marks the passage of time.
> >
> > from sunny (for a change) Seattle,
> > Peggy
> >
> > ________________________________
> > Peggy Holman
> > The Open Circle Company
> > 15347 SE 49th Place
> > Bellevue, WA  98006
> > (425) 746-6274
> >
> > www.opencirclecompany.com <http://www.opencirclecompany.com>
> >
> >
> > For the new edition of The Change Handbook, go to:
> > www.bkconnection.com/ChangeHandbook
> > <http://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
> > * * ==========================================================
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-- 
Love rays,
Tree Fitzpatrick

http://thecultureoflove.blogspot.com/

. . . the great and incalculable grace of love, which says, with Augustine,
"I want you to be," without being able to give any particular reason for
such supreme and unsurpassable affirmation.  -- Hannah Arendt

1335 Montecito Ave Apt. 35
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