Why is a grid sometimes useful?
Lisa Heft
lisaheft at openingspace.net
Tue Aug 4 17:32:20 PDT 2009
Hi, all.
I love this sharing of experiences about grid versus zero grid versus
things in-between.
I tried out a grid some years ago and used it for a few times,
thinking it reduced a step (zero post-its - you simply bring your
topic sheet up to the wall and place it). And then I stopped because
of a few impressions: It implied a finite number of topics (when in
my further experience I know now to always have a few additional
discussion spaces 'in my back pocket' to pull out if the wall fills up
- I like the 'no limits to the number of topics possible' idea). I
noticed also that if a very few number of topics went up sometimes
that would make a group feel 'we didn't do enough' - and we all know
that creativity and passionate discussion need not be measured by 'how
many'. And: and here is something I also do when working with groups
not in Open Space - a grid / lines have people thinking a bit more on
a linear basis, and often it can be very useful / help the brain think
in different ways if everything is not on straight lines. They see
relationships and patterns differently - as Harrison would say, they
feel it differently, too.
So I thought about how to help those visual learners who seek
patterns. Without intervening in their process at the wall. I went
back to zero grid, and instead, I used colors.
Imagine the 'blank' agenda wall has across it, way up high on the
wall, the discussion time zone signs (10:00-11:00) - let's say that
one is on *pink* paper.
The post-its that match that time zone (yes, i'm back to post-its
because it engages folks in interaction and thought) are also in pink,
to match.
The 11-12:00 time zone sign is in blue. And so are the corresponding
post-its.
All folks have to do is place the corresponding topic / color under
the time zone color. And the wall fills up - not linear, but
clustered, and you can see what's happening in each session time -
either by color or by the writing.
So as the groups go through their discussions - after the 10-11:00
discussion is over, the newsroom coordinator or I pull all the
10-11:00 topic signs off the wall. It's a great way to help the
newsroom coordinator organize / track which notes are coming into the
Newsroom, things like that. Participants - including new participants
- can always see what discussions are currently in session, just by
looking at the wall. In fact participants say things to newly-arrived
folks like "we're currently in the orange discussion session" just as
much as pointing to the time. And yes: they help each other.
So, to me, this inclusion of color helps those visually-oriented
people, while at the same time keeps the non-linear nature. And
brings some more lovely color into the room, which is an additional
benefit in the 'not like your normal meeting' environment.
Okay. So having said all this, I invite you, dear colleagues, to
experiment to see how you feel about the two approaches, if you have
not already done so. Or note your experience when you participate in
another facilitator's Open Space with a different set-up than yours.
See what you notice.
My hope is that any variations, adjustments or changes in the tools we
use (Open Space and otherwise) are done with thoughtfulness about who
we are serving, and what our adjustment does to the living system,
what it affects, improves or impacts - rather than a projection of our
own anxiety ("will the chaos unsettle them?""will this group be unlike
other groups of humans?").
By the way - a few years ago I consulted with some international teams
doing conflict transformation work using Open Space in Northern Iraq,
East Timor, Lebanon... exploring how this tool can be used in such hot
zone situations. My dear colleague Dr. Zach Metz feels that using a
grid - when literally, bombs are exploding right outside the doorway -
can give people a sense that - at least in this room, in this time we
are together - there is a frame - a container, bringing down the
exterior chaos by just a notch, as we create a safe space together.
Lisa
Lisa Heft
Consultant, Facilitator, Educator
Opening Space
lisaheft at openingspace.net
www.openingspace.net
Join me for the Open Space Learning Workshops
August 5-7 and December 9-11, San Francisco
*
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