OST following a creative enhacing training

Mon Nov 15 06:30:14 PST 2010

Hi Artur,

I'll join with others to say that Lisa captured my sentiments on splitting the opening.  Bad idea.  The principles and law help create a different culture.

To your other question of training beforehand, I'll offer a variation on Chris' "it depends".  Now, what I'm about to describe isn't training.  It is more about pre-  event activities.

As many of you know, I've been running Open Spaces with journalists since 2001 through an initiative called Journalism That Matters.  In the beginning it was Open Space, sometimes with a little story telling the opening evening.  We also paired participants to do appreciate phone interviews before they show up.  I notice that people come with a more upbeat attitude and are delighted to know someone new when they arrive.  It's subtle, but I think whatever venting needs to happen goes faster as a result.  I've actually tried to eliminate the interviews and the feedback I get is that even if participants don't take the time to do them, reading the questions gets them thinking about what they want before they arrive.  Is it more work?  Yes.  Is it essential?  No.  Does it add value?  I think so.

Further, after our gatherings got larger, a large minority of participants started complaining about disorientation when they got to the marketplace wall.  I learned early on that the culture of journalism  is quite defensive.  It is a field that doesn't handle change well at all.  (I even have data from an organization that studies organizational cultures.  It showed newsrooms are the most defensive culture these researchers found in 30 years of study.)  What I realized is that I was dealing with a massive case of what Harrison dubbed "freedom shock".   A surprisingly large number of folks just freaked at making choices for themselves.  I found it mystifying.

Given it was epidemic proportions and my journalist partners in JTM were wanting to bring in panels or other familiar forms, I relented slightly to try some experiments.  I've found a couple items that seem to reduce or eliminate that freedom shock.

We'll open the afternoon with a marketplace trade show.  Participants are invited to set up a table in which they share their wares/products/demos, etc. with each other.  It is another form of marketplace.  No facilitation, all self-organizing.  They love it!  Those who have something to brag about get space to do it without boring others who aren't interested to tears.  And people get to find out what others are doing in a hands-on, intimate-in-a-crowd kind of way.

After dinner, we'll have 3 "conversation catalysts" speak for 10 minutes each about the topic, followed by a World Cafe.  This solves a few issues.  First, it gives us a few "headliners" to be attractors when sending out an invitation.  And it provides a means for bringing people who legitimately have some information/inspiration that is of service to everyone to the group in an abbreviated form.  The World Cafe turns the lectures into conversation.  

When we open the space the next morning, people are off and running.  Freedom shock handled.  

I haven't run into another culture that seems to require this sort of stepping in.  And I wouldn't have believed it would make a difference had I not witnessed the difference first hand.

Peggy

_________________________________
Peggy Holman
peggy at peggyholman.com

15347 SE 49th Place
Bellevue, WA  98006
425-746-6274
www.peggyholman.com
www.journalismthatmatters.org

Engaging Emergence: Turning Upheaval into Opportunity

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

On Nov 15, 2010, at 5:22 AM, Chris Corrigan wrote:

> For me the answer is always "it depends". I have run OST events with stuff at the beginning and afterwards (and even sometimes in the dreaded middle of things) but it is always dependent on the context. 
> 
> Having said that, so much about the opening of space is about cultivating the energy of the group, tapping the deepest purpose and swiftly and clearly explaining the process and principles. A two part opening tends to stall or kill that energy especially after the agenda has been set. For me mastery of this form of meeting is summed up by one practice: the art of shutting up. Once I have explained things I shut up and let people get to work. The more I talk the less space there is for others. The quicker I can get out of the way the better. 
> 
> It is amazing to me how many experienced facilitators have trouble shutting up (me among them) but I invite you all to cultivate the practice. It is about a clear and crisp ending of your role so the group can get to work. 
> 
> Chris
> 
> Ps the best piece of advice I ever saw on this list about the energy of opening came from Lisa who once said "model enthusiasm". Excellent. 
> 
> -----
> CHRIS CORRIGAN
> http://www.chriscorrigan.com
> 
> Sent from an iPhone, typed with thumbs...
> 
> 
> On 2010-11-14, at 11:26 PM, Lisa Heft <lisaheft at openingspace.net> wrote:
> 
>> Hi, Artur -
>> 
>> Regarding the outdoor experiences the day before an Open Space: many things can happen the day before an Open Space. But as Open Space delivers intimate passionate discussion, relationship-building, a sense of community or team, energetic interchange and even laughter - I not only see no reason to design in preliminary activities *but* have actually seen an Open Space suffer after these.  And I have seen the same as Harrison noted - participants have often said 'why didn't you give us more time for our work / play / discussion in Open Space - we could have used it'.
>> This includes introduction / warm-up / 'icebreaker' activities. Even going around in a circle hearing what everyone's name and title is seems to be taking up valuable time for participants - they always say how they came to know and remember each other much more deeply because of their shared interests and spirited discussions in the Open Space and that a traditional introduction both is hard to remember plus can often set up assumptions about who is supposedly who.
>> 
>> Regarding the introduction / explanation of Open Space - I feel strongly that one should explain the principles and law BEFORE opening up the floor for topics / agenda co-creation.
>> Because you are explaining / inviting a different way of being. You are explaining when you explain principles and law that everything is possible, including visiting multiple discussions during a single session.
>> You are letting people know to follow the energy of the conversations rather than their pre-conceived agendas.
>> And you are also letting people know that even if one person comes that is exactly the amazing perfect thing - they can write in silence and contribute even if they have a completely different way of thinking.
>> The explanation of principles and laws (not just the reading of the text on the posters) is one of the essential invitations in Open Space, I believe.
>> 
>> Also: your client said that they do that certain way (explaining only each thing as needed) for ***trainings****.
>> That is a very good way to do a training.
>> Open Space meetings are not trainings. 
>> 
>> A very important difference for design, explanation, dynamics, information the participants need for their self-organized work, objectives, outcomes and more. Right?
>> 
>> Lisa
>> 
>> 
>> Lisa Heft
>> Consultant, Facilitator, Educator
>> Opening Space
>> lisaheft at openingspace.net
>>  
>> On Nov 13, 2010, at 1:19 PM, Artur Silva wrote:
>> 
>>> Thanks for your answer(s), Harrison.
>>>  
>>> And have you (ou others) any comments on my point 2 (the possible two-step opening)?
>>>  
>>> Rgds
>>>  
>>> Artur 
>> 
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