[OSList] Conversation with Tricia (And Suzanne)

Sat Mar 30 14:12:59 PDT 2013

Hello Bee! (aka Suzanne) Most interesting ruminations!! And I loved your
question:  “Of course, because our world reveres prediction, control and
results, structures and boundaries, it takes a bit or a lot to let go and
let be. Am I lazy or misguided, trusting or naive in thinking this is so?” 

I don’t think you are lazy, misguided or naïve
 Just smart. The “dirty
secret” is you really don’t have any choice. Despite the massive effort
dedicated to all of the above (prediction, control and results, structures
and boundaries) none of it has ever turned out the  quite the way we may
have hoped, and most usually our activities produced “unintended
consequences” at the least and, more than occasionally, pure disaster. I
think the crux of the matter may be that when we become so fixated on OUR
predictions, controls, results and structures as we imagined them, we lose
sight of the larger world and systems in which everything is taking place.
It just sneaks up and bites us. 

But letting go is not equivalent (in my book) with giving up. There really
is some strategy here which works just as well in the world at large (my
experience) as it does in the micro-world we inhabit as a facilitator of
Open Space. Be Totally Present (so that you sense the flow, intuit the
powers, witness the growth, evolution, and decline) and be Absolutely
Invisible (so that your activity will not muddle the waters). In simple
terms: Take a Deep Breath, maybe several, hold it --and then jump in – if
needed. And while you are watching (breathing deeply) just notice that the
system (whatever it is) is constantly making adjustments (new structures,
new boundaries, new movements). And the people (whoever they are) have an
innate competence and wisdom, by no means perfect, but usually far in excess
of what meets the eye – or even they perceive. And when it is Time (you’ll
know when that is if you are really present and invisible), do what you need
to do – but always as little as possible. After all, save your energy,
‘cause there is a whole lot of living ahead. And for sure – Don’t fix it if
it ain’t broke!

Harrison 

Harrison Owen

7808 River Falls Dr.

Potomac, MD 20854

USA

189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer)

Camden, Maine 04843

Phone 301-365-2093

(summer)  207-763-3261

www.openspaceworld.com 

www.ho-image.com (Personal Website)

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From: oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org
[mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org] On Behalf Of Suzanne Daigle
Sent: Saturday, March 30, 2013 4:05 PM
To: World wide Open Space Technology email list
Subject: Re: [OSList] Conversation with Tricia

Like a bumble bee, as I hover over this conversation and others, I find
myself reflecting out loud. I find myself wondering if what I am thinking is
too simple?

Am I lazy or misguided? Am I too trusting or naive?  Will it matter when I
look back on my life?

Three combinations of thoughts:   

1. Structure and action...too dominant and too quick everywhere we look? So
often it is the first question asked of a client or others when we speak of
Open Space, What will be the outcomes? What were the outcomes in situations
similar to ours? What actions were taken? What were the results?  Am I naive
to trust that where there is something really important, when there is
passion, urgency, complexity and diverse people who care deeply about the
matter at hand, that actions and structure(s) will emerge naturally from
many or a few, the right action, the right people taking the lead, the best
actions whatever they may be. That the wisdom from the group (s) will
surface without predestining it to be so before the journey has even become.
And if I do predestine, will I not be narrowing what may happen by putting
this in the space ahead of time.  Will it not narrow the "expansive now"
that might be possible? Will it place the responsibility/leadership on the
shoulders of some and not others?  Will it diminish the delight of people
finding each other because I or others will be encumbered by what I or we
expect?  If no actions happen, who says it is so? When there are so many
closed spaces in our lives and when we invite open space with many
experiencing this for the very first time, like a fine wine that we wish to
enjoy, is there not value to a bit of fermentation, a savoring of what is
unfolding? Is this not what I will remember and is it not the case that the
actions that will be invented in the immediacy or perhaps a bit later, will
have a special context, intensity, drive and energy because somehow they
will matter all that much more.  Of course, because our world reveres
prediction, control and results, structures and boundaries, it takes a bit
or a lot to let go and let be. Am I lazy or misguided, trusting or naive in
thinking this is so?

2. Creativity and self-organizing -- a mighty pair. How often in our lives
do we have the opportunity to be creators with others, diving in and diving
deep, speaking with our own unique voice (what is buried there) with less
fear and with much heart/head care, hearing others with curiosity and less
judgment (tis truly difficult because often enthusiasm and passion for me at
least gets in the way).  It is through Open Space that I have seen in myself
and others, the fertile ground that sprouts individual and collective
creativity and it all starts with a few simple rules, an amazing law and
then writing a few words on a piece of paper to which we have signed our
names as if on a marquee for all to see not the least of whom ourselves. I
have such reverence for this simple process.  Like breath, it truly is life
giving. 

3. Trusting and expanding our now!  Open Space is something that invites us
to slow down and when we do, letting go the future concern for action and
structure, trusting that in an expanded now with nothing in the space, these
will truly emerge in the way they will.  A slow down to go fast when the
time is right and ripe, happening over and over again.

In our western world, we have been going faster and faster, working harder
and harder, doing more and more, with lots of emphasis and conversation
around structuring, planning and predicting.  

Yet history has  taught us that the greatest inventions, the biggest
breakthroughs, have happened when we were doing nothing or next to nothing,
with some ideas scribbled on the back of a napkin or from a flash of insight
following a quiet lull when a single voice speaks out and is heard or when
we throw our hands up in the air in despair and then suddenly it happens.
Others times it's in the heat of the moment. Rarely it seems is it in the
busyness of doing, planning and structuring though certainly "effective,
efficient, purposeful and joyful" doing have their place. 

If truth be told, how much space in our life is accorded to opening space
and relishing that space. Being present, being grateful, being curious
without being encumbered too much about what comes next. Am I naive in
thinking that peace, productivity and high performance could emerge from
this? Am I closing space inside of me by believing this to be so? All I can
say is that I just can't let it go. 

Like the soft gentle breeze, the swishing of the waves off the white sands,
the warm sunshine, sea smells and azure blue waters, what would WOSonOS2013
be if we embraced the "one less thing to do" as the major invitational
ingredient of our Open Space in May?  

What fine space it would be if we could be together in this expanded space
coming from nothing knowing it will lead to an everything that will surprise
and delight.

Imagine if it could be so... such is our collective invitation!

Suzanne

On Sat, Mar 30, 2013 at 12:50 PM, Harrison Owen <hhowen at verizon.net> wrote:

Tricia wrote: “So, in consideration of these observations, how would you
structure a forum for ongoing collaboration among a diverse and distributed
community
”

I would not structure it. I couldn’t. I’d just let it grow and add a little
fertilizer as needed. Re-reading this (after I mistakenly pushed “send”), it
struck me as flip and not all that helpful. So what I meant to say goes
something like this

When we start an adventure such as you describe, it seems that our first
thoughts automatically go to: How to Structure? The presumption is that you
have to create the structure first before anything useful can happen. I just
don’t think that is the case, and more to the point I find that predesigned
structures tend to get in the way, and usually cause more problems than they
could ever solve. There is either too much (usual case), too little, or just
irrelevant to the emerging task at hand. In worst case scenarios I have seen
people take out books on organizational design and then either create or
borrow the whole enchilada – Board of Directors, Executive staff, rules of
procedure, membership requirements, etc – The discussions are endless,
heated, and divisive. And in the meantime whatever passion or desire that
may have inspired the effort has dribbled off into a corner somewhere and
disappears.

There is a better way, I think. Just start
 and invite anybody who cares, or
might care, about the proposed Forum to come together by whatever means
appropriate (electronically, plane, train, bus, feet). Form the circle
followed by (guess what?) – Bulletin board, Market place and go to work. As
we see every time we open Space, the emergent structure is virtually
instantaneous and also appropriate to the people, the task, and the
environment in which they work. Structure IS important, but to be effective
it must be appropriate! 

Is that all there is? Maybe, but if the Forum is to continue some additional
structural support will be helpful. But here I think less is always best –
and my suggestion for how to get it right starts with a fundamental
question: What is the minimal level of structure required for our needs?
This is not the time for extraneous bells and whistles that somebody else
might like. What do we need? What is appropriate in our situation? Nothing
more, and less if we can get away with it.

Maybe I am being a little too harsh but I have seen, and I suspect we have
all seen, situations where structure just begets structure and more of the
same. For a while it is kind of fun with all those committees, reporting
lines, delegations of authority, flow charts, and organizational diagrams.
But there does come a time, usually sooner than later, when we find
ourselves consuming more time and energy “running” the business (Forum) than
“doing” the business. Over time the wonderful structures simply overwhelm,
and the business/Forum dies of suffocation. Ever been there?    Unless I
miss my guess, most folks find themselves in such a situation every time
they go to work. Which is why they call it WORK, I suppose. And Work, by
definition cannot be fun!

By now there may be more than a few rolling eyeballs, if they haven’t
already closed and moved on to the next item here on OSLIST. Harrison is off
on one of his wild tangents that sound sort of nice, but never could happen
in the REAL world. Oh? 

Tricia if you read over what you have written (“How would you structure a
forum for ongoing collaboration among a diverse and distributed community
that took into consideration the time/attention constraints of some members,
such as investors, as well as the technology access limitations of others,
who would benefit from announced/scheduled events?”) I believe you will see
a perfect “system’s specification” for the “OS Community”– which we might
have written 28 years ago when there was nothing but a few odd people drawn
together in a common circle of concern. From that time until the present
moment there has never been a speck of predetermined organizational design.
No board, no specified procedures devised by some executive committee, no
formal membership – but I do believe we have become the proof of our
pudding, so to speak. It surely works, has for quite a while, and shows no
particular sign of giving up and going away. And what happened (s) once
surely can happen again. Just don’t try to “structure “it. J

Harrison

Harrison Owen

7808 River Falls Dr.

Potomac, MD 20854

USA

189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer)

Camden, Maine 04843

Phone 301-365-2093

(summer)  207-763-3261

www.openspaceworld.com <http://www.openspaceworld.com%20>  

www.ho-image.com <http://www.ho-image.com%20>  (Personal Website)

To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of OSLIST
Go to:http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org

From: oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org
[mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org] On Behalf Of Tricia
Chirumbole
Sent: Friday, March 29, 2013 5:53 PM
To: World wide Open Space Technology email list
Subject: Re: [OSList] Conversation with Tricia

Thanks for your thoughts HO and Paul! Yes, I agree on circles and spirals -
I am an exceptionally spiraly thinker and liver myself and appreciate this.
Probably part of why OS appeals to me is that  people often try to pin me
down, line me up, and get me organized! which I don't like!

So, in consideration of these observations, how would you structure a forum
for ongoing collaboration among a diverse and distributed community that
took into consideration the time/attention constraints of some members, such
as investors, as well as the technology access limitations of others, who
would benefit from announced/scheduled events?

A big part of the motivation is to encourage a broad array of sectors and
participant "types" to  contribute to the discussion "before" ideas are
seeded versus somewhere down the line when they typically get involved to
review or vet or mentor projects - as well as to have a space where these
different types can interact on a more dynamic and level playing field.
...even when there is discrete interaction during conferences or pitch
events, it is very top down and not very collaborative - as you all know. 

Another prime motivator is to provide space where open sharing of ideas and
cooperative models of executing initiatives is supported....my sneaky hope
is that they would emerge in "real" life :)

Does any of that make sense? I just worked this all up rather quickly and my
messaging on those points is not very strong. 

Thanks :)

On Fri, Mar 29, 2013 at 5:16 PM, paul levy <paul at cats3000.net> wrote:

Tricia

I'd also suggest people also go in spirals, they go backwards as well as
forwards and they experience past and future too, not only now. It's messy
and its wonderful. 

But most of all it is improvisation born of imagination, inspiration and
intuition that opens space.

And even space itself is a glorious mystery - it doesn't only open - it also
involves, shifts, and dances.

Practically this means that space opens not only for content but also for
process. So, improvise by serving the community on the day and in the
moment.

Paul 

On Friday, 29 March 2013, Harrison Owen wrote:

Tricia – I think your intentions are superb, but I wonder about the
execution. My question comes from spending a lot of time watching a lot of
groups seeking to engage their past, present and their future (NOW). My
observations may not accord with everybody else’s, but I got what I got. 

The first thing I really “got” is that, even though we all like to think
that we as individuals and as groups engage in discussion and exploration in
a linear fashion (a first, second, third, etc) in fact we seem to go in
circles, or maybe more exactly we do shifting circular search patterns which
appear to be quite random. The effect is that it may appear that we do
everything all at once, or perhaps you could say, we start anywhere, and go
everywhere.

When I think of my own thinking process (as in writing a book) – it is true
that there is a page 1 and proceeding. But the thought process is anything
but linear sequential. Something initially grabs my attention but where that
“thing” actually ends up in the book is anybody’s guess. I suppose that is
why some people find mind mapping useful – Personally I don’t if only
because my mind seems to outstrip my graphic capabilities, or more probably
I am such a dilettante with a very finite attention span that I just keep
flitting about. And then there is the fact that some of my best thinking
takes place when it doesn’t seem that I am thinking at all. Naps are so
rich! And then there is the shower

All that may be my personal pathology, but I think I see the same thing in
all the groups I am witness to. Folks go in circles, and circles in circles,
around circles, etc. When things really get rich, it is massively messy –
but fun. And mess and fun are two essential ingredients for a seriously
creative group, I find. It is also the total antithesis of an “orderly
program!” It does seem that a lot of stuff could get lost in the mess or
overlooked in the fun, and probably it does. But somehow the really good
stuff keep bubbling to the surface and streams of communication move at
light speed, and somehow impact just about everybody. The presumption often
is that if we don’t write something down (Make the record) it will be lost.
I guess there is some truth in that – but the capacity of groups to process
massively complex issues in an elegant fashion, at least in terms of the end
product (forget how they get there) simply blows me away. And the whole
business of “record keeping” by whatever means is only a very small part of
that story.

So where am I going with all this? Around in circles, for sure. But there
may be a point. Don’t fix it if it ain’t broke! My experience, and I suspect
our common experience, in Open Space is that amazingly dysfunctional,
cantankerous, angry, disillusioned groups of people can, and often do,
achieve truly elegant results. Not always, not everywhere 
 but personally I
have never been really been disappointed provided: The people assembled
because they cared to be there to engage an issue or opportunity they cared
deeply about. From that point on it was pretty simple. Sit in a circle,
create a bulletin board, open a market place, and get out of the way. 

There is a part of me that wishes all this wasn’t true, that it had not been
my experience. To the extent that I “created” Open Space I can honestly say
that is the last thing I ever intended to do. Yes I have had massive fun and
met many great people, but -- it cost me a lot of money and no small amount
of professional reputation. Billable hours went out the window, and talking
the way I have just been doing is not the sort of thing that gets you a
tenured appointment at a leading business school J But I love it!

Harrison 

Harrison Owen

7808 River Falls Dr.

Potomac, MD 20854

USA

189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer)

Camden, Maine 04843

Phone 301-365-2093

(summer)  207-763-3261

www.openspaceworld.com <http://www.openspaceworld.com%20>  

www.ho-image.com <http://www.ho-image.com%20>  (Personal Website)

To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of OSLIST
Go to:http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org

From: oslist-bounces at lists. <mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org>
openspacetech.org <mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org>  [mailto:
<mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org> oslist-bounces at lists.
<mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org> openspacetech.org
<mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org> ] On Behalf Of Tricia
Chirumbole
Sent: Friday, March 29, 2013 1:28 PM
To: World wide Open Space Technology email list
Subject: Re: [OSList] Electronic Open Space

Thanks Harrison and Michael for the thought-provoking feedback! please send
more :)

Awesome story about the work in Nepal Michael! Do you think the AI framework
added anything or would you have preferred to stay straight up, no rocks? 

My rationale: This is a rough, scratchy draft of thoughts and I was hoping
for ideas! 

The desire is definitely to be open and user-driven, with all but one event
being OS and the invitation for groups to branch off and do their thing
throughout and offline. 

Use of AI reasoning: I chose an AI design for the first event to help people
get in that appreciative mode of thought and set the tone. We are so used to
doing things in a certain way and I don't think this perspective emerges as
easily for some. 

The first event was also intended to help get everyone up to speed and on
the same page in terms of larger trends that everyone may not be aware of
and to provide a good launching pad for an Open Space with a primer in
shared values and existing assets. 

I do see that shared values is something that comes through in an Open
Space, but I was drawn to the very pointed approach of focusing on strengths
and values exclusively before delving into what do we do, how do we do it,
what's already happening, etc.....I guess alternatively you could turn it
into an OS prompt. 

The structured event prompts using the AI "d's", as well as the shared docs,
are intended to allow for a flowing pool of participants, where each event
may have a different mix, but people can jump in and have a sense of where
the flow was going.....it is true that the flow may go faster or slower or
in a different direction, so the event prompts may be limiting or
inappropriate...will have to think on that - perhaps have the community
decide the prompt for the next event after each is completed as well as
determine the frequency of the real-time events? I like that better -
thoughts? 

that's all i've got for now - any other insights or illustrations are much
welcome!!

On Fri, Mar 29, 2013 at 12:44 PM, Michael Herman <michael at michaelherman.com>
wrote:

harrison and tricia, your comments each remind me of some work we did in
nepal about ten years ago.  

on my first visit we did half a day of open space with about 20 college
students and instructors, followed by a long lunch and some time to talk
about why it works.  when i went back a year later, they'd organized a
day-long event, for twice as many community organizer, ngo, activist types,
to discuss "nepal 2020."  during that day, i talked with as many of the 40+
participants as i could about what it might look like if we did a 4-day
model i'd done elsewhere, two days of OS and two days of OS training.  when
i went back the next year, i thought that's what we were going to do. 

what happened is that we had something more than 100 folks defy the travel
ban imposed by maoist rebels to attend what was billed as the first national
conference on peaceful development.  the OS+training plan never saw the
light of day.  since something they were calling the nepal AI national
network had officially convened the four-day meeting, it was to be OS and
AI, and we were do it and train it.  

our four days looked something like the plan tricia posted here, four open
spaces, each one of ours was on a different "D" of appreciative inquiry.
the first morning was significantly eaten up by formal welcomings, but the
afternoon was all open space.  then next days openend with bits of open
space training observations, followed by a new opening and agenda.  the last
afternoon was formal closings, presenting results to various government
officials.  at night, some did AI training.  so we did and taught os and ai
all at once, loosely shaped on tricia's outline, but also rather chaotically
as harrison suggests.

there was no formal reporting for this work but i wrote up my story.
http://www.michaelherman.com/cgi/wiki.cgi?NepalConferenceJournal  ...in the
beginning, we also set up a simple blog for their work.  it started in
english and then dissolved into a number of organizations' websites, mostly
in nepali.

as the political turmoil proceeded, the rebels destroyed a 6000-year-old
gate in western nepal, to which one of my colleagues (whose house was
damaged in the blast) responded "we are starting to organize an open space
on how to rebuild the gate."  in the following years, they continued and
extended the OS/AI work with more conferences.  when the decade-long
rebellion was resolved, the conversation shifted to how they were going to
get the 600 members of the newly formed "constituent assembly" legislature
together in an OS/AI conference.  to my knowledge, that event never
happened, but the main practices seemed to have taken hold and the new
government is still in business.

thanks to everyone who's been having and sharing this conversation.

michael

--

Michael Herman
Michael Herman Associates
312-280-7838 (mobile)

http://MichaelHerman.com
http://OpenSpaceWorld.org

On Fri, Mar 29, 2013 at 10:50 AM, Harrison Owen <hhowen at verizon.net> wrote:

Tricia – lot of good thinking here, but I can’t help feeling that you that
you may just be working a little too hard. J I understand the pressures to
describe a program (series of progressive/linked activities). Funders, etc
like all that. But two things come to mind, or at least pop out of my
experience. 

1st No program ever ran the way it was “supposed to,” albeit a great deal of
effort usually goes into trying, and then, after the fact, making it seem
like everything “worked according to the plan.” 

2nd Detailed Programs tend to take on a life of their own, regardless of
what the emergent systems and the environment surrounding them are actually
doing. It is called confusing the map with the territory – and is usually
very frustrating and painful.

The alternative? You might be surprised when I suggest – Just open space for
anybody who cares about, “development of feasible social enterprises” and
then support the emergent system as it grows (or not). That system will have
its own internal resources and rhythms which cannot be known in advance, but
as they emerge all can be supported with cheerleading and/or a little help
as required. 

When you start with The Program, as opposed to emerging system, you almost
inevitably get it wrong. For example, by adding bells and whistles which may
be wonderful in themselves, but really just consume time, space, and energy
accomplishing tasks that the system will create alternate ways of a

-- 

Tricia Chirumbole
US: +1-571-232-0942
Skype: tricia.chirumbole

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Tricia Chirumbole
US: +1-571-232-0942 <tel:%2B1-571-232-0942> 
Skype: tricia.chirumbole

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-- 
Suzanne Daigle
NuFocus Strategic Group
7159 Victoria Circle
University Park, FL 34201
FL 941-359-8877;  
CT 203-722-2009
www.nufocusgroup.com
s.daigle at nufocusgroup.com
twitter @suzannedaigle

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