[OSList] Interdependence and Vulnerability: a delayed reframe re: Trust

[Chris Kloth]

I have re-read the Trust thread several times. I noted the passion and 
thoughtful reflections it triggered.

Like the rest of you, over the many years (decades) I have been engaged 
in working with individuals, groups, organizations and communities the 
issue of trust has certainly been raised as an explicit or implicit 
source of concern when people are having difficulty getting something done.

At the risk of both sacrilege and hyperbole, I think trust is overrated, 
or at least misunderstood. Here is an OST story I hope helps explain my 
perspective.

About 20 years and several governors ago a statewide community mental 
health system I was working with was deeply enmeshed in turmoil. There 
were three major factions: rural agencies, urban agencies and the state 
oversight agency. They were all actively engaged in lawsuits against one 
another. Then the state legislature introduced a piece of legislation 
that all three factions strongly opposed because of the negative 
consequences for people suffering from mental illness. However, a series 
of highly publicized individual tragedies (circumstances beyond their 
control - control is always such an illusion) made it seem likely the 
legislation would pass.

I was asked to help find a way for the three factions to work together 
to defeat or amend the legislation. After considerable pre-work I 
proposed OST as a way to proceed. A group of 6 people (2 from each 
faction) worked for the better part of a day to craft a question to 
convene a larger group to explore. The first half of the planning day 
was fairly tense and colored by the mistrust they all brought into the 
room. Crafting a question that would reflect their shared interests 
required owning their distinct interests, which initially tended to 
reinforce their mistrust of one another. By the end of the day they had 
a question they all agreed was sufficiently compelling to attract a 
significant cross-section of their world to gather, talk and listen.

What they did NOT have by the end of the day was trust of one another. 
What they had determined was that they could not succeed in achieving 
their shared outcome without one another. They were interdependent, 
which also meant they were vulnerable. They had determined that I was 
trustworthy, which I would suggest is short of trust. They were willing 
to risk vulnerability, in part, because I had demonstrated fairness, 
transparency, truthfulness and presence... enough to take a risk on the 
process.

Approximately 100 people, a credible cross-section of people from all 
over the state, gathered in open space to explore their question... to 
figure out what, if anything, they were able and willing to do together. 
They were the right people doing the right work. I was not surprised 
they found ways to work together to address their shared concerns. What 
did surprise me was that, in the process of addressing their common 
threat they "inadvertently" discovered opportunities to begin to resolve 
the lawsuits that had been pending for years. Of course, all these years 
later I would not be surprised. I might even have expected it, though I 
would not have suggested it as a possible outcome at the front end of 
the process.

The question remains, did they trust each other during and after working 
in Open Space? I would say they trusted each other and the process just 
enough to risk vulnerability in this particular situation because they 
knew they needed each other. They laid a foundation for building trust 
over time. Over the next several years they experienced gains and 
setbacks, largely due to larger social and political conditions beyond 
their control. (Again, control is always such an illusion.)

However, despite the ebbs and flows in their level of trust, they were 
able and willing to continue to risk vulnerability because they knew 
they needed each other... they were authentically interdependent.

Thoughts?

-- 
Please note that my new e-mail address is chris.kloth at got2change.com. You may also contact me by using the Contact Page at www.got2change.com.

Shalom,

Chris Kloth
ChangeWorks of the Heartland
chris.kloth at got2change.com
www.got2change.com
phone - 614.239.1336
fax - 614.237.2347

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