[OSList] Trust

Sun Feb 2 10:07:53 PST 2014

Yes indeed if I happened to meet up with Open Space in my life it was
because of Sharon Joy Kleitsch and I have continued to journey with her
ever since.  Her grace, wisdom, vision and love that extends to community
and globally which she gives so generously is intermingled with trust.
Trust in human kind and trust that we can make this world a better place
together.  Many had the opportunity to connect with her ageless and
boundless enthusiasm of life and camaraderie here at the World Open Space
in St. Petersburg. She is like a pied piper to all generations on so many
important issues not the least of which climate change, the economy and
science.

Now on the matter of trust, I add these 2 cents that has led me to the most
profound trust of all that:  "Open Space always works".

I can remember as if it was yesterday the first times when I facilitated
Open Space.  I assure you that I did not trust myself much.I worried that I
would forget the instructions; that I would not speak loudly enough, that
people might be confused,  that I did not have enough experience and that I
did not "get it enough". I remember trying to will myself not to control,
not to predict, not to please and to let go my perfectionist ways. And yes
I meditated too.

Yet in spite of all this distrust and nervousness, I jumped in because the
fear of not doing this work exceeded my fear of doing it. I knew deep
inside of me that Open Space was a gift, a gift to be shared. I just had to
"do it"!

And in the end, it made no bit of difference.Open Space always worked and
my performance (tisk!) soon became the invisibility of my and our role as
facilitators as participants rushed to the middle and wrote the topics they
were passionate about. They figured it out.

To this day, I treasure all the emotions of fear and distrust that were
inside of me because I feel now that I can feel them with the client and
the planning team as they face something that is often so diametrically
opposed to how they host meetings and engage others in a world where they
often seems to be a lot of distrust.

Ultimately, I believe that the journey of trust is a shared journey. While
I can inspire some trust in others, ultimately the real trust is the one
that grows inside each individual and group. I am still in awe of this. And
every time, this seems a great miracle.

 I think trust is really love. Love of self and others. And once we feel
this, trust just seems to be there.

Suzanne

On Sun, Feb 2, 2014 at 11:38 AM, Eric <stars2man at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Wow, powerful discussions again!
> A little story:
>
> Here in Tampa Bay we have found a little group so clear and powerful that
> it might help others on this subject.  It really started with Sharon Joy.
> Not only do her friends trust her, but a great segment of the community
> trusts her.  As will most anyone who speaks with her!  This is because she
> really expresses trust and truth in all that she says and all that she does.
>
> Essentially, Sharon Joy is Trust!  And falling back a bit deeper now.
> Sharon Joy has come to Trust Herself.  She recognized her native instinct
> and feelings about everything as her own personal bedrock in Trust.  As
> countless Guru's, theologians and philosophers have said it all comes from
> the inside.  She Trusts herself, and recognized she was enough to bring
> together the square root of one-percent of the population to accept her
> perception.
>
> Another bit of science there, or philosophy, that in crowd theory (or
> something like that) the "square root of one-percent" of the population
> is enough people needed to get a the whole crowd to move in one voice.
> Sharon Joy decided that Tampa Bay needed to be moved by Love, or by the
> Heart Field (if you prefer the science).  Thus, She decided one day that
> her love and trust in herself was enough to move her friends and together
> that was enough to move Tampa Bay. . .
>
> I Love Sharon Joy, She gave me away at my wedding ;-)  So I believe her
> power so much that I'm convinced Tampa Bay is enough to MOVE THE PLANET. .
> .
>
> Thus, the point of the story, it really only takes One!
> Anyone can change the meeting, the community, the city, state, nation, or
> Planet!
> And so it is!
> eric
>
>
>
>   ------------------------------
>  *Sent:* Sunday, February 2, 2014 9:06 AM
> *Subject:* Re: [OSList] Trust
>
> Wow, I rarely say anything on the listserve but I must react to this.  The
> trust factor is really a big one for me in my work in Washington DC these
> days.  From every angle, top down and bottom up and sideways, there is
> little trust.  The pertebation of more diverse voices makes sense and a
> wider invitation and I'm getting resistance there for many reasons...all
> controlling and forceful and fearful driven.  Anyhow, keep these stories
> going.  Brenden, when you walked that circle and others, can you describe
> your magic that day or is it not possible?  I imagine the prework and the
> centering before and all that but what reflections have you on that, if any?
> Carmella Mazzotta
> *To:* World wide Open Space Technology email list
> *Subject:* Re: [OSList] Trust
>
> A lovely little side-step from the initiating story...
>
> The truth about trust was brought home to me a few years ago when I
> facilitated an Open Space in Broome in the north west of Western Australia.
> The context was about 100 or so folks gathering to consider how to provide
> better mental health services for all the people of the region. There was
> about 50:50 presence of indigenous and non-indigenous people, service users
> and service providers. I was fortunate enough to have an Aboriginal
> co-facilitator accompany me - now that's another story!
>
> The day went well with a very enthusiastic closing circle indicating that
> participants and sponsors were pleased with the opportunity to  engage as
> equals, the depth of conversation and the attractive action outcomes.
>
> Now for 'the gift'
>
> At dinner afterwards, I was passing by an old Aboriginal woman who waved
> me over and softly said something like:
>
>             "Young fella, when you walked around the circle this morning,
> I didn't understand much of what you were saying but I felt your energy and
> I trusted it.
>             I knew this was going to be a good day...and it was"
>
> I have carried those words of affirmation as a blessing ever since.
>
> Cheers
> Brendan
>
>
>
> On 02/02/2014, at 3:54 AM, Elwin and Joan wrote:
>
>
> Well, I can't help myself here. I normally write to Harrison on the "side"
> but now I'm in Open Space.
>
> Trust!
>
> My Brother, you continue to speak the profound, in the most humble manner.
> Your  "trust" response provokes me to write to the List, because it speaks
> to me so very deeply.
>
> I now sit poised to Open Space three days from now for the USAID Mission
> in Sarajevo, Bosnia (thank you, ho) and your reference to integrity,
> authenticity and trust nearly brought me to tears!
>
> Upon entering this US Government bastion of organizational cadence,
> clearly in "harms-way", I realized that my demeanor, shaped by 20 years of
> OST, had an immediate effect. Senior management, although anxious, leads me
> to believe they think I'm authentic.
>
> So, on Wednesday, I Open Space for 2 1/2 days for 10 Americans and 40
> Bosnians and the theme is: "What are the  opportunities to improve our job
> satisfaction and performance, and enhance the Mission's Goal?"
>
> Whoa! Is this going to be fun! And it is all because, like most of you,
> experience in Open Space gives us the ability to be truly "present".
>
> While I'm at it, you can view a bit of video of an Open Space I recently
> did for about 65 citizens of my hometown of Portland Connecticut.  The film
> crew struggled a bit but if you're patient it "picks up" at the 4 minute
> mark.  http://portlandplan.org<http://portlandplan.org/http:/portlandplan.org/http:/>
>  Thank you Michael Herman!!
>
> Open Space. What a gift!
> Love you Harrison.
>
> Elwin Guild
> Future Development International
>
>
>
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-- 
Suzanne Daigle
Open Space Facilitator
NuFocus Strategic Group

FL 941-359-8877
Cell: 203-722-2009
www.nufocusgroup.com
s.daigle at nufocusgroup.com
twitter @suzannedaigle
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