[OSList] Open Space and Authority

Harold Shinsato harold at shinsato.com
Mon Mar 31 14:39:28 PDT 2014


Dan, Peggy, Michael, David, Kári, Paul,

Such a rich topic.

I don't think Dan is "barking up the wrong tree at all".

Perhaps this is just my own experience, sensitivity, and upbringing - 
but I deeply resonate with the changing sense of authorization that 
happens in a good Open Space conference, and actually in most circle 
based processes, compared to the other more hierarchy based ones. And 
the spatial setup is critical here.

This was almost ridiculously confirmed in my experience of a Group 
Relations (GR) conference. We started in a theater style - the hosts and 
administration of our temporary institution - sitting like the judges 
and jury of our assembly. They claimed we the assembly had no rules, but 
when the group tried to rearrange the chairs in a circle, the leader 
de-authorized the conversation. No one dared again challenge the chair 
settings again. Also in my GR experience, there was another large group 
process - where we sat in a double spiral. It was fascinating to see the 
dynamic nature of authorization happening as people moved in and out of 
greater and lesser levels of authority (as granted by the assembly). My 
own experience of the OSList is we're more in a Spiral dynamic than in a 
circle. Just my experience. Since we're not in visual contact, it's a 
little harder to tell who is closer to the center as we speak/write on 
the OSList. But it's not that hard to tell.

A circle is inherently equalizing. Think of the Knights of the Round 
Table here. Maybe it doesn't make everyone equally authorized - but it 
does give a sense that we're all in it together, and that everyone 
matters, everyone counts. It's certainly harder to hide in a circle - 
but where does a circle start? Where does it end?

Obviously, OST is a lot more subtle than just the circle, the bulletin 
board that everyone is authorized to write on, the law of two feet, and 
the five principles. There's so much more to say. I hope the group 
doesn't deauthorize the importance of this topic.

A couple more points.

1) Using GR vocabulary- I join with Paul Levy. I think Open Space is 
more about "moral authority". To me that is about enabling 
self-authorization. Maybe another possible term - intrinsic 
authorization. I love some of the thinking of the Rights described in 
the American Declaration of Independence. "We hold these truths to be 
self-evident, that all [people] are created equal, that they are endowed 
by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights." Authority comes from 
the Creator - or you could say - it's already built in :-)

2) I love the safety theme around authority, and I also join with David 
and Kári on that theme. This is all about the container. A good 
facilitator helps establish and hold a strong container. It's hard for 
the container to hold without a blessing from the kings and queens of 
the community - the Sponsor. This container needs rules of play that 
equalize the authority to "do work", which in an Open Space is to host 
and attend sessions, be a bumble bee or a butterfly. It doesn't matter 
how great the title someone has - once the container is set - it should 
be safe and without repercussions for someone to take hold of the center 
of the circle and announce their topic, not announce a topic, attend or 
not attend sessions. Those rules are not usually in play for most 
meetings. For example, at a Board meeting most people in an organization 
aren't even allowed to be there, let alone speak.

     Cheers,
     Harold



On 3/31/14 9:00 AM, Peggy Holman wrote:
> Dan,
>
> You ask great questions!
>
> My take: like most of life, authorization is more nuanced than your 
> statement below.
>
> Like you, I believe everyone has 100% equivalent authorization AND 
> they also carry the imprinting of habits, context, self-talk, existing 
> relationships, and more that influence how they show up. Some will 
> experience themselves as having 100% authorization, some will test 
> that assumption, others will observe and reserve judgment, and every 
> other flavor in between.
>
> I have observed that with repeated use, people seem to experience an 
> increasing sense of self-authorization. More take responsibility for 
> what they love not just in Open Space but in life.
>
> I know of no practice that lays the groundwork better for increasing 
> self-authorization in social systems.
>
> from sunny (at last) Seattle,
> Peggy
>
>


-- 
Harold Shinsato
harold at shinsato.com <mailto:harold at shinsato.com>
http://shinsato.com
twitter: @hajush <http://twitter.com/hajush>
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