[OSList] good questions

Thu Nov 19 10:35:51 PST 2015

yes and... hard as i try to be original and smart or whatever, customized,
and so on... i have over many years found it very difficult, in almost
every situation, to improve on harrison's basic framing:  what are the
issues and opportunities for ...  (usually the future of somehting or
other).  among other things, it does a brilliant job of acknowledging the
hard and the hopeful, leaving it totally to the group to decide which
should be emphasized, how and for how long.

in this case, it might be more like "what are the issues and opportunities
for... us to make positive contributions, or make a difference, or
understand, make personal... or creating the future we want... .  there's
still work to do on the back end and chris' guidance still applies to that,
but harrison's front end is as good a set-up as any.  mostly, it takes care
of the logistics of "question" and lets me focus on the "thing" i want to
invite.  this lets me apply chris' advice directly to the scope of the
thing.  i can think about chris' advice in terms of near-term breadth of
exploration/actions and also in terms of what depth might unfold over some
longer time.

i can't look back to the original question hege posted, but as often as
not, the "thing" that's wanted is right there in the earliest telling of
the story.  it's often in the first few sentences that come out of the
phone when someone first calls to ask about open space.  so the back end of
your question might be waiting for you there in your first message, hege.

michael

--

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

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

On Thu, Nov 19, 2015 at 11:42 AM, Chris Corrigan via OSList <
oslist at lists.openspacetech.org> wrote:

> I have to say that some of the questions I’m seeing here contain the
> assumptions of the questioner.
>
> For example this question: "How can our new knowledge about all these
> connections and our own part in it give us a sense of power and commitment
> to actually change things using our democratic or other  social
> institutions like our faith communities now that we do know?”
>
> That is more like a purpose statement with a question mark at the end.  I
> find that such questions actually close space, which is fine if what you
> are doing is narrowing conversation to a predetermined course of action
> (and there is nothing wrong with that, let me be clear).  But I wouldn’t
> use a question like that to OPEN the conversation up.  It assumes, for
> example,  that change can only come through using democratic and social
> institutions.  Is that true?  Is that the conversation that we need to have?
>
> I think in contrast, Carmela’s questions below are quite a bit more open,
> simpler and provide for a deeper reflection with a group.  In general, if
> you want a group to goe deeply, ask simple questions.  the myth of the
> “powerful question” is that it will take a group deeper.  In my experience,
> “powerful questions” are more about me as the questioner than my trust in
> the group’s ability to find surprising meaning in conversation.
>
> For situations of extreme uneasiness, one has to be very aware of
> embedding assumptions in questions, lest you end up in a conversation about
> opinions shared unreflectively.
>
> Chris
>
>
> On Nov 19, 2015, at 1:11 AM, Hege Steinsland via OSList <
> oslist at lists.openspacetech.org> wrote:
>
> Wow! Questiond and insight is great!
> Feel free to keep on going. Good questions is poweful to create movement
> :-)
>
> All the best from
> Hege
> 19. nov. 2015 kl. 09:50 skrev Carmela Ariza <carmela_ariza at yahoo.com>:
>
> Some more questions
>
> What opportunities for change do the current situation offer to us?
>
> Going beyond sympathy: how can we respond with empathy?
>
> In the cycle of  violence - who are we? In what way are we a part of this?
>
>
> Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPhone <https://yho.com/footer0>
>
> On Wednesday, November 18, 2015, 9:40 PM, Brett Barndt via OSList <
> oslist at lists.openspacetech.org> wrote:
>
> My favorite question is what role have we all played in creating this
> crisis?
>
> i.e. sitting by while funding from global oil industry partners outside
> our national judicial systems funded religious extremism in many countries
> now experiencing turmoil over silent decades, our own govts created
> instability through financial support of abusive dictatorships, wars, and
> occupation, and arms were transported into Syria over supposedly NATO
> controlled borders under various guises, etc. over several years while our
> mainstream media and elected officials failed to tell us loud and clear,
> but while Syrian exiles were trying to sound that alarm, etc.
>
> How can our new knowledge about all these connections and our own part in
> it give us a sense of power and commitment to actually change things using
> our democratic or other  social institutions like our faith communities now
> that we do know?
>
> When people of faith and ethical motivation engage themselves and take
> responsibility for changing things, the elected and other institutions
> implicated in these crises will see permanent and deep reform. Not before.
>
> Good luck. Yours is a very worthwhile project!
> On Nov 18, 2015 9:05 AM, "Hege Steinsland via OSList" <
> oslist at lists.openspacetech.org> wrote:
>
>> Can I ask for input on this…
>>
>> What are the good questions for a community or a Church to ask oneself in
>> todays refugee- situation.
>> Questions that can generate insight, energy and hope…
>>
>> I wonder…
>>
>> Hege
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