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<DIV>So well put Michael, the idea of open space as invitations. For years, I've
opened the space in any meeting or day-long workshop, inviting people to invite
others around what matters to them within the context of the given themes.
People typically enjoy the invitation and I never worry about where things go
from there. My commitment is to trust the people and expect the
principles.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>What's key for me is trusting that the process of passion-inspired
invitations is the necessary condition for the only things that can happen
thanks to the right people showing up. In the spirit of the principle of
accidental conversations, I will resist any attempt to measure the value of any
conversation by its immediate result. If a single quiet conversation at the edge
of the community today has an impact seven generations from now, it has had
precious value. We need to hold each conversation in our hearts that
lightly.</DIV></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Jack</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>~~~~~~~~~~</DIV>
<DIV>jack ricchiuto</DIV>
<DIV>two.one.six/three.seven.three/seven.four.seven.five</DIV>
<DIV><A href="http://www.designinglife.com/">www.designinglife.com</A> / <A
href="http://www.appreciativeleadership.org/">www.appreciativeleadership.org</A>
</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV>------------Original Message------------</DIV>
<DIV>From: Michael Herman <mjherman@gmail.com></DIV>
<DIV>To: OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU</DIV>
<DIV>Date: Fri, Apr-29-2005 5:44 AM</DIV>
<DIV>Subject: Re: After the OST event...</DIV>
<DIV>i always describe open space as a practice in invitation, doug.
we</DIV>
<DIV>put out the first invite, and people come. then we invite them
to</DIV>
<DIV>post their own invites, to breakout sessions. this is just
the</DIV>
<DIV>detailed version of the first invite. then they take the notes,
which</DIV>
<DIV>is a further detailing of the original invitation... and an
invitation</DIV>
<DIV>to reflect, review, return and act. and some of the actions
usually</DIV>
<DIV>include issuing new invitations. if the new invitations go out
beyond</DIV>
<DIV>the first circle, then even if those folks drift away, the process</DIV>
<DIV>will keep going, the conversation will continue. so can the three
who</DIV>
<DIV>are left invite the next round of new people? will those
who've</DIV>
<DIV>drifted away be invited back? and if not, do they know others
they</DIV>
<DIV>might share a new invitation with? ...or perhaps it's just
over...</DIV>
<DIV>for now? m</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>On 4/28/05, Harrison Owen <hhowen@comcast.net> wrote:</DIV>
<DIV>> Doug -- no problem. Friends of mine who ran (were involved with) a
large</DIV>
<DIV>> rural healthcare delivery organization did "an" Open Space -- and
then</DIV>
<DIV>> resolved (actually the whole staff demanded) that they work from
that time</DIV>
<DIV>> forward in Open Space. So. It became a matter of policy and
principle the</DIV>
<DIV>> every person in the organization had both the opportunity and
the</DIV>
<DIV>> responsibility to open a space any time there was an issue or
opportunity</DIV>
<DIV>> affecting the life of the organization for which there was not
immediate or</DIV>
<DIV>> obvious solution. Open Spaces happened all the time. Sometimes there
were 5</DIV>
<DIV>> people, sometimes 50.</DIV>
<DIV>></DIV>
<DIV>> ho</DIV>
<DIV>></DIV>
<DIV>> Harrison Owen</DIV>
<DIV>> 7808 River Falls Drive</DIV>
<DIV>> Potomac, Maryland 20845</DIV>
<DIV>> Phone 301-365-2093</DIV>
<DIV>></DIV>
<DIV>> Open Space Training www.openspaceworld.com</DIV>
<DIV>> Open Space Institute www.openspaceworld.org</DIV>
<DIV>> Personal website <A
href="http://mywebpages.comcast.net/hhowen/index.htm">http://mywebpages.comcast.net/hhowen/index.htm</A></DIV>
<DIV>> OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU</DIV>
<DIV>> To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives
Visit:</DIV>
<DIV>> <A
href="http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html">http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html</A></DIV>
<DIV>></DIV>
<DIV>> -----Original Message-----</DIV>
<DIV>> From: OSLIST [mailto:OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU] On Behalf Of
Douglas D.</DIV>
<DIV>> Germann, Sr.</DIV>
<DIV>> Sent: Thursday, April 28, 2005 12:20 PM</DIV>
<DIV>> To: OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU</DIV>
<DIV>> Subject: After the OST event...</DIV>
<DIV>></DIV>
<DIV>> Hi--</DIV>
<DIV>></DIV>
<DIV>> A couple of years ago a community OST event was held involving</DIV>
<DIV>> professionals with a common set of clients/patients. There was
great</DIV>
<DIV>> enthusiasm and an on-going task group came out of it. It met for
about 4 to</DIV>
<DIV>> 6 months and then fizzled out.</DIV>
<DIV>></DIV>
<DIV>> Another community event recently resulted in an on-going group and
an</DIV>
<DIV>> e-mail list-serv. The first month's meeting had about 10 or 12
people from</DIV>
<DIV>> the original 20+. The second month's meeting had 3 people.</DIV>
<DIV>></DIV>
<DIV>> It occurs to me that what is needed to carry things through beyond
the</DIV>
<DIV>> event is some open space in which we can re-enter dialogue. Open
space is</DIV>
<DIV>> not something that goes into old skins: it bursts them. It is not
the same</DIV>
<DIV>> kind of business meetings with pre-set agendas--it has to be open in
the</DIV>
<DIV>> moment. It is not the networking function where we share small talk
about</DIV>
<DIV>> experiences and titles and advertising slogans and elevator
speeches. It is</DIV>
<DIV>> about encountering persons. We need a theme or a method of meeting
that</DIV>
<DIV>> will allow the same kind of being to being contact and growth. How
is this</DIV>
<DIV>> to be accomplished?</DIV>
<DIV>></DIV>
<DIV>> Can we do the on-going meetings in an open space sort of way? Can
we</DIV>
<DIV>> propose topics within a container topic and go to separate corners
or</DIV>
<DIV>> address them serially? Is there another way to open space? Can we
"post"</DIV>
<DIV>> topics virtually, say?</DIV>
<DIV>></DIV>
<DIV>> What has been your experience? What has worked? How do you see
people</DIV>
<DIV>> keeping it going?</DIV>
<DIV>></DIV>
<DIV>>
:-Doug. Germann</DIV>
<DIV>>
Seeking people making community
change.</DIV>
<DIV>></DIV>
<DIV>> *</DIV>
<DIV>> *</DIV>
<DIV>> ==========================================================</DIV>
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<DIV>> To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options,</DIV>
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<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>--</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Michael Herman Associates</DIV>
<DIV><A
href="http://www.michaelherman.com">http://www.michaelherman.com</A></DIV>
<DIV>...inviting organizations into action</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Small Change News Network</DIV>
<DIV><A
href="http://www.smallchangenews.org">http://www.smallchangenews.org</A></DIV>
<DIV>...blogging giving flourishing</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
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