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<DIV><FONT face=Arial>Peggy -- you will note that I said, " I can
certainly understand that for reasons of client sensitivities or facilitator
sensitivities WC, AI, or FS may be the preferred way to go."-- and I can
appreciate your strategy that if all roads lead to Open Space any road will do.
And of course I think a helping hand can be occasionally useful even though I
personally kick all stray dogs and immediately banish the helpless to
hopelessness. But that really wasn't my point. I was simply observing the fact
that we (all of us some of the time, and some of us most of the time) seemingly
obsess on Processes as if they were the source of our salvation. In doing
so we may forget that the Process, at best, is an artificial assist for natural
functions. Sort of organizational CPR, I suppose. And in the case of CPR you do
only enough to get the old heart going again. Long term CPR is off the mark --
except possibly in certain circumstances and with particular partners. One of my
major learnings from Open Space has been how LITTLE assistance people actually
require in order to effectively utilize their natural gifts and talents. I think
we have all had the experience with a client group when somebody says "What you
are proposing (in my case OS) sounds just wonderful -- BUT it could never work
with THIS GROUP! And of course, if it is never tried, it will never work. And
besides "it" doesn't work -- the people work. But if the fates are smiling, and
despite all misgivings, fears and trepidations, Open Space is attempted --
Miracle! But of course it is not a miracle. On the contrary, it is just what you
would predict. Turns out "THIS GROUP" is just like groups everywhere. Given the
space/time -- they will get the job done. For me, less is best, and even lesser
would be better still. Get rid of the whole bloody mess, WC, AI, FS, and of
course OS too. How is that for striking a blow for freedom?</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial>Harrison</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV>Harrison Owen<BR>7808 River Falls Dr.<BR>Potomac, MD
20854<BR>USA<BR>301-365-2093<BR>207-763-3261 (summer)<BR>website <A
href="http://www.openspaceworld.com">www.openspaceworld.com</A></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=peggy@opencirclecompany.com
href="mailto:peggy@opencirclecompany.com">Peggy Holman</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A
title=OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU
href="mailto:OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU">OSLIST@LISTSERV.BOISESTATE.EDU</A>
</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Friday, May 27, 2005 11:54 AM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: Growing Together at the
Emerging Edge of Evolution (long)</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>Harrison said:<BR><BR><FONT
face=Arial><FONT size=3><FONT face="Times New Roman"><FONT face=Arial>Through
my eyes it has always appeared to me that there is precious little that occurs
at a deep level in WC, AI, and FS -- that does not also occur in OS. Further,
that the deepest moments of the preceding three happen when the space (for
whatever reason) is most fully open</FONT></FONT><FONT face=Arial>...if the
common point of power is open space -- why not just Open Space? Not much else
needed. <BR></FONT></FONT><BR></FONT></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>Harrison, I deeply and firmly believe
that all roads lead to Open Space. And yet, I do work with AI and
occaisionally TWC and I applaud the work of my fs colleagues. Why?
Because they are where a client is willing to start AND they lead to Open
Space.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>Years ago I remember you telling me
that anytime you do something for another, it disempowers them. Anytime
I consider supporting someone in some way, I think of this. As I've
experimented with this through the years (mostly by not stepping in to
help), I saw others support someone that I had left (lovingly) to find
their way on their own. In many cases, that helping hand gave the person
or group the start they needed to take the next step on their own.
My conclusion: there are times that support, provided sparingly and always,
always with the intent of letting go, is of service. That is how I hold
any work I do that requires me to do silly facilitator gyrations like asking
people to do activity a, then b. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>The critical, critical discipline for
me is to continually ask myself my favorite Harrison design
question: "what's one less thing to do (and have this be whole and
complete)?" I know without hesitation that anytime things start
getting complicated that it is time to step back and ask, "what is the
intent?" and "what is the minimum required for this to occur"?</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>You said:</FONT><BR><FONT
face=Arial>...it is not The Designed Process (AI, FS, WC, or OS) but rather
the natural gift possessed by all of us that deserves the credit.
</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT><FONT face="Comic Sans MS"
size=2></FONT><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT><FONT
face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT><FONT face="Comic Sans MS"
size=2></FONT><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT><BR><FONT
face=Arial>...I seriously doubt that the genesis of all that good stuff
happened because of brilliant design and application. It happened because a
total natural and pre-existing phenomenon was allowed to do its work. Most
importantly, this phenomenon was NOT the creation of the conference designers
and facilitators. It was in fact the natural "possession" of the group as a
whole, and each individual present. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>Absolutely! Goodness knows that I
wouldn't dream of taking credit for their work! I do believe that what
is useful is naming what is happening (e.g., speaking the law and the
principles) so that they have the gift of consciously knowing what's working
and can take it with them when they leave. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>To that end, I have taken to describing
the law of two feet with the phrase "Take responsibility for what you
love". While simply another way of talking about passion and
responsibility, it has remarkable potency. In fact,
I learned something new about the implications of this
invitation. On my way to breakfast on the third
morning, one of the many luminaries at the gathering stopped me with a
clear, crisp call. She said that she'd just "gotten" what it means to
take responsibility for what you love. She explained that she had been
excluded from a journal on a subject in which she is an acknowledged
expert. She had been hurt and fretting about it and wasn't sure what to
do with the angst. She told me she woke up with my face in hers saying,
"take repsonsibility for what you love" and immediately knew what she had to
do. She started composing a letter to the
publisher telling him that he needed to publish something of hers
and indeed, that he needed her as a keynote at an upcoming conference.
And with that, she could let go. She went on to say (and this is where
my new learning comes in) that in the past she would have told herself that it
was her ego talking and let it go. What the phrase "take responsibility
for what you love" did for her was help her discern calling from ego. It
gave her the power to act appropriately.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>Wow! She did the
work. No question. Yet those words -- take responsibility for
what you love -- the essence of Open Space, made it possible for her to
clearly see herself and her power in a new way.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>As far as I'm concerned, it doesn't get
any better.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>from sunny Seattle,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>Peggy</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2><BR><BR></FONT> </DIV>* *
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