<html><head></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; ">Hi Sandy,<div><br></div><div>What a challenge! I have heard stories of spaces opened successfully in auditoriums. I believe Lisa Heft has a story about it somewhere in the archives. If you take that approach, those I know who have done it say the work is to set a metaphorical circle. In other words, invite people to imagine themselves sitting in a circle, what that means, how that feels. That creates the openness in which people will come forward.</div><div><br></div><div>I've had two experiences as a participant in non-circle settings. In one, no attention was paid to the quality of the space before inviting people to post sessions. No one did. So the organizers named sessions instead. In other words, the space wasn't very open. </div><div><br></div><div>In the other case, the session began with a meditation that invited people to get clear on what mattered to them. When the invitation to post a session happened, they were primed. It worked beautifully.</div><div><br></div><div>So it can be done.</div><div><br></div><div>If you go the route of having people sign up, I encourage you to do it loosely. If someone changes their mind and shows up for the Open Space instead, welcome them. People will figure out how to make room.</div><div><br></div><div>To Bhav's comment about running an OS in parallel with pre-set sessions, it has been done many times. Check the list archive for stories. I've seen it done where the pre-set sessions were announced and posted side by side the spontaneous sessions. I've run an OS in a room off the main conference space in parallel to a traditional conference. Both can work, though the containers are a bit "leaky". </div><div><br></div><div>I think the main question is what do you want to accomplish? Given your purpose, what form best serves the need?</div><div><br></div><div>appreciatively,</div><div>Peggy</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><div apple-content-edited="true">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-size: medium; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; 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"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Arial; font-size: medium; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div>_________________________________</div><div>Peggy Holman</div><div><a href="mailto:peggy@peggyholman.com">peggy@peggyholman.com</a></div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; "><div style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div>15347 SE 49th Place</div><div>Bellevue, WA 98006</div><div>425-746-6274</div><div><a href="http://www.peggyholman.com">www.peggyholman.com</a></div><div><a href="http://www.journalismthatmatters.org">www.journalismthatmatters.org</a></div><div><div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: medium; "><div><br></div><div><b>Enjoy the award winning </b><a href="http://peggyholman.com/papers/engaging-emergence/">Engaging Emergence: Turning Upheaval into Opportunity</a></div></div><div> <br>"An angel told me that the only way to step into the fire and not get burnt, is to become <br>the fire".<br> -- Drew Dellinger</div></div><div><br></div></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"></div></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"></div></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"></span><br class="Apple-interchange-newline">
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<br><div><div>On May 25, 2012, at 6:47 AM, Barbara B. Bunker wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote type="cite"><div>Sandy... I understand the logistics dilemma but however you decide, I missed what<br>the compelling theme for this OST will be that will attract people to it. B3<br><br><br>Barbara B. Bunker Ph.D.<br>Professor of Psychology Emerita<br>The University at Buffalo<br>117 Highland Avenue<br>Buffalo, NY 14222<br>716-881-2166<br><br>On Fri 05/25/12 9:29 AM , "Harrison Owen" <a href="mailto:hhowen@verizon.net">hhowen@verizon.net</a> sent:<br><blockquote type="cite">Gee Sandy - You do have yourself in a tight spot. I'd go for the<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">garden, if there is one. Then - Does the Auditorium have a stage? If<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">so, half the group might be on the stage, and the remainder in the 1st<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">rows facing… It is not that the folks will have to be there very<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">long. I did something like this once, and it was rather amusing. Lots<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">of hopping up and down sort of thing. But as usual it worked out. <br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Harrison<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Harrison Owen <br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">7808 River Falls Dr.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Potomac, MD 20854<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">USA<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer)<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Camden, Maine 20854<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Phone 301-365-2093<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">(summer) 207-763-3261<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><a href="http://www.openspaceworld.com">www.openspaceworld.com</a><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><a href="http://www.ho-image.com">www.ho-image.com</a> (Personal Website)<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">OSLIST Go<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">to:http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">[1]<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">FROM: <a href="mailto:oslist-bounces@lists.openspacetech.org">oslist-bounces@lists.openspacetech.org</a><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">[mailto:oslist-bounces@lists.openspacetech.org] ON BEHALF OF Sandy Gee<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">SENT: Friday, May 25, 2012 4:49 AM<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">TO: <a href="mailto:oslist@lists.openspacetech.org">oslist@lists.openspacetech.org</a><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">SUBJECT: [OSList] Half the conference participants doing open space? <br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Dear colleagues,<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">ME & REQUEST FOR HELP:<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">I've informally been around OST for over a decade and facilitated a<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">number of events. But this latest I've been asked to do is a challenge<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">I'd appreciate your thoughts/comments on....<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">THE CHALLENGE: <br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Its a one day psychotherapy conference with expected attendance of<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">100+ participants. But unfortunately the venue has already been booked<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">and paid for and the only large enough space for all is an auditorium<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">with fixed rows. The next largest room is a space that could hold a<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">circle of a little over 50 (and no room for 2nd concentric circle).<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">They already want most of the morning to be conventional presentations<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">so the OST slot was to be for the afternoon (maybe with the<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">marketplace the last slot before lunch). <br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">I'm thinking that a fixed row auditorium just won't work for OST.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">MY IDEA:<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">So I'm wondering about having just _half the conference_ do OST! (and<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">the other half sign up in advance to pre-offered workshops) - I've no<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">idea if this could work or if it would be too divisive. This group<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">have always had a very conventional set up before, they're a fairly<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">straight/conventional crowd and the organisers are anyway worried<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">about introducing OST and how it'll go down. <br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">But maybe the more stuffy conventional ones could do the<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">pre-scheduled (and big name) workshops (and sign up in advance). And<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">we've got a 50 max space for OST participants.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">COMMENTS?<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Has anyone ever tried something like this? <br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">What are your thoughts? <br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Do you think it could work?<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">I'd SO appreciate any input!<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Thanks<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Sandy<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Links:<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">------<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">[1]<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><a href="http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org">http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org</a><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><br>_______________________________________________<br>OSList mailing list<br>To post send emails to <a href="mailto:OSList@lists.openspacetech.org">OSList@lists.openspacetech.org</a><br>To unsubscribe send an email to <a href="mailto:OSList-leave@lists.openspacetech.org">OSList-leave@lists.openspacetech.org</a><br>To subscribe or manage your subscription click below:<br><a href="http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org">http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org</a><br></div></blockquote></div><br></div></body></html>