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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body bgcolor=white lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>No problem Dan. I can’t tell you why other people mention them, but my reason is a simple one. It’s a nice thing to do. It all goes with the Invitation... <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>So – were I to invite you to my birthday party I could simply say “Come for my B’day 12/2/13 at noon, Inn at Glen Echo.” That has all the essential information, but it is a little bit abrupt. It might be nice to give some hint about what could happen – just to peak your interest and make you feel more at comfortable. Maybe something about fabulous guests, surprising happenings, total freedom to enjoy...to say nothing of Martinis!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>So with the 5 Principles and the Law. They were in fact generated by simple observation. Over the years, and indeed from the beginning, they always seemed to happen. Even when they weren’t expected. And I am totally convinced that they would still show up if never mentioned. They don’t created the openness of the space – they simply acknowledge it. So why even mention them? It’s a nice thing to do. And once mentioned people get rather attached to them. I’ve tried to get away with silence, and have been pulled up short every time...<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>So what to do? Just be nice </span><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Wingdings;color:#1F497D'>J</span><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Harrison <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Harrison Owen<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>7808 River Falls Dr.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Potomac, MD 20854<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>USA<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Camden, Maine 04843<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Phone 301-365-2093<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>(summer) 207-763-3261<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><a href="www.openspaceworld.com%20"><span style='color:blue'>www.openspaceworld.com</span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><a href="www.ho-image.com%20"><span style='color:blue'>www.ho-image.com</span></a> (Personal Website)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Consolas;color:#1F497D'>To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of OSLIST Go to:<a href="http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org"><span style='color:blue'>http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p></div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";color:windowtext'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";color:windowtext'> oslist-bounces@lists.openspacetech.org [mailto:oslist-bounces@lists.openspacetech.org] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Daniel Mezick<br><b>Sent:</b> Monday, September 30, 2013 1:31 PM<br><b>To:</b> oslist@lists.openspacetech.org<br><b>Subject:</b> Re: [OSList] (was) Open Space in schools - now: OST boundaries? constraints?<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'>I request help and guidance. Will you help me understand the rule of the Open Space meeting format?<br><br>If the 1 law & the 4/5 principles are natural and self-evident, I am confused about the need to mention them whatsoever. <br><br>If the 1 law and the 4/5 principles are not natural and not self-evident, I am confused about how mentioning them is optional.<br><br>The 1 "law" (quotes) and "4/5 principles" (quotes again) are either self-evident, or they are not. I wonder which is the reality.<br><br>See also: <br><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_law">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_law</a><br><a href="http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_rights">http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_rights</a><br><br><br><br><br><o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal>On 9/30/13 8:05 AM, Harrison Owen wrote:<o:p></o:p></p></div><blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt'><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Dan – I have to agree with Lisa. As said multiple times before, the 5 principles and the Law are descriptive and not prescriptive. Or at least that is the way they popped into my head: simple observations of what was transpiring, as opposed to directions concerning what should be taking place. I have always said “Principles” and “Law” with a smile, because if you really think about it, they are neither (principle or law). More like, “funny things that happen on the way to the future.” There is an essential humor, sense of fun in Open Space – and if we ever lose it, we begin to take things much too seriously </span><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Wingdings;color:#1F497D'>L</span><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'> I call it High Play.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Harrison </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Harrison Owen</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>7808 River Falls Dr.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Potomac, MD 20854</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>USA</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>189 Beaucaire Ave. (summer)</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Camden, Maine 04843</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Phone 301-365-2093</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>(summer) 207-763-3261</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><a href="www.openspaceworld.com%20">www.openspaceworld.com</a> </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><a href="www.ho-image.com%20">www.ho-image.com</a> (Personal Website)</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:10.5pt;font-family:Consolas;color:#1F497D'>To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of OSLIST Go to:<a href="http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org">http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org</a></span><o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><div><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'> <a href="mailto:oslist-bounces@lists.openspacetech.org">oslist-bounces@lists.openspacetech.org</a> [<a href="mailto:oslist-bounces@lists.openspacetech.org">mailto:oslist-bounces@lists.openspacetech.org</a>] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Lisa Heft<br><b>Sent:</b> Monday, September 30, 2013 3:22 AM<br><b>To:</b> World wide Open Space Technology email list<br><b>Subject:</b> [OSList] (was) Open Space in schools - now: OST boundaries? constraints?</span><o:p></o:p></p></div></div><p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'>Dan - I have taken the liberty of adjusting the title of this topic to more closely fit the changed content.</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'> </span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'>And: I look forward to hearing how others respond…</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'> </span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'>1/ I see the Law and Principles and *invitations* not as constraints.</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'> </span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'>2/ And not 'required' as in - some of us do not use the 5th Principle at all. However, the saying, inviting and simple explanation of these invitations help to create the structure (as there is a structure, just not the structure that a lot of people have experienced in meetings) / to create the container. What I mean by that is that I have observed that to not offer the invitation of the principles and law (even in a group of people who completely know and do Open Space) is not inviting presence and possibility in the same way. So different dynamics then occur.</span><o:p></o:p></p></div></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'> </span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'>And in saying that offering these invitations and explaining this process help to create the container, I mean a living, breathing, nutrient-rich container, perhaps similar to some containers like cellular walls, a bird's nest, a lake, a poem, or a wisp of vapor… which have some form within which there is flow. </span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'> </span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'>3/ I notice that some super-good OST facilitators can use more words to explain things, and some use less. And the experience can be amazing. In my observation, it is not the amount of words, it is the complete true understanding of inviting Opening Circle and agenda co-creation (which include a brief explanation of principles and law and process), and getting / staying out of the way so the participants can do their own work, see their own patterns, feel their own co-leadership, and so on. </span><o:p></o:p></p></div></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'> </span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'>What do others think?</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'><br>Lisa</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:13.5pt'> </span><o:p></o:p></p></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><div><div><p class=MsoNormal>On Sep 29, 2013, at 10:53 PM, Daniel Mezick <<a href="mailto:dan@newtechusa.net">dan@newtechusa.net</a>> wrote:<o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=MsoNormal><br><br><br><o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal>Lisa says:<br>"...<o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal>The other thing is that for any kind of facilitation, I would not name boundaries or constraints. It sets peoples' minds in the framework of boundaries and constraints - rather than opportunities and possibilities.<o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=MsoNormal>Like 'think outside the box' - you are still thinking…of the box! when / because someone says that. "<br><br>Dan says:<br>I notice that:<br>1/ the 1 Law and 5 Principles of OST are constraints-in-fact. Are they not?<br>2/ we are required to describe these as OST Facilitators; at least, according to the OST Guide. Right?<br>3/ the general idea for the Facilitator is, "the less said the better". No?<br><br>I think OST is a most wonderful game. <a href="http://newtechusa.net/agile/how-games-deliver-happiness-learning/">http://newtechusa.net/agile/how-games-deliver-happiness-learning/</a><br><br>Dan<o:p></o:p></p></div></div><p class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><br><br><br><o:p></o:p></p><pre>_______________________________________________<o:p></o:p></pre><pre>OSList mailing list<o:p></o:p></pre><pre>To post send emails to <a href="mailto:OSList@lists.openspacetech.org">OSList@lists.openspacetech.org</a><o:p></o:p></pre><pre>To unsubscribe send an email to <a href="mailto:OSList-leave@lists.openspacetech.org">OSList-leave@lists.openspacetech.org</a><o:p></o:p></pre><pre>To subscribe or manage your subscription click below:<o:p></o:p></pre><pre><a href="http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org">http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org</a><o:p></o:p></pre></blockquote><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal>-- <br><br><o:p></o:p></p><p class=p1>Daniel Mezick, President<o:p></o:p></p><p class=p1>New Technology Solutions Inc.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=p1>(203) 915 7248 (cell)<o:p></o:p></p><p class=p2><span class=s1><a href="http://newtechusa.net/dan-mezick/">Bio</a></span><span class=s2>. <a href="http://newtechusa.net/blog/"><span class=s1>Blog</span></a>. <a href="http://twitter.com/#%21/danmezick/"><span class=s1>Twitter</span></a>.</span><span class=apple-converted-space><span style='color:black'> </span></span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=p3><span class=s2>Examine my new book:</span><span class=apple-converted-space><span style='color:black'> </span></span><span class=s2><a href="http://newtechusa.net/about/the-culture-game-book/"><span class=s1>The Culture Game </span></a></span><span class=s1>: Tools for the Agile Manager</span><span class=s2>.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=p1>Explore Agile Team <a href="http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-training/"><span class=s3>Training</span></a> and <a href="http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-coaching/"><span class=s3>Coaching.</span></a><o:p></o:p></p><p class=p1>Explore the <a href="http://newtechusa.net/user-groups/ma/"><span class=s3>Agile Boston </span></a>Community.<span class=apple-converted-space> </span><o:p></o:p></p></div></div></body></html>