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dear Gabriela,
a bit late I want to answer
your mail, because you touch a point I like to talk about. You
say:
I see my role as a consultant and coach in
front and behind of an OST meeting in order to support my customers in creating
their own best meta-frame for a sustainable learning and change process. And
again with the goal, that next time they are able to do it alone or much more
alone.
Based on this mission I
am not a friend of including "external visualizer" into the "normal" procedure
of OST meetings. I am very open for exceptions. But my assumption is, that this
wonderful art, made by one person, is reducing the sustainable energy of an OST
group.Of course, at the beginning the group is very excited about all the
amazing images...
I want to answer under two aspects, 1.) a general one
true for every group process, and 2.) a special Open Space aspect.
1.) Of course a visual record made
by a visual recorder is subjective in the sense, that one person has made it.
But that is true for every form of recording, and especially if the recorder
is not an expert.
How can one press the content of a group session, with
for example 20.000 spoken words, into a record of 500 words? Everybody can try,
or has tried before, and should know about the difficulty. But the amazing thing
is: using images you come much closer to representing the whole content, in
metaphorical form. and you can not only represent spoken words, but also
feelings which were in the group, hope, fear, honesty, dishonesty, body language
and many more aspects. By serving as a container, a medium, a
transformer.
If you are true doing this, people feel
that immediately. It is true for every group process, that people gain from
seeing what they say.They feel understood, the process can be seen and felt. And you can
pick it up and carry it away with you, can come back to it, live through the
situations again, and show it to others who did not take part.
2.) That
brings me to the benefit which I think is unique for open space. Let's look at a
typical os situation. a good theme, a hundred participants, five rounds of
groups in two days, seven parallel groups, that makes an average of 15 people
per group. Let's say everybody uses the law of two feet twice, so he takes part
in seven groups. Alltogether there were 5 x 7 =
35 groups, so everybody took part
in 35 : 7 = 20% of all the groups, ideas, visions.
Open Space is ment to allow the unexpected,
without agenda and prescribed direction. More often I have experienced, that
especially in a good meeting people are touched by their theme, and don't have
much space for the content of other groups. And perhaps it is enough to feel,
that others were concentrated and enthusiastic too, had fun and had some
insights.
But if you look at it in a greater context, there was a
reason behind the event, maybe a hope for some influence of the results on the
day by day life of the organisazion. So what was it, what everybody did, and
were is it? Some fotos of flipcharts in an illegible handwriting? Also the
normal form of written records, often done in the evening by some diligent
participants working overtime, does not provide a base for sustainability.
But a visual record can do that, as the participants of
the os where we took part can confirm.
So who could make such a visual record? Very rarely
there will be the money to pay an extra visual recorder. I definitely know, that
the participants can do it themselves, if they are encouraged and get some help,
materials and simple tips by the os facilitator. But normally that does
not happen.
So I came to a conclusion which I proposed to this
oslist some months ago, but of course it was a sacrilege and I did not get one
single answer to it.
The Visual Facilitator, a bit more than a visual
recorder, is a responible container serving the group. Very much like the
Facilitator responsable for the os process holding the space. So I said if the
os facilitator himselve would be trained to make a visual record and bring
it into the group process (I can hear the protests in your heads reading that!
He does not understand the essence of os at all!!!) , or in another version wold
be trained to make the participants draw themselves ... and if the osonosses
were besides other themes places where visual facilitation could be learned
...
You see,
there are many if's to dream about.
Mit freundlichen
Grüßen
Best regards
Reinhard
VISUELLE PROTOKOLLE
Kuchenmüller & Dr.
Stifel
Munich Germany
Tel: +49- 89- 202 447
48
Fax. +49- 89- 202 447
49
Von: OSLIST im Auftrag von Gabriela Ender Gesendet: Mo 24.05.2004 20:32 An: [email protected] Betreff: "Power to the people" or/and "showing people, what they had said" (LONG!) Dear Reinhard, dear all,
during the last months I had too less time to
read all topics of this list. Today your posting attracted my attention.
With some of your statements (see below) I can
not agree ... therefore I feel passion to write something.
When I participated in an OST meeting for the
first time, I really had a big "AHA" experience. I realized, that with this easy
procedure, and solution-oriented structure, and open philosophy human beeings,
no matter from which culture, come immediately in contact with their deep
(conscious or unconscious) desire of "well-feeling-collaboration" AND felt
that this method is predestinated (as no other format I knew and know) to let
the participants become quickly powerful and independent from third parties AND
predestinated to support real transformation processes. I was fallen
so much in love with OST, because it fit exactly to my old mission as a change
facilitator, consultant and coach. My evidence sentence for success was: As soon
as my customer will say ... "thank you, but now I do not need you any more. I am
very good able to do it alone". This was always the main goal of my
work. And this was later, what my heart touched so much regarding OST. My
opinion is, that the old good principles of "human wisdom" offers a warm
frame of trust, respect and important orientation. Of course other large intervention methods are also based on old
assumptions, like "the wisdom lies in the group" and so on. But for me the main difference is, that OST supports THE
POWER OF POEPLE, and much less the power of consultants.
I see my role as an OST facilitator 1.) to
organize OST meetings as simple as possible in order to be a good ROLE MODEL for
each potential new OST facilitator or OST organizer among the current group.
With everything I do or not do I have in my mind the wish, that OST produce
appetite of acting more pro-active, more self-organized, more self-responsible,
and inspired by passion. And the wish, that the philosophy can have a healing
impact in organizations as well as in other human relationships. And 2.)
. (and I really love such pictures too!!). But
I believe, that one of the most powerful results for each single participant in
an OST meeting (and after the event) is the amazing (maybe new) feeling, the
he/she is/was THE EXPERT. No matter, which kind of knowledge he/she is
bringing into this meeting ... it is her/his own passion ... her/his passiv or
activ collaboration ... and the way he/she is able to record the discussions or
create images or sing songs. This is what the people make so often proud! What
is when people, who are the FIRST TIME in an OST meeting see and experience such
wonderful images, made by one (or two) special art experts? My opinion is, that
this attraction minimize the energy and the unconscious belief of "being able to
do this all alone".
It is not easy for me to write this, because I
know how many nice colleagues love such art in their OST meeting. I really
do not want to reduce the amazing value of your talent and of all others who are
able to create such wonderful pictures or include this art in their
meetings. I see amazing values in other large group activities (and
trainings, seminars, meetings, conferences, and so on), when special people
could draw images from a different / meta perspective, with new wonderful AHA´s,
... their own "bigger pictures". But my
personal opinion is, that especially with OST we should facilitate the power of
the people and less the powerful memories of one persons pictures.
It is the same with my software. I would never
suggest to use the online tool, when poeple have the opportunity to meet
face-to-face, and if they have the opportunity to experience an OST
... as simple and powerful as possible.
Maybe I see this all too rigorous? Maybe not? Just my perspective in the middle of diverse perspectives, fortunately! Love & Peace from Berlin, Gabriela Ender
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Title: Re: Four Principles, One Law -- and organisations (was halfway-technology)
- AW: "Power to the people" or/and "showi... Visuelle Protokolle
- Re: AW: "Power to the people" or/and &q... Lucas Gonzalez
- Re: AW: "Power to the people" or/and &q... chris macrae
- Re: AW: "Power to the people" or/and &q... Lucas Gonzalez
