Hi, folks -
I have had the honor of being present for one of Kaliya's facilitations of an OS conference for tech folks. So I can say that she really does OS - 'real' OS and is very clear on pre-work, process, principles space-holding and the whole thing. I'm not saying this to defend you Kaliya (there is no defense needed it is just a conversation - and I know you are fully capable of articulating and tossing about ideas with folks). I just say this to clarify that yep, it's real OS. Some time ago on the list we had a good rich discussion about 'what if you cannot make a circle' within the constraints of a particular room. Brian talked about a theatre-setting (audience seating affixed to the floor taking up most of the room - little teeny area down in the front - typical of presentation-style sites). Bernd talked about facilitating in a room that was filled with a huge table and no room to even walk around the sides. What we seemed to agree upon in our shared experiences was that - if you don't have a circle, for any reason - it works well if you *imply* the circle. You post your posters around the room. You make a gesture with your arm to the group to encompass the whole group. You...breathe. You envision the circle. Heck, you *be* the circle. So: there, the circle always is. Having said that, I'm a big fan of the circle - I don't do it any other way unless it's simply physically impossible. I've done 350-person diamonds with open centers (when the fire marshal required all chairs locked together in straight rows), I've stood on a raised platform in the center and had a bunch of pre-set discussion circles-of-chairs spread out all around the room (again - fire marshal did not allow one giant circle or 2000 people), I've indicated and envisioned and embodied the circle (round girl that I am) in teeny tiny extra tiny spaces. I've had a few people walk out - they walk into the room, see a circle and, as one person put it, say 'Not THIS shit!' (yep, her words) and walked out. Just a few. I think that many of us folks, too, have experienced a situation or two where we've been in a poorly facilitated experience - in a circle - where someone was taking us through a really well-intentioned activity or something that made us feel needlessly uncomfortable, or took up our useful time, had us all do some activity that felt artificial or imposed or that did not relate to the work at hand. Perhaps that is the only experience in a circle those individuals have had. What this brings to mind is also: it also depends what the facilitator is like. What s/he asks us to do. Some of us say 'look around in everyone's eyes', some ring a Tibetan bell, some say 'see the treasures that we are', some start with a breath, or with a moment of silence; some just jump right in to welcome the group, explain the process and jump to the work at hand. All of these beginnings are 'right', not all fit our own particular individual style, and not all fit a group's culture or style. Sometimes we make assumptions (in any element of our facilitation work, OS or otherwise) about what a group is comfortable with. I am comfortable with starting in circle - always - because of what I think it says to a group from the moment they enter. And because of what I feel is sort of the cellular knowing that humans have and still do gather this way - in many of our cultures we just sort of had a little brain freeze and somehow jumped to some odd logic that that's not useful in business settings. I also know that - you know your own culture. And whether you are facilitating for your own culture or not - there are many times when logically you may know one thing, but your body (intuition, spirit) will inform you in a much greater way. So working with that data, sometimes you make adjustments for cultural ways of communicating. Bottom line is, space...opens. Space holders...step out of the way after creating the container with and among the group for the good work to happen. Principles and law and circles and self-organization and facilitator's lack of ego and breathing help make it happen in glorious ways. My two circular cents, Lisa ___________________________ L i s a H e f t Consultant, Facilitator, Educator O p e n i n g S p a c e <mailto:lisah...@openingspace.net> lisah...@openingspace.net <http://www.openingspace.net> www.openingspace.net * * ========================================================== osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist * * ========================================================== osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
