Jon I have never met a shy person when their passion was aroused. In fact most of the comments I receive in Open Spaces I have done indicate that the shiest people who have never been heard from suddenly find their voice and isnt that surprisingly wonderful, folks say. My favorite story was of a young black secretary whos formal group skills ended with WordPerfect. I mention black only because it was a southern, essentially all white male corporation. This was a All Hands gathering starting with the chairman of the board some 500 people and a place/time when a young Black secretary might feel some intimidation. But she stepped right up and claimed the issue for her and all her fellow support staffers. When she finished, there was a moment of surprised silence a) because the issue had been named. And b) because this young woman who never said a thing had done it. In that moment of silence, the young lady turned to me (forgetting I had a hot mike in my hand) and said, Harrison, what happens if nobody comes? I couldnt resist Looking straight at the Chairman of the Board (my client) and walking slow towards him I said, Clarissa if nobody comes that will be clear and indisputable evidence that you are the only person in this entire corporation who is competent to deal with this critical issue. Her session was standing room only and included all the senior officers of the corporation. Clarissa led it with elegance and when it was over the issue had largely been resolved and of equal importance Clarissa walked out 6 feet off the ground. She had done what she and everybody else knew simply could not be done. I think you call that empowerment.
My learning from that instance and a number of others of a similar sort is that while it may be true that some shy people are worried about standing up in the circle, that shyness disappears in the presence of passion. Further when that passion is claimed with responsibility genuine empowerment takes place. I have never found any reason to attempt some form of preparation of the people nor to offer assistance other than to hold the microphone. The folks always take care of the business all by themselves. Harrison Harrison Owen 7808 River Falls Dr. Potomac, MD 20854 USA Phone 301-365-2093 www.openspaceworld.com www.ho-image.com (Personal Website) To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of <mailto:osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu> osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu: <http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html> http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html From: OSLIST [mailto:osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu] On Behalf Of Jon Harvey Sent: Thursday, July 22, 2010 4:27 AM To: osl...@listserv.boisestate.edu Subject: Shy people... (?) Dear all You wont be surprised to know that I have never had a problem speaking (and even performing) in public. This isnt just because I have a lot of passion and desire to make the world a better place (and entertain people!) it is because I have a good dollop of confidence. I probably blame my parents for this as they always had lots of confidence in me. So when it comes to speaking up in an Open Space and saying what session I would like to run, there is no problem for me. But there does appear to be a problem for some people. Maybe. When I am facilitating an Open Space, I aim to do all I can in the introduction to make it easy for anyone, no matter how shy or lacking in confidence they are, to come forward. Whilst I almost always step outside of the circle, I hang about near the microphone sometimes, or not. I place chocolates in the middle to lure people into declaring their passion and offering to run a session. I look calmly on and simply be when no one is coming forward... (sometimes). And then the sponsor says, perhaps people are just too shy, speaking into the microphone is just too daunting, will you offer to speak for people if they write it out first, shall I do this, could they just place the meeting notice on the agenda wall, is Open Space only for confident people, do we need more structure...? (etc.) I feel uncomfortable, I know that people have ideas and questions they would like to discuss and I know some people find speaking to a group (big or small) really, really scary. I want to stay true to the principle of passion in OS but I also want to help... Or am I in danger of intervening too much? Whatever happens is the only thing which could have, and whoever turns up is the right people... I could go on... but I hope you get my gist. What do you do? How do you create the space in which everyone who has a passion, no matter how scared they feel, comes forward with their offer? How do you make that daunting threshold of speaking to a group, just so right that no one feels too shy to come forward if they want to come forward...? All the best Jon ____________________________________________________________________________ ___ Jon Harvey Director " <http://www.jonharveyassociates.co.uk/> www.jonharveyassociates.co.uk ( +44 (0) 7771 537535 ( +44 (0) 1280 822585 <mailto:j...@jonharveyassociates.co.uk> j...@jonharveyassociates.co.uk ¹ Skype: jonsharvey JHAL logo.jpg Helping you connect the prose and the passion to deliver superlative results <http://smallcreativeideas.blogspot.com/> http://smallcreativeideas.blogspot.com/ for ideas about how to improve the efficiency & effectiveness of public & third sector services <http://jonharveyassociates.blogspot.com/> http://jonharveyassociates.blogspot.com/ for articles & ideas about leadership and organisational change from a whole systems perspective <http://twitter.com/JonSHarvey> http://twitter.com/JonSHarvey for conversations, ideas & questions to help build a more ambitious, creative and fair world <http://tinyurl.com/JonHarveyLI> http://tinyurl.com/JonHarveyLI to connect with me on LinkedIn Jon Harvey Associates Ltd Registered Office: Chandos House, School Lane, Buckingham, MK18 1HD Company Number 6661588. 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