I like what you said Peggy - 'leaky' container.
And Jeff I am smiling as I am thinking of you walking your own little
circle up there.
Yes I have also done Open Space in an auditorium but we took over the
conference space - making discussion areas in the lobby, in the plaza,
in the hallways. We used the auditorium for announcing sessions.
Of all the experiments people have shared on the OSLIST - it seems as
if you do *not* create a circle - in some way - it does not hold
together so well.
If you walk the auditorium - if you place your posters on at least
three walls and walk to them and indicate them in a circle - if your
body and sense of thing *implies* a circle - that seems to work well.
You are still creating the circle. If you can make your break-out
areas everywhere else - good - but they may still have to return
somewhere to see the agenda - or you can make it on moveable exhibit
walls and after the opening 'circle' you can move it out to the
hallway to some main vantage point.
It's a hard thing to do. It does then to isolate discussion areas and
it is so useful when they can feed off each others' energy in the same
big room.
I once did an Open Space all the way down a wide hallway - discussion
areas scattered down the hall and me walking down the middle but still
making a circle feeling.
It depends on the space - it can be a safety hazard if the hallways
are not really wide.
The late great Brian Bainbridge shared a story about Open Space in an
auditorium - people simply found each other and made little circle-
like gatherings as they clustered in the rows with the little groups
turning to each other.
The thing I would recommend overall -
- are you stuffing Open Space into a situation where it is not given
time or space or support
- what is the objective of the Open Space - what makes it useful to
people to attend instead of another workshop
- is there any other way to find more time (such as networking breaks
or etc.)
- is there any way to find more space (creatively)
- is this the right time and the right place and the right setting
- are you - when you check in with your intuition, not just your brain
- feeling this is a joyful useful situation - or is it not the right
time and you should try to offer this at some future time when they
can actually design for it
Are you being good to yourself.
Are you being good to the participants.
Yes?
Lisa
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