Thank you Harrison! Every word, every nuance, there is so much in the layers of what you described... Of what it is to be a facilitator which also extends to being a parent, a friend and a fellow human being. A lifetime of learning here for all of us. Suzanne On Mar 27, 2015 1:01 PM, "Harrison via OSList" < [email protected]> wrote:
> Grief and Griefwork are central to the human experience and evolution. To > the extent that Open Space is a useful forum in which human experience and > evolution may take place, both grief and Griefwork are critical elements. > The process itself cannot be rushed. It will proceed at its own pace > through the several phases, none of which can be skipped or short changed, > for each phase contributes an essential element towards the final goal, > which is renewal. No doubt grief is painful, and the process itself is, as > the name implies, real work, but it is good work. In totality, and contrary > to the popular perception, it is not sad. Indeed it is triumphal, even > joyful, creating the way for letting go of what has ended, and leading to > new life. Not bad for a day’s work! > > > > The ground breaking work describing the Griefwork Process was done by > Elizabeth Kübler-Ross in her 1969 book, “On Death and Dying.” It was mind > blowing. In one fell swoop she gave meaning to one of life’s most painful > experiences: Grief. Yes it was, and is, a pain, but pain with genuine gain. > From the terrible moments of ending, something innate draws us forward. > From Shock and Anger, through Denial on to letting go and resolution. We > move on. We don’t have to invent it, even think it. Happens all by itself, > every time, and all the time – if we just let it. And that is a critical > point... we have to let it happen. We can slow it, even abort it, but doing > so leaves us in a life of grief with no resolution. > > > > Kübler-Ross’s focus was on the individual response to Death. My focus has > always been on the larger agglomeration of individuals which we call > organizations, what they are and how they develop and transform. And the > more I thought about it, and lived deeply in the heart of many > organizations, it occurred to me that Griefwork was very much present and > critical. At points of ending, all sorts of endings, the process would > start, sometimes with the whole organization involved. Shock/Anger, Denial, > Memories, Despair, Open Space, Vision – those were my descriptors, and yes, > Open Space had nothing to do with meetings. For me it was that incredible > balance point between what was and what would become. I’ll spare you the > details, but if you are interested it is all there in my first book, > “Spirit: Transformation and Development,” which is yours for a mouse click > at http://openspaceworld.com/Spirit.pdf > > > > Open Space Technology was a late comer in all of this, definitely a funny > thing on the way to the future – until it began to dawn on me that > everything I had experienced and described under the heading of Griefwork > in Organizations showed up in that “funny thing.” Which is why I ended up > calling it *Open Space*. “Technology” was merely an afterthought, and > mostly a joke. > > > > When an organization is in deep pain caused by market shifts, corporate > raiders, internal conflict, international disorder – whatever – The process > of Griefwork kicks in. The initial response is shock and Anger, blame and > confusion. “They did it!” “How could it happen to us?” Old ways end. New > ways are much less than obvious. And the process rolls on! Should such an > organization find itself sitting in a circle, creating a bulletin board... > if would be fair to say that the Griefwork Process is the script of the > emerging drama. Unwritten, unplanned, maybe unknown – but very much there, > if you just take a moment to see. And if you have never been in such a > situation, you can in fact see it in a remarkable video of USWEST, thanks > to Peggy Holman. http://vimeo.com/25251316 > > > > Shortly told, the situation was that a corporate wide redesign (Process > Re-Engineering) had failed massively leaving anger, frustration and > confusion in its wake. In one part of the USWEST world, The State of > Arizona, it had all gone critical. Somehow, Peggy Holman and her colleagues > managed to bring in Open Space, which is marvelously depicted by the video. > When asked to describe the course of events over the three day gathering, > one participant said (in reference to the second day), “Today I think we > are searching for solutions for what we were bitching about yesterday.” > There it is. The passage from shock and anger onto vision and renewal. But > don’t just listen to the words. The “body language” is even more > compelling. In the opening circle you will see a phalanx of angry faces, > arms folded, jaws set. Skip to the end and it is practically a love in. And > no, we did not script it! > > > > Knowing that Griefwork is central to the fabric and flow of an Open Space > is interesting. But becoming familiar with the essential elements of > Griefwork and their contribution to the process of healing and renewal can > provide a powerful point of insight for anyone who has undertaken the role > of facilitator. It is not so much about guiding, or somehow directing, the > process, which simply can’t be done. It is about deepening our awareness of > what is actually taking place. At the very least this awareness will > provide some comfort and orientation in an otherwise confusing situation > for the facilitator. > > > > Should it occur, as it often does, that the first day is filled with > acrimony, blame, and anger... all mixed with an apparent unwillingness to > face the facts of ending, this is not something that can or should be > “fixed.” It is simply the age old process of Grief doing its work. The > natural tendency to attempt soothing the rough waters, and bring about some > “rational” future oriented discussion will do no good at all, and in fact > is counter-productive. The likely result is that the process will be > aborted and driven underground. A superficial “peace” may be restored, but > genuine healing and renewal are denied. > > > > Comforting a fevered facilitator is the least of the gifts that knowledge > of the Griefwork process confers. More important are the clues and cues > such knowledge provides to the facilitator, guidance on the most effective > ways to hold the space. When shock and anger are rampant, the critical role > is to keep the space wide open. This means serious Presence and > Invisibility, and if that seems to be too hard an assignment, I suggest the > “Chair Exercise.” Find a good solid chair, place it in an out of the way > corner, but with a view of the action. Sit in the chair, and hold onto the > seat with both hands – HARD. Whenever you are tempted to jump in and solve > the situation, go ahead but keep holding onto the chair. You will feel > pretty ridiculous, but the lesson will be immediate. Sit Down! > > > > As the Work of Grief moves along, new opportunities for the facilitator > will appear. This is not the time or place to list them all, and my best > effort will be found in the second half of my last book, “Wave Rider,” > called the “Wave Rider’s Guide to the Future.” > http://www.amazon.com/Wave-Rider-Leadership-Performance-Self-Organizing/dp/1576756173/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1427472738&sr=1-3&keywords=harrison+owen > I am under no illusion that my efforts represent the “Last Word,” indeed I > sincerely hope that they will constitute an invitation to each and every > one of you to explore and share your experience and findings. > > > > I am quite sure, however, that Griefwork is not a process we can design, > program, or direct. It will happen as it always has – on its own timetable. > But we can help. Of more immediate concern is the fact that we will have > massive opportunities for exploration and assistance. Any fair reading of > our current world order (is that an oxymoron?) tells us that there will be > a lot of endings, most of them painful, but all of them potential for new > beginnings. We have a lot of work to do. > > > > Harrison > > > > > > Winter Address > > 7808 River Falls Drive > > Potomac, MD 20854 > > 301-365-2093 > > > > Summer Address > > 189 Beaucaire Ave. > > Camden, ME 04843 > > 207-763-3261 > > > > Websites > > www.openspaceworld.com <http://%20www.openspaceworld.com> > > www.ho-image.com > > OSLIST To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives > of OSLIST Go to: > http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org > > > > _______________________________________________ > OSList mailing list > To post send emails to [email protected] > To unsubscribe send an email to [email protected] > To subscribe or manage your subscription click below: > http://lists.openspacetech.org/listinfo.cgi/oslist-openspacetech.org > Past archives can be viewed here: > http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] > >
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