Tom Brown, 15 January 2017

Convened by Tom Brown

There were just a few of us in attendance. If you are willing to add your name let me

know.

A gentle discussion occurred about:

Whether open space is a personality lead environment or if this is driven by the

themes and invitations. If you are an open space leader what does that mean, about

scope, content, reach and effectiveness? As a leader I'm not clear that I want this to

be about my personality if you are not a charismatic well known leader. If this is true,

I'm concerned about whether this restricts scope and effectiveness of open space

whether one is or is not a charismatic leader.

There were a number of comments about wanting and feeling connected with the

leader of the open space. That this creates the feeling of belonging.

There were examples of successful and unsuccessful open spaces and some point

toward the nature of the personality of the leader as making a difference. Key points

were the scope of that person's network, and the ability to let go control, as items that

made difference.

I had hoped to have a conversation about creating an effective and compelling theme.

And techniques for expanding the scope of invitation initiatives. This did not turn out to

be the primary focus of the conversation. This concerned me about my ability to be an

effective Open Space Leader. and the impact of the charismatic leader on open

spaces.

Tags:

Theme, Leadership;, Invitation;, Open, open, Space;

Comments: 2

Chris Grady, 15 January 2017

My sense of attending, facilitating and championing open space events is that there are three areas which may be separate

or may be intertwined:

a) A question/call which inspires or resonates with the right people - created by/with the experienced facilitator

b) A champion (individual or organisation) that instills confidence and interest - and is willing to go with “whatever happens”

c) A facilitator who is interested enough to keep the champion happy, but dispassionate enough to “get out of the way”

The facilitator can be the champion and the inspirer of the question - all wrapped in one…but then there need to be other

champions, and at least another space holder, to ensure the one person who wants to make it work doesn't get in the way

of it working.

Just a few jottings

Chris

Tom Brown, 16 January 2017

Chris,

Thanks for your insights and adding to our shared understanding of this important area of open space.

–Tom