Process: Infoco minutes: 2009-10-14

Minutes:

FYI , more thoughts about the draft agenda from Evan and Laird. (I answered
her question about the airport already.) Process meets tonite at 7pm, if you
are available to come talk about it, thanks! -Jillian

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <evdavwes at aol.com>
Date: Wed, Oct 14, 2009 at 10:40 AM
Subject: November Mtg Agenda
To: jillian at ic.org


Jillian,

First, in terms of flights, it seems that the internet booking services all
want me to fly into Detroit when I put Ann Arbor as the destination. Before
I book something I wanted to check this out with you -- is this where I
should be flying into?

Second, as you and the others are reviewing the draft agenda that I sent I
wanted to share with you some ideas that came from Laird at my request for
him to review what I had drafted. Basically, he thought what I had drafted
was sound and had some suggested tweaks:

1. He offered a sequence for the work that he thinks would work best:
A. Successes
B. Disappointments
C. What excites you
D. Small group work to identify initiatives that would give you more of A &
C and less of B.
E. Personal commitments
He had concern that Writing the Story of GO and Evaluating Successes were
too similar and should somehow be combined.
**
2. He also pointed out that in sharing disappointments (or, for that
matter, at any other part of the weekend) someone may name someone else
which might open up a need for more direct resolution work between those
individuals -- this can take more time than may be expected.

3. Two specific format recommendations he had were:
a) The Conversation Cafes format for A. Successes, which is breaking up into
small groups with coffee/tea and finger food (see what I pasted from a
webpage on this format below), leading to up-tempo reports back to the
community. I'm assuming that what he means as up-tempo are the 1 minute
"advertisements" that we are calling "elevator speeches."
b) More of a ritual for E. Personal commitments in which individuals answer
a question "In light of what you've heard this weekend, what concrete steps
are you willing to commit to taking that you currently aren't that will help
make GO a better place either for you, for others, or both?" He suggested
that we break up a concrete block ahead of time and as people make concrete
commitments I hand them a piece of concrete. He also suggested I dress up
in a playful way for this.

As you are considering these ideas I just wanted to offer a few of my
thoughts about them, knowing that we will talk more at the end of the month:

1. I think that this structure maps out a nice energy flow that can lead to
re-vitalization and forward looking vision and action. If we used this
structure I'm thinking that it would be A and B on day 1 and C, D and E on
day 2. We could either explicitly combine the GO story and evaluation of
successes -- go from one to the other with a bit of tweaking to make sure
the transition works -- or come up with another format all together (such as
the conversation cafe). These two pieces were aimed specifically at
addressing particular goals. One was a way to begin so that everyone,
including newcomers, could move forward on the same page and the other was
to answer a request from community members to evaluate some of your systems
at GO. If folks at Infoco think these are important goals we can just keep
them in mind when designing an alternative format.

2. In terms of the interpersonal conflict work that might surface, it is
good to be aware of this potential and to build in flexibility for the time
it might take -- this may be a good reason for keeping day 1
to story/successes first and disappointments second (no large item on the
agenda next to try to get to should some tender things come up). Just so
you know I have developed some skills for working with emotional energy and
am prepared to do this work if need be. If someone is sitting on some
unresolved conflict that gets in the way of their being part of community it
is good to clear it out. While it can be a healing experience for the whole
to witness such clearing, it is also done at some cost to the whole, in
terms of time and energy. For this reason, I prefer this to come up as
an authentic need rather than to go looking for it. In addition, there may
be other alternatives to doing all of the resolution in the whole, such as
my being available to doing some of this work on the side. We can talk
about this more when we meet on the phone.

3. My goal is to work in way that is most authentic to GO (knowing that
sometimes having an outside facilitator means that folks in your group are
willing to take a few more risks). If you are attracted to these formats I
am fine with them. I'm pasting for you here a basic overview of the
Conversation Cafe format. Just to be clear, this format is done in
individual small groups over coffe/tea and finger food and not as one big
open go around. I've been to a venue that would have us all shift after
doing our rounds so that we got the opportunity to talk more people. Each
time we shifted we worked with a different question. I haven't worked as a
leader with this format and my participant exposure to it is not huge.
Still, I am willing to try it out and think that we can adapt it in a way
that works.

*Café Agreements*
Everyone who participates in a Conversation Café is asked to agree to a set
of guidelines that set the tone of the gathering.
*Agreements for a Great Conversation:*

- Open-mindedness: listen to and respect all points of view
- Acceptance: suspend judgment as best you can
- Curiosity: seek to understand rather than persuade
- Discovery: question old assumptions, look for new insights
- Sincerity: speak for yourself about what has personal heart and meaning
- Brevity: go for honesty and depth but don't go on and on

*Café Process*
*Preparation: *The host will have nametags, paper and pencil (for note
taking), an object (something symbolic or just handy) that is held by the
person speaking, and optionally a centerpiece (a Conversation Café table
tent or a mini checkered table cloth for quick identification, or a candle,
flower, etc.).
*Welcome:* The host welcomes everyone, states the theme for the café, reads
the agreements, sets an ending time, and maybe calls for a moment of silence
to relax, reflect and become open.
*Round one:* Each person speaks in turn, going around the circle once. Each
person holds the talking object while they speak. During this round,
everyone says their name and speaks briefly about what is on their minds
regarding the theme. Anyone may pass if they don't want to speak. Everyone
is asked to express themselves fully yet succinctly, allowing time for
others to speak. No feedback or response.
*Round two:* Now that everyone has been introduced, the group goes around
the circle again. If someone wants to respond to another's remarks, they can
do so in their own turn. Each person holds the talking object. To allow more
time for conversation, keep remarks brief, possibly just naming the theme or
subjects you want to delve into more deeply. Again, no feedback or response.
*Spirited Dialogue: *Now the conversation opens up and people can speak in
no particular order. This conversation will take up most of the time. If
there is domination, contention, or lack of focus, the host may suggest that
the group again use the talking object. Keep in mind the agreements.
*Closing:* A few minutes before the end of the Café, the host will ask
everyone to go around the circle again, giving each a chance to say briefly
what they are taking away from the conversation.


In terms of ritual I am very comfortable with pulling this off and I
particularly like the idea of dressing playfully and engaging folks from
this place. I must admit that I don't feel totally "yes" about pieces of
concrete -- it might be a girl/guy thing :) :) -- but can go with it if you
feel it works for GO. I realize that I am much more of a compost, seed,
crystal kind of gal!

I hope this information is helpful. I look forward to our meeting!

Evan



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