One of the things I hear from many clients is a call for “structure” in conversations. This is a term in need of a definition, and whenever I hear it, I try to clarify what is meant. In a lot of cases, structure means having items laid out on an agenda and a clear sense that we will come to come agreement on them. “Structure” is often a synonym for “control.” I don’t have an issue with structure, but, in keeping with the previous post, control is more problematic. Structure appears everywhere. Despite the fact that many people see Open …
Peter Senge in Edges from back in 2000: “Facilitation is much like sailing. You’ve got to work with whatever arises. That’s my experience. Whatever arises is exactly what is supposed to arise. Whether or not it is convenient doesn’t matter. And that sort of trust is usually the mark of a masterful facilitator. Good facilitators have actually internalized a belief based on experience, that whatever happens is supposed to have happened — even if it is very problematic and unfortunate. And because of that belief, you don’t waste your energy trying to fight what is going on. Instead you try …
Just a note that Sandra M. Lovelace has been appointed to the Senate. She’s a citizen of the Tobique First Nation in New Brunswick and she joins a small contingent of Aboriginal senators in Ottawa, none of whom, I believe, are women.
Michael J. at Notio has been in Austria at the Society for Organizational Learning conference and he has some great reports, complete with speaking notes as well. Worth a read.
Just a note here to point to Tim Lindgren’s great paper on Blogging Places. He contacted me ages ago to use stuff from my Bowen Island Journal blog and he has since spun that, along with content from some other great reads into a really nice paper. I believe he did this as part of a master’s thesis. At any rate, he completed the project and I had neglected to link to it until now. Have a read. It really captures a new direction in nature writing marrying blogging – two worlds that seem made for each other.