{"id":4092,"date":"2014-11-17T09:50:54","date_gmt":"2014-11-17T17:50:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.chriscorrigan.com\/parkinglot\/?p=4092"},"modified":"2022-05-16T15:06:37","modified_gmt":"2022-05-16T22:06:37","slug":"experiencing-cynefin-physically-in-a-group","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chriscorrigan.com\/parkinglot\/experiencing-cynefin-physically-in-a-group\/","title":{"rendered":"Experiencing Cynefin physically in a group"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"cynefin<\/a><\/p>\n

I’ve had a couple of requests to share the exercise that helps people understand Cynefin physically. \u00a0I’m happy to do so here.<\/p>\n

I enjoy designing these kinds of exercises, as it gives people a number of ways of understanding the framework and I find that it actually helps the penny drop for folks who otherwise have a hard time groking the nature of the different domains. \u00a0I am continuing to develop this exercise but here’s how I do it now:<\/p>\n

1. Begin by having the group stand and clear a large space so that everyone can move around comfortably. \u00a0To do this well, you need a large open space with lots of room for people to move. \u00a0As you give directions, just give folks a simple instruction and don’t allow questions. \u00a0They have to figure the rest out themselves. \u00a0At the end of each mini exercise take a little conversation to reflect on questions such as “how did you do this?, what is happening here?, how did you gather data? How did you evaluate your efforts?” \u00a0Use questions that are relevant to the applications of Cynefin you are dealing with.<\/p>\n

2.\u00a0Exploring the obvious.<\/strong> Have people divide into four groups (they don’t have to be even numbers). \u00a0Instruction: “Organize yourselves by height.” Things to note: this can happen quickly, top-down leadership works well, it can be evaluated objectively. You can constrain the exercise further by instructing people to complete the task in 15 seconds. \u00a0It is unlikely you will be surprised by the results of this exercise.<\/p>\n

3.\u00a0Exploring the complicated.\u00a0<\/strong>Have people divide into four new groups. \u00a0Instruction: “Organize yourselves by birth month and year.” \u00a0Notes: there are many ways to do this, each can be objective;y verified. \u00a0It requires getting hidden data that is easily discovered and top-down leadership still works well. \u00a0You will find some surprising\u00a0solutions for this problem.<\/p>\n

4.\u00a0Exploring the complex.\u00a0<\/strong>Have everyone stand in a circle and introduce “The Systems Game<\/a>” (I learned this version from Joanna Macy’s work). \u00a0In this well known game, individuals must identify two other people and move to a place equidistant from each of them. \u00a0You cannot let your “targets” know you are connected to them. \u00a0It helps to demand that people try to achieve a high degree of accuracy in this triangulation. \u00a0Done well, and with lots of space in the room, the group should be set into a pattern of constant motion. \u00a0Notes: small rules initiate constant complex motion. \u00a0You will see times when a group is clumped up and other times when it is spread out. \u00a0Notice how some folks are naturally influential in the group – tall men wearing bright clothes seem often to have a higher number of connections to themselves. \u00a0Notice how it feels to be constantly moving and adjusting. \u00a0If people stop moving ask why (usually they are tired of the game, a fact of life that translates into dealing with real world complexity). \u00a0Leadership is participatory and top-down leadership cannot help. \u00a0When the group gets tired of the exercise, invite some probes to see what happens when certain people move. \u00a0You will start to see the patterns of connection better that way. \u00a0This is a good introduction to developmental evaluation. \u00a0Once the system is at rest, it’s difficult to evaluate the connections. \u00a0Probes (inviting certain people to move to a very different place, for example) gives us lots of information. \u00a0Have the group devise their own probes to illuminate more of the situation.<\/p>\n

5.\u00a0Exploring chaos.\u00a0<\/strong>Have people start “milling.” \u00a0Milling is a practice from theatre training where participants are instructed to walk into space, rather than walk in a circle. \u00a0Keep the speed medium pace, and ask them to listen to your instructions. \u00a0Instructions proceed as follows:<\/p>\n