Workshop: Lightning

Metaphor

Lightning and bacteria provide the fundamental food for all of life on Earth: fixed nitrogen.
Plants eat the nitrogen, herbivores eat plants, carnivores eat herbivores, and omnivores eat both plants and herbivores.
Pull nitrogen and/or bacteria out of the pyramid, and the whole thing collapses.

This metaphor associates well with “consciously including emotional intelligence in grass roots organisational development” and I can easily imagine a chemistry of process like ...

That bacteria take up and use foreign DNA released into the environment when other organisms die, that is "old knowledge". Scientists knew this "horizontal gene transfer" occurs naturally in soil after lightning strikes, and thought it was a rarely used mechanism. Recent genome research indicates that application of this strategy is widespread and plays a major role in evolution of bacterial genomes.

Intended participants

Moderators, mentors and facilitators wishing to cross train and gain Satir ways.

Design

Each of the below “themes” would at least take a full day in order for participants to have a well-rounded first experience with using a particular Satir technique or model. Temperature readings are used throughout as reflection tool.

When we get together, participants either choose one theme for two days -- which allows us to investigate that one chosen technique or model thoroughly, or choose a theme per day, or even choose just a quick taste of the essentials in two themes per day.

Then, depending on the theme choices, we transfer just a minimum of information in a “show, don't tell way”, we reflect shortly, and then we immediately dive into practicing with issues brought by participants using an experiential learning cycle.

Some themes can be combined, like coping stances and ingredients of an interaction go well together, coping stances and sculpting also, and all three can easily be combined in an overall theme of “effective communication using Satir tools”. -- For now that gives us enough flexibility. And it's easy to narrow down and focus from here.

We offer potential participants an overview of the themes beforehand.
See the map!

Possible day themes

Temperature reading

Purpose: facilitating congruent communication and assisting individuals in becoming more open; legitimising our whole human being; supporting healthy group processes.

Experience: A tool that can easily be practiced at home with family. It can provide an emotional baseline over time for effective self-image checks and reflections, when “temperature” is “read” regularly.

In our experience temperature readings work well for

Discussing that which is human in all of us and hardly ever gets talked about directly
Making human contact with (new) members in a group
Facilitating connection and bonding between group members
Making the covert more overt
Assessing emotional climate of an individual or group
Demonstrating individual and group processes are valued
Detoxifying and transforming toxic situations early
Transforming closed systems in open systems
Maintaining open systems
Raise self-esteem
Changing rules, values and patterns of communication

Grass roots journeys

... application of this strategy is widespread and
plays a major role in evolution of bacterial genomes ...

Over the past five years we discovered that osmosis and more fully human ways of knowledge transfer works best. "Show, don't tell!" when working together, guarding we have and make our own choices, promiscuity in working together relationships build networks the fastest, and relentlessly reflecting, and are now standing at a threshold. Not with one, but with many, in a network of interdependents ... each of us can be anything we choose to be ... as long as we keep our emotional intelligence turned on and well-guarded by our own maturity.

No matter how well we prepare, 20% of any journey goes through the Great Unknown, that is the 20% we didn't come prepared for. So preparation is important. We wouldn't want to change that number to 40%. And on every journey we need to be prepared for things we aren't prepared for. And that preparation for unpreparedness makes all the difference. How we deal with the unexpected and how we cope with self, life, and others in chaos and with survival consciousnesses fully turned on, that makes all the difference. Self-esteem and Self-confidence.

So now we embark on another journey, no longer marketing and facilitating and training agile inside in a coaching pyramid, outside and up we fly. The lightning workshop is intended to evolve and grow into a grass roots workshop in cross training and gaining wisdom passed on by Virginia. Those that appear are the right beings to appear.

Its facilitators receive a day's fee per day of training, EURO 1000, plus any travel and stay-over expenses - and a simple guestroom with one of our hosts will do nicely too. Participants arrange and pay for that together. Participants also provide and pay for the workshop location and food and drink expenses together. This leaves in terms of expenses some handouts and possibly additional materials. As facilitators we consider that included in our fee, as long as things don't get too crazy, and then we properly (re)negotiate, of course.

Impoverished realities and starving bodies break the hearts of individuals and communities.
Basic needs of all involved are adequately covered. We have what is just necessary with an occasional cookie or piece of pie (luck).
We have a surplus and can easily hold space while maintaining survival consciousness.
We give away what we have more than what we experience as surplus while being able to maintain survival consciousness.
When we attract resources faster than we can spin out and give away, we (re)center to lose or choose any attachments and fixations we may have attracted.

Each lightning workshop is facilitated by 2 facilitators (per 20 people). We always work with a back-seat facilitator, to handle some of that infamous 20% we didn't see coming, and for facilitating the reflections, because likely a backseat facilitator feels less stake than the lead facilitator at that point in time, and that improves relentlessness of reflection tremendously ;-)

Playful note possibly (re)useful for (new) insights in knowledge transfer and retention issues: http://aem.asm.org/cgi/content/full/67/1/293?

Parts party with Genpo Roshi

Ten video's of facilitations of archetypes by Genpo Roshi. Kewl!

01 Introduction to Big Mind by Genpo Roshi

02 Facilitation of Controller by Genpo Roshi

03 Facilitation of Skeptic by Genpo Roshi

04 Facilitation of Vulnerable child & Protector by Genpo Roshi

05 Facilitation of Damaged Self and Fixer by Genpo Roshi

06 Facilitation of Seeking Mind by Genpo Roshi

07 Facilitation of Non-Seeking Mind by Genpo Roshi

08 Facilitation of Big Mind by Genpo Roshi

09 Facilitation of Body-Mind Dropped & Big Heart

10 Facilitation of Ying-Yang Big Heart by Genpo Roshi

Satir: Interaction model

Virginia Satir believed that all levels of human interaction need congruent communication in which intentions align with verbal and non-verbal messages.

Facilitating ingredients of an interaction

In Ingredients of an interaction, Virginia Satir distinguishes several states of internal processing in any significant interaction. These states can be used concurrent as well as sequential, though in my experience the details are not easily linearly unravelled when abstracted afterwards.

Centering: track your own, and partner(s) breath and dance, and smooth in the dance, gradually adjusting breath, tone and stances for centering together, then slow down the dance to the likely required dance levels and dimensions.
Connecting: What you yourself, and a receiver heard and/or saw.
Accepting: What meaning(s) I or a receiver of a message made from what was seen and/or heard.
Feeling: What feelings were invoked by its possible meanings.
Transforming feelings: What feelings were invoked by becoming aware of these feelings.
Perceiving: What the usual reaction of a receiver is to this particular message, to protect him or herself from these shadow feelings.
(Re) Perceiving: Discovering and expressing what a receivers tonal rules are for sharing.
Offering freedom by adding choices: Making choices for a congruent response.

We practice these states with a map on the floor, making it easy to externalise the internal interactions.

I have adapted the usual Satir ingredients floor-map to open and hold space for exploration of and reflecting on possible attractors in a system.

Systems thinking: How interactions and stances affect a system?

With low self esteem we behave in blaming, placating, superreasonable or irrelevant ways. When using open communicatie we're congruent with our selves, and we can level out (the amplitude).

Communication and stances

The more we learn to (re)cognize stances and their finer shades, the better and faster we can level out our responses when, as we humans tend to have happen to us, we suddenly find ourselves in the middle of incongruence (again). Quite a balancing act and lots of practice, practice, practice ....

Rules

With a lack of esteemed communication in our system, our rules become hidden, outdated, inhumane, written in stone. A likely effect is that people change their needs to conform to established rules. Some may believe that a good idea. In the long run, it leads to Only Might being Right. With open communication, the rules are clear to all, up to date, change as the need arises, and people noticeably practice the five freedoms and will comment on anything that attracts and repels them, in congruent ways.

Results

With hidden rules written in stone, results will be accidental, chaotic, destructive and unfitting. In a congruent system, with open communication on rules, the results will be in the flow.

Interaction diagram of effects

Satir: Mandala

From page 274-275, The Satir Model by Virginia Satir, John Banmen, Jane Gerber and Maria Gomori:

"I never have to ask myself when I go anywhere in the world , 'Am I going to find something generic I never found before?' Never. But I am going to find all kinds of variations, and I will always know the core." -- Virginia Satir, 1984, Process Community, Crested Butte, Colorado.

Satir's graphic picture of the mandala comprises eight concentric circles. In the center is the "I am." The "I" represents every human being -- the person, the sacred and holy Self

The eight rings represent the following universal resources:

With my intellectual part I make meaning of the information my sensual part has gathered. It allows me to experience and analyze causalities with which I can support survival of physical Self by anticipating what is likely to happen next.
I have a nearly perfect guard and monitor in my contextual part. It scans the Universe constantly and provides me with context to exist in: the Here and Now. It is always on the lookout for stuff useful for my purpose in life.
My interactional part deals with communications and projects mycommunication stances in interactions with others in this Universe.
The physical part of the Satir mandala is the concretely existing system(s) in three dimensions, (in) my body. The part contains projections from my genetic make-up and introjections from the Universe. The physical part carries the potential to affect all other parts of the Self.
My sensual part is an intake system, though its uptake is informational and not nutritional. It encompasses skin and pores {temperature, pressure and worth}, my nose {olfactory information}, my ears {auditive information} and my eyes {visual information}.
My emotional part refers to my feelings and the sense I make of these feelings.
Through inhaling and exhaling and eating and excreting during my lifetime, I interact with the physical Universe around me. The quantity and quality of such intake and exquisite production is reflected in my nutritional part. It feeds and transforms the raw materials into forms edible by my other parts (or not). A large quantity of it goes to sustenance for my health and well-being.
It is thanks to my spiritual part that I can connect to my purpose in life and the energy to follow through as best as I can in my context.
The central unit is called the I am. This is the home of congruence and the place where I know my purpose and house my self-esteem. From here I can do transformations.

Using the Satir mandala Nynke created an organisational mandala for quickly building a systems thinking gestalt of an organisation.

Buddhist mandala's

The word mandala is Sanskrit for circle, polygon, community and connection. A buddhistic mandala expresses the concept of Buddhism as a "system" drawing. At the center of the Mandala is the "Dainichi Nyorai” (Great Sun), which stands for the highest state. Around the Sun we find lesser "Nyorais" which indicate various teachings of Buddhism. The further we go from the center, the closer we are to the real world.

The inner circle of the outer circle is named the lotus circle and expresses the open state of devotion (congruence), necessary to enter the system. Requirement icons are typically dealt with here.
The diamond vajra circle expresses strength and fearlessness related to a “lifecycle” of the system.
The Fire of wisdom circle consists of the purifying fire. For example, in this circle icons can appear to invoke memories of external pressures like a previously discarded feature.

And as with metaphors, and systems thinking, the greatest value of mandalas lies in their use, and making and perceiving, not in the resulting mandala.

Making effective mandalas

The experiential patterns we have gathered so far for working with mandala architectures (for a more buddhistic perspective please read “Metaphor, Architecture and XP” by David West)

A mandala is to enhance for the project helpful communication.Its purpose is to make applicable words, phrases, stories and images pop up in your mind while building the system and solving problems to make it happen.
The mandala is to support creating feedback loops and trust between stakeholders – real change comes from within.
To effectively encapsulate the Unknown and allow fast recovery from failures, a mandala must be simple to create, without special skills or extensive knowledge of modelling syntax, so all stakeholders can easily modify it.
The mandala is to be visible and available as artefact with shared ownership by all stakeholders involved to make emotional attachment to the process possible.
As a result, if the mandala is not a joy to make and maintain, you can perceive such as a sure sign you need to investigate what is actually happening.
A mandala can capture state or time in order to provide the project and business management process with feedback in support of explicit and actual trade off of pressures working on the system.
To enhance the carrying capacity of the system a mandala is to invoke feelings of courageousness for the stakeholders. Such feelings of courageousness are only likely to occur if icons and their placing on the mandala effectively facilitate problem solving.
Mandalas must be perceived as a tool, not a means. An effective mandala can only be built and maintained within the context it serves, and by its involved stakeholders.

Organisational mandala

System domain

The system domain relates to the one and only mysterious central element in the Satir Mandala, the "I am" part. Its purpose is to Eternally Become.

Put in a only slightly more earthly form, "A system is a configuration of interrelated subsystems that, as a whole, depends on its environment for survival". The system is open to influences and transactions during its existence. The system domain therefore holds interdependent symbols forming an entity from which we can attempt to understand the nature of their collective interactions. The results can help trade off pressures on the involved systems more effectively. And may the Satir Five Freedoms guide our path ...

Product domain

The product domain can be derived from the spiritual part of the Satir Mandala. It connects the system to the life energy of all stakeholders involved through envisioning "desired state of the system" as best as we can. This tomb provides a container for "wishful thinking" and uniting stakeholder perspectives on what the purpose of the system actually is in crystal ball gazing ...

Resource domain

The resource domain originates in the nutritional part of the Satir Mandala. Its symbols are to help manage for development required inputs. In this domain we can keep track of hard inputs that the system needs and what we require for the development of the system. In a business setting typically technology and tools, money, equipment, and people to do development must be imported from the environment: marketing and sales are required ...

Cultural domain

Emotional parts can be considered the "core" of facilitating and more fully human human architecting. Any effect on any living system, collective or individual can be noticed in the cultural domain first. This domain can drive us beyond what we already made meaning of.

From an evolving perspective, issues appearing in this domain are the problems people directly exposed to change are experiencing. Symbols can be used to help make implicit requirements and assumptions explicit and to create spaces in which people can specialize and excel in a chosen field: Ten intelligences. In other words, dealing with things in this domain can help us cope with human and cultural pressures that we need or want to take into account while creating systems.

Networking domain

The networking domain relates to the sensory/sensual part of the Satir Mandala. Its symbols help manage information complexity by categorization and modeling, giving a basis for continued effective interactions. Its symbols represent the (soft) inputs the system needs. In a business setting typically data, requirements and feedback information must be exchanged with others, like peers, customers, clients, users, etc.

In technical systems this domain is the (in)famous components and interfaces architecture. In organizational settings we tend to use orgcharts and role and responsibility or task distribution and coordination systems.

Physical domain

The physical domain inherited its name from the physical part of the Satir Mandala. Its symbols are to help us build explicitly on what is already there. In a business setting it is often (a part of) an organisation or company involving changes to processes that once may have served a purpose and that are now blocking effectiveness. In both cases we wish to keep what works and is reuseful: meet true leadership!

Communication domain

The communication domain can be projected from the interactional part. The purpose of a communication architecture is to provide a conduit system for inputs from and outputs to the environment and between subsystems. Its symbols are to give grounding information for where communication improvements between subsystems are needed and to give clues on how these changes can be implemented effectively.

Domain domain

A domain domain can be derived from the contextual part of the Satir Mandala. From this perspective an (executive) management process can monitor the external and internal environment of a system and track dangerous pressures and problems for serving its purpose. A domain to meditate and contemplate what effects what changes might have ...

Systems thinking: Gestalt

Systems thinking has its foundation in the field of system dynamics, founded in 1956 by MIT professor Jay Forrester. Professor Forrester recognized the need for a better way of exploring and testing new ideas about social systems in the mind and studying its possible (side) effects before action.

Systems thinking allows people to make their understanding of a particular social system explicit in order to improve their understanding and to perceive having choices.

A test driven design for manifestation of a more fully human gestalt actually creating for example mystery space ship mockingbird does not necessarily require building and construction metaphors. If the systems we wish to create are to be more fully human, we need to self-organize in more fully humane systems to co-create those systems. Our metaphor could also be something like (links in below bullet items point to Stone Circles):

Spinal column, bones, teeth, nails, anus, rectum, colon, prostate gland, blood, skills, abilities and space (together being capability) for building cells: integrity skeleton
Pelvic girdle, kidneys, bladder, all liquids (blood, lymph, gastric juice, sperm), regulation (female) cycles: awakening
Lower back, abdomen, digestive system, stomach, liver, spleen, gallbladder, autonomic nervous system: richness
Heart, upper back, thorax and thoracic cavity, lower lungs, blood, circulatory system, skin: appreciations
Neck, throat, jaw, ears, voice, trachea, bronchial system, upper lungs, esophagus, arms: expressing our selves
Face, eyes, ears, nose, sinuses, cerebellum, central nervous system: balancing act
Cerebrum: (w)holeness

Satir: Temperature reading

Temperature Readings can facilitate congruent communication and assists individuals in becoming more open. In our experience temperature readings work well for:

Discussing that which is human in all of us and hardly ever gets talked about directly
Making human contact with (new) members in a group
Facilitating connection and bonding between group members
Making the covert more overt
Assessing emotional climate
Demonstrating individual and group processes are valued
Detoxifying and transforming toxic situations early
Transforming closed systems in open systems
Maintaining open systems
Raise self-esteem
Changing rules, values and patterns of communication

In general, Temperature Readings legitimize our whole human being, and support healthy group processes.

A temperature reading consists of five parts that can easily be recognized as "natural". Set the context properly, and as facilitator you can probably lean back:

Appreciations
Complaints with recommendations for change
Puzzles, Gossip and Rumors
New Information
Hopes and Wishes

For an impression of a "life" Satir temperature reading in "action", go here

Satir: Change model

Inspiration is not born in a vacuum; excellent ideas are seeded by other excellent ideas and fertilized by still more excellent ideas. In essence, excellent ideas are born from transforming ideas in chaos. And effectively surfing chaos happens only after one "let's go" of control, because we are capable of inventing only those "things" which are the product of our internal manifestation of our conscious assemblage of reality. We can release the conscious assemblage, or rather "let it go", by intending outcome in the flow.

The Virginia Satir Change Model focuses not just on systems of people but also on individual people, making it a robust model, and safe in terms of honoring people. This page was created from experiences and learnings in Satir Systems programmes and on the job, and by a group of people playing in a wiki sandbox a long time ago. Copyright for the model remains with the Satir Institute of the Southeast.

Chaos model

Late Status Quo

Chaos model

Late status quo describes a fairly stable system (individual or group) where occurrences are predictable, familiar and comfortable. This may mean things are working reasonably well, or it may mean that there are familiar solutions (better or worse) for common problems. For members, it does represent some level of success. While the system at this stage is balanced, different parts of the system pay different prices to maintain this balance. This can be compared to the role played by some children who keep a family stable by acting out or repressing their feelings in particular ways. And, like with children, the impact of this maintenance on any particular part of the system may be indicated by the unhealthy symptoms revealed in it's functioning.

In an organizational context, late status quo generally refers to a system where things have stayed the same for a long time. Members of the system know 'what to do' and 'how to do it' and understand where they fit. They may or may not be satisfied with their place and activities, but they are comfortable. Depending on the specific circumstances, attitudes may range from general acceptance, to boredom (yah, I know how to do all that ...) to frustration and complaining (blaming and placating as people find ways to get things done in a dysfunctional system). Some people may be looking for changes. Either from within or without, a foreign element that was not a part of the status quo appears, and threatens to shake up the status quo.

Foreign Element

Chaos model

In an organizational context, a foreign element can be generated internally, inspired by the desire to improve. This desire can come from management or from participants on the operational level; the change can be mandated or voluntary. How such desires are substantiated by which stakeholder will greatly affect the reaction to the foreign element. In both cases they are reactions. In the case of an unwanted, unexpected or mandated change the people within the organisation (system) may try a number of strategies to neutralize the impact of the alien element. The system may reject and expel the foreign element; people may ignore it, use delaying tactics, or may try to encapsulate the foreign element within the "normal" ways of handling things, or they may try to find a scapegoat to attack and blame.

When mandated sequences of events are experienced a couple of times on the operational level, trust levels of operational people in management being able to lead, goes down quickly. People will anticipate more on potential future management blaming than by management desired changes. Whatever happens, people do learn to anticipate effectively!

And a healthy balanced system accepts and investigates the foreign element mirrors received with care in mind, and integrates what is (re)useful.

Chaos

Chaos model

If the foreign element (or its backers) is sufficiently powerful and persistent to create a critical mass of discomfort, the organization enters into chaos. From the Merriam Webster Dictionary: chaos is a state of things in which chance is supreme; it is a state of utter confusion; a confused mass or mixture. In this state, the system is disarranged; predictions no longer valid, expectations are not fulfilled; things seem to be totally out of control.

People/systems may react to chaos in a number of different ways: by engaging in random behavior; by seeking stability at any cost, by trying to revert to earlier patterns of behavior, or by searching for magical, sweeping silver bullet solutions -- anything, anything, to re-establish some form of normalcy will do (unless someone is skilled in surfing chaos).

If chaos is perceived as some "death" of Old Status Quo ... For more detailed "stuckness" we can use the following four preliminary stages of death that individuals can get stuck in (Elizabeth Kubler Ross): denial, bargaining, anger, or depression .
When trying to manufacture the transforming idea as opposed to being aware and fully present during chaos. Obtaining and firing the latest silver bullet is a distracting temptation, one that needs to be avoided. Taoists say, "My barn having burned to the ground, I can now perceive the moon".
If you try to avoid or control it you will prolong it. Best thing to do seems to be to relax, enjoy the ride, try a bite here of some thing new here, and of some there. Be like Alice in Wonderland, relax, have fun, enjoy and hold the space for the transforming idea. As facilitator, use an alpha state, but not without guard.

Transforming idea

Chaos model

A transforming idea is an out-of-the-box idea that brings a system out of chaos (sometimes only for a short while). A transforming idea is like an "Aha Erlebnis", inspiration, a sudden awareness of an understanding of new possibilities. Now that we have keys, what remains is finding the doors for transformation realizing.

Integration and practice

Chaos model

Entering the integration and practice stage, the system begins to try out the new possibilities. This can be likened to birth or to a honeymoon. It seems aaall problems have been resolved and things will be wonderful, and we're all very excited. At the same time, systems entering this stage are like children that are trying things for the first time -- somewhat uncertain, needing time to learn and grow into the new state. And, with time, by the system practicing new ways of doing things, some effects begin to appear in substance. This state relates to theta state)

In an organization, this is the time when people are learning to use a new tool or work according to a new process or tasks within a new structure, and usually a period of reduced productivity -- performance and outcomes may actually be worse than prior to the change.

There seem to be many factors that can lead to rejection of the change and return to chaos:

Reactions of managers who expect results of the new 'whatever' immediately
A culture where admitting mistakes is not acceptable - people believe they have to appear competent all the time.
Time and schedule pressures inhibit the learning process
... Name it and it can take you back

New Status Quo

Chaos model

During integration benefits of the new models become apparent and are experienced as useful. Gradually a new status quo is formed. What began as an idea becomes a normal state of affairs.

Yeeehaaa! A full cycle completed. And, for a while, things will continue to get better ... until we get bored ... Once more ...