Meeting #3 July 16, 2020

I propose starting this conversation around the "orientation" thread and see where that takes us.

As this marks the half-way point of the cycle (last meeting is a retrospective and looking to the future) I would also like to propose starting to develop a view of: what are the processes needed to create this play/orientation space that we've been exploring?

chat notes:

Ideas from Alex to explore

• "I am sitting in a room" ...experimental music space

• create the space using a sound based platform

• a series of prompts and mentalizations using sound

• being in a space together while not staring at screens!

Start of "Chat" conversation:

an easy way to get ideas out of my mind so that they can be of use to others

https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/600158/mcmindfulness-by-ronald-purser/

you can only relate to people who are moving at the same speed?

is there a way to relate across different speeds in a generative way?

people who are moving faster are going to have more money ... they bring something to the relational aspects of a crew; example: patronage provides conditions for others to care

decelerating

change comes through relationship

speeds in a remote environment ... we have cultured ways of adjusting speeds when we meet in person ... physically ... what does that look like in a remote environment?

what takes you beyond your own thought processes?

Start of "Sound" conversation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAxHlLK3Oyk

iterative feedback loops coming into resonance (= orientation)

inspiration!!!

art of hosting = if you are in a space where you don't want to be you have the right to leave

how can people find each other ... organizing in a context .. how to turn what you have into what you need ... in a collective process?

simple signaling can convert into rich and complex systems

how to communicate negative feedback signals productively

In retrospect, this conversation had a quality of an unfolding story. We did not set out with a narrative ... one thing led naturally to the next.

Chat

We started by discussing the question "to chat or not to chat". We actually started with a concrete need. Alex had some ideas he wanted to note down but did not have time to engage with the Loomio space ... he wished he had some kind of lightweight app that would have allowed him to express these ideas.

We explored different aspects and implications of "chat" ... personal well-being, collective well being ... and that led us to a conversation about speed.

Speed

I offered the speed metaphor in the context of a critique of popular notions of meditation: if life = going at 100mph and meditation = 0mph ... then maybe it is better to have a gradual process of slowing down ... shifting down gears. This mapped onto the chat conversation: chat = high speed, short and short lived communications; Loomio = slow speed, longer and longer-lasting communications.

This felt pertinent to our exploration: what kind of people are likely to enter the transformational space we are talking about?

I expressed that I do not expect my personal rhythms to be the norm and do not want to build on assumptions that are biased towards my personal rhythms.

We asked: what is possible if most people are moving fast? Specifically, in the context of Microsolidarity - of caring for each other - can we give and receive care if all we have time for is rapid and volatile communication?

We asked: how can people relate to each other moving at different speeds? We did not feel we can answer this question; however, as the conversation continued we came to feel that this is possible ... and probably has a randomness that we cannot and need not try to predict.

We did share a sentiment that people are likely to be arriving at high-speeds and that slowing down is desirable.

Alex then led us to a transformation from speed to acceleration/deceleration. From speed to change in speed. We leaned into Deceleration.

Deceleration

Speed felt like a static quality, change in speed felt more alive. Alex and I live at different speeds. In this conversation, as likely happens in any meeting, we arrived with our corresponding speeds and then adjust to in response to each other ... the change of speed ... and specifically, the sense of mutual deceleration feels like relating.

Relationship itself feels like mutual change that comes from being together.

We then recognized that physical face-to-face meetings have inherent cultural mechanisms that facilitate a shift in rhythms (though we did not get into specifics!) ... what does this look like in an online remote environment?

We asked: what takes you beyond your own thought processes?

Sound

We then took a break and when we resumed we shifted to Alex's exploration of sound. We started by listening to "I am sitting in a room" by Alvin Lucier: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAxHlLK3Oyk We listened to the first few minutes and then sampled a bit from later in the tape to taste the transformation.

This brought us back to the conversation of "getting oriented in a space" which took on a refined form: iterative feedback loops coming into resonance.

That led to two words: signaling and inspiration!

Simple Signaling

We returned to the "black box" space where people find orientation. We imagined it full of participatory offerings (learning new skills like authentic relating, circling, journaling ... ; short sessions, longer sessions, deeper engagement events that span numerous sessions) ... but the new secret ingredient was signaling.

Alex gave an example from "The Art of Hosting": if you are in a space where you don't want to be you have the right to leave.

Something interesting emerged about "negative signals" ... I don't want to be here ... this does not interest me ... etc. How can negative feedback signals be communicated productively?

What if the space had a "signaling language" where participants could simple and clearly signal when they felt connection or disconnection? heaviness or lightness? boredom or inspiration? The signals are not so much about the context of the experience ... but more about the underlying sense of ... orientation ... where do I belong in this space? who are the people that awaken inspiration in me? what are the norms that attract me? what speed feels right for me? etc.

We got a glimpse of how simple signaling can lead to an emergence of complex patterns and relationships.

What if it is a signaling language that would define the space and inform the transformation of individuals into coherent groups?

... and this is where we concluded with a feeling that we have a clear starting point for our next conversation.

@Alex Rodriguez thank you for the willingness and patience to unpack the seemingly simple question of "to chat or not to chat" and for the rich flows that emerged from that.

@Toni Blanco I hope this helps you catch up and sync up with us for the next call. You mentioned some notes you had for this meeting ... would you like to share them here so that we can integrate them despite your absence? maybe some asynchronous attention will allow your thoughts/notes to merge into the exploration and the next meeting?