So here’s the scene … it’s getting dark @5pm … you are at a campsite that is a patch of dirt crawling with bugs. Your older boys (5 & 3 yrs) are hungry and cranky and you are busily preparing dinner over a dim torchlight. WHAT DO YOU DO WITH THE BABY?
Your baby doesn’t have the world’s best sitting balance and is intrigued by the creepy crawlies when you put him on the ground to rest your aching back!
So, here’s a solution that is simple … but no simpler (as Einstein would say) …
A box …
Some padding and baby stuff …
Then the baby …
He has been happy ever since!
Geoff
ps. It has been 20 to 25 degrees every day in Byron Bay and the surf is pumping
In Byron Bay, there is much to do. Heading out for a morning run and taking photos of things that catch my eye is one thing I’ll be doing regularly … and will be the one thing that I write about here over the next 3 weeks.
Surf Life Saving is an Australian tradition. For generations, our surf clubs from east to west have enjoyed massive volunteer support. Like all volunteer-based movements, resources are often hard to find. “Resourcefulness” is a common trait in movements that live-on.
In Byron this morning the surf boats, bronzed bodies and yellow & red uniforms were on full display. Thousands of people had travelled from all to take part in an annual swim. Swimmers represented surf clubs from all over New South Wales and Queensland. There were as many kids (aka “nippers”) as there were parents as there were grandparents.
The one thing I noticed on everyone’s face … a smile. Everyone was having FUN! Maybe that’s another secret to Surf Life Saving success?
Time for a cup of tea … then bed with the surf crashing on the sand only metres away from our tent.
This fully loaded car is what I’ve been driving for the better part of 2 days. We are now within striking distance (about 4 hours) from Byron Bay.
Staying tonight at a 70’s style motel named the “Peter Allen”! I know what you’re thinking!
I’ll write the occasional “creative” post whilst I’m away so stay tuned for some entertaining photos … in between playing dad, surfing, eating great food and sleeping our tent.
Here is my 3 year old son’s first ever painting. My wife noticed how focused he was and for 20 minutes he painted and painted until the page was full. Then he produced a second painting. Then I remembered Sir Ken Robinson’s words … we are born creative AND kids are not afraid of being wrong.
Sir Ken Robinson’s presentation at TED inspired me to be bolder and take more chances in life and in my work. For me, this blog is a space in which I can create and co-create new ideas and ways of working. Celebrating failure, making mistakes and letting go of ‘control of outcomes’.
If you care about education, our kids and our future, grab a coffee and take 20 minutes to watch this. If nothing else Sir Ken will make you LOL!
Johnnie Moore and Robert Paterson have a great podcasting site known as The Phoric - In episode 8 they interview Chris Corrigan and explore living systems. In YouTube Video #2 the traffic is just remarkable to watch!
Matt Moore interviews another Yes!AndThinker Nancy White& Ed Mitchell -Here they explore blended facilitation and the online vs offline world. Very insightful and entertaining!
Andrew Rixon celebrates failure - Being wrong is ok … we need to be prepared to make mistakes to discover something new and be creative. If we dwell on something that went wrong yesterday, then we are not being present for what is happening now … then we miss opportunities to seize the moment. As Johnnie Moore said in a recent podcast, it is often those people who “show up” more often that get the lucky breaks.
Robyn at Anecdoteexplores complexity and crisis - Getting my head around Complexity models (eg. Cynefin Model via Dave Snowden) has helped me to approach the design of behaviour change projects in a whole new way!
Chris Corrigan’s Parking Lot and Life’s Lessons - For me, Chris’s blog is the one that got me hooked. I’ve never met Chris … one day I will and his collection of life’s lessons is what blogging is all about. The photo in this blog resonates as I am a father of 3 boys at the beginning of their journey.
Dan Roam and the use of webvideo - this just shows the new and accessible ways we can communicate messages. Highly applicable in the world of behaviour change and sustainability education.
Discovered this great Black Cab Session site by accident when searching for a Taxi Service phone number.
I have watched only 2 sessions (incl. the Kooks) and will watch more. For me, here’s what appeals:
Like much of the stuff on YouTube its rough and often the first take
The musicians are having a go and for the one’s I’ve seen are happy to make some mistakes along the way
It is kind of like being a front seat passenger with musos doing their thing behind you
It’s unexpected … most of the artists are complete unknowns … like Seth Godin points out, the #1 rated dvd movie every week is a new release. I also feel refreshed when I see a movie with a cast of unknowns
The concept is Simple and the tagline is a great example of a compact & core concept …
Today is Sunday and I was involved in a community engagement event with a government department and a community adjoining a newly announced National Park. The draft plan was the focus and topic and conversation.
Learning #1 - The surf was pumping … the surf is always going-off when I accept weekend jobs! Note to self … say no to weekend work in future
I was involved in 3 of these Community Engagement events which were wonderfully orchestrated by Carla Rogers using her version of the Open House (aka iForum) event. I was in the wonderful position of being a co-facilitator … a hired-gun … a second pair of eyes and a second voice.
Learning #2 - Work more often with others facilitators & encourage clients to go the extra step and employ 2 facilitators for BIG events. I learned heaps about a new way of engaging with communities. I learned much by watching Carla.
The Space Invader part of the story …
We (Carla, me and 12 staff) arrived at the venue to set up for the Open House. An organised protest-group were there to greet us with a tent, placards and protest forms. They (somehow) managed to “hire” 2 rooms within our venue and secured the main 2 entry points to the inner sanctum of the Open House. What to do? Improvise!
Carla and I rallied together the troops and called for calm … in fact we put on our hats of compassion and continued to smile through it all. We found a rarely used rear entry point and threw our resources at getting that functional. We continued to Improvise … all our plans, in the heat of battle, had the be altered.
The protest-group (aka Space Invaders) slowly self imploded as the day wore on. Our invisible entry point became the community’s sole focus and their protest became silent. Within, their ranks became embarrassed as they realised that our engagement process was working. By 2pm today, their leader had lost his power and the term “losing face” was overheard.
We had over 200 people through the door and ran an outdoor workshop with around 80 people in the final 2 hours … on the grass in the sun - whilst the Surf was pumping in the background :-(
Learning #3 - Improvise. Ensure you do enough planning (eg. resources in place … know your message) BUT always be prepared to throw out your plan on the day.
Learning #4 - Accept all offers (even the Space Invaders) - Once it was clear we could do nothing to remove the Space Invaders, we quickly re framed and said in a very Ben Zanderish kind of way … “How Fascinating!!” Once we let go of our control of the venue … we just got on with it and did the best we could. And we did good!
The Holding SPACE part of the story … Like the Aireys Inlet Music Festival, Carla’s Open Houses pay close attention to space. The Open House allows conversations and engagement at a wide range of levels. It feels like a community market place with a Cafe area, Graffiti Wall, Information Tables with maps/info and staff to answer questions about the topic. At the front end everyone gets an overview/tour and then participants “self organise”. In some place it feels like an Open Space workshop where people take responsibility and use their feet to go where they feel most engaged.
It wraps up with a 1 to 2 hour facilitated workshop for those want a more in depth discussion and a chance to engage with other’s in their community.
Learning #5 Self Organising Spaces work! - The Open House Space is interesting and it allows people to explore a topic and behave like they do at a community market, or in a coffee break. It allows people to self organise and take responsibility for getting the most out of their time.
Learning #6 Be prepared AND respond in the moment - Carla and I drew up simple workshop plans for each Open House event. We really liked each plan too. When the workshop time arrived … we changed it! We responded to the weather, to the space and to the size and general mood of the group. Our planning gave us the freedom to move and improvise in the moment.
I’d love to hear about moments in facilitation where improvising worked for you!
That is a big question for me! In my work as a facilitator and I rarely see concrete example of how my work changes people. Does what I do have an impact?
In March I spent 4 hours with a group of teachers who shared 1 thing in common … they were all “change agents” for sustainability in their school communities. Simon Groves from the Barwon Regional Waste Management Group (BRWMG) invited me to share some stuff to help these teachers engage with students and colleagues about sustainable practices.
I found them all to be passionate and fun to work with. One of the participants even created this newsletter- summary of the training:
Upon seeing this newsletter I was really excited … maybe the training I delivered will make a difference!
As for the content of the training, here are some useful links:
I’ve been waiting for something quite “different” before making my first “sustainability” post and thanks to Les Robinson I have a simple sustainability ideato share with you.
“The Mug Project ® is a community of individuals and organizations that advocate the use of mugs to reduce waste caused by single serve beverage containers.” Pretty simple and I like their promo video! It’s simple, funny and transferable to other sustainability issues (eg. Les suggested a Re usable bag version).
If our sustainability ‘change’ projects are going to engage the “online” world, we need more creative stuff like this. Let’s call this another little ‘random act of traction’.
If you remain skeptical about the need for online social networking tools to engage the youth in sustainability projects, watch this wonderful example of how younger people engage and communicate with each other. Enjoy!
So, next time you engage people in Social Change, what will you apply from these 2 videos?
