Dialogue: Building Chaordic Confidence

Dramatic Difference is delighted to have Larry (Lawrence) Philbrook, Director Institute of Cultural Affairs (ICA) Taiwan to host a training in Hong Kong about a dialogue on what it might take to Build Chaordic Confidence. Combining the practice of dialogue with the theme shared by Dee Hock call Chaordic Theory.

The process will be simple

• Context: What does chaordic path mean?
• Check in: How do you experience the Chaordic path in your life and in society today?
• Dialogue: What might acting / living with Chaordic Confidence look like?
• Check out: How as a facilitator might I support groups in this journey?

"I first ran into the work of Dee W. Hock, founding CEO of Visa International in the mid 90’s with his description of the interface between Chaos and Order. Both the ICA (Institute of Cultural Affairs) and the IAF (International Association of Facilitators) used it in our research bridging from facilitation as an event to facilitation as a change making function in organizational change. Basic presupposition is that the edge of chaos” is where life innovates, where things are not hard-wired, but are flexible enough for new connections and solutions to occur. New levels of order become possible out of this chaos.

This understanding invited a different perception of facilitation that it could include both order (structure) and openness (chaos) dancing between to free individuals and systems to be creative while staying grounded.

Last month I ran back into it as the Chaordic Path, a fundamental pattern underlying Art of Hosting practice. Adding or re-emphasizing the two outer categories of Chamos and Control."

"The world and times we live in are neither predictable nor stable and call for more flexibility, as “more of the same” solutions are not meeting the challenges we face. If we are looking for innovative, new solutions, we will find them in a place between chaos and order — the chaordic path."

** Hock, Dee. 2000. Birth of the Chaordic Age. Oakland: Berrett-Koehler

About Lawrence Philbrook

Lawrence has spent the past 35 years with ICA International. ICA International is a global, not-for-profit organization working in over 40 nations. Each location is an individual, autonomous organization focused on promoting human development through organization and community transformation. ICA International is a recognized Non-Governmental- Organization with consultative status through ECOSOC of the United Nations. Lawrence has designed and facilitated participatory processes in varied cultural settings with government, business and community-based projects in over 25 nations. He has lived in Asia for more than thirty years, in Taiwan since 1991.