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A State of Mind

5/30/2014

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I’m Executive Director of Senior Services in Seattle, Washington. This is my fifth year with Senior Services, and I’ve been working in the field for more then 35 years. In March 2008 I was invited to a Gracious Space workshop. The workshop came at a time when I really needed it. I often struggle to create Gracious Space for others and feel that in our society there is not a lot of room to express different points of view, even to oneself. As I read the Gracious Space book ahead of time, I found the concept of inviting the stranger very helpful.

This concept really came alive for me at a subsequent session the Center hosted called the Dojo for Collective Resourcefulness. The Dojo, in my eyes, is similar to a support group in which you simultaneously use your right and left brains to explore personal and professional matters.

At my first session we were asked to think about an issue we were currently struggling with, then generate twelve options or solutions for that specific problem. I picked a personal issue, generated my twelve options, and drew some symbols that represented each option. Upon doing this I immediately felt as though the space that I’d been operating in got bigger. I could see that there was more than just one choice. The issue I’d chosen was a hard problem and none of the choices were ideal, but I felt more spacious. It was like I had invited the stranger – more perspectives and possibilities – into my own process.

Gracious Space is a state of mind. It helps to create an environment where people feel comfortable to interact. By asking the right question, the Dojo helped me to feel more spacious and interact with myself differently. I find now that if I hit a wall, I can generate twelve options and the hard problem becomes easier.

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    Author

    Denise Klein (retired 2013)

1752 NW Market St, #952
Seattle, WA 98107 
206-328-3020
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