F

Facilitation

A well timed intervention that makes it easier for people to speak openly, make a decision, resolve an issue or generate creative ideas. It requires clarity of role, the skills and confidence to deal with disruptive individuals or difficult situations, and the ability to move a group forward towards an assessment of their own performance. Facilitation is done by a third party who assists in running consensus-building meetings. The facilitator typically helps the parties set ground rules and agendas, enforces both, and helps the participants keep on track and working toward their mutual goals. While similar to a mediator, a facilitator usually plays a less active role in the deliberations, and often does not see "resolution" as a goal of his or her work, as mediators usually do.

Feedback

The return of information, formal and informal, about the results or status of an event, question or process. It may be any signs we can pick up about reactions to what we are doing. It's not just the formal feedback it's all thye little signals we don't necessarily notice conscoiusly, but that our subconscious picks up and uses to adjust our thinking, behaviour and actions.

Fitness Landscape

There is no such thing as a level playing field. The factors that maintain a system are constantly shifting - they are dynamic. Spotting the trends enables you to get into a position that takes advantage of natural energy flows. This is why jewelry stores, banks and mopbile phone shops are found in close proximity to each other. Customers are attracted to places where making choices is easier and the supplier maximises their chance of a sale. You only survive on the margins if you are different enough.

Force

Can be seen as active power, strength or energy brought to bear in a situation or problem. It has the ability to nudge or shift something from one state to another and is herefore a key ingredient in the change process.

Form

The shape, configuration or structure of something like a mountain or an idea. One transcends space and time while the other doesn't.

Future Search

Usually takes the form of a conference over 1-3 days when a large representative group, from a community or organisation, come together to create a shared vision for its future.

G

Game of Life

Making frequent small changes and observing the effects this has on those around you is how nature changes most of the time. Watch birds flocking and you will see this phenomenon in action. Only occasionally are their major transformational changes. Global rules acting locally reveal the power of simplicity. xxx

Gestalt

A German term roughly meaning form, shape or essence. It is used to refer to unified wholes, complete structures or totalities which can be more than the sum of their parts.

Groupthink

The tendency of decision makers to join together around a policy or person without questioning basic assumptions. An emotional bond of conformity can cause a group to filter out rational information that may call its own thinking and actions into question.

H

Habit

A bodily or mental disposition to act in a predictable way, generally acquired by repetitive behaviour. It can refer to a practice or custom.

Holism

The doctrine that wholes are more than the sum of their parts.

I

Identity

Identity refers to the way people see themselves, the groups they feel a part of, the significant aspects of themselves that they use to describe themselves to others. Some theorists distinguish between collective identity, social identity, and personal identity. However, all related in one way or another to a description of who one is, and how one fits into his social groups and society over all.

Identity Conflicts

Identity conflicts are conflicts that develop when a person or group feels that their sense of self, who one is, is threatened or denied legitimacy or respect. Religious, ethnic, and racial conflicts are examples of identity conflicts.

Increasing Returns

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Information

To put data into a form or shape that is meaningful. This helps us give shape and form to our thinking, observation, behaviour and ideas.

Innovation

It is the first, practical, concrete implementation of an idea done in a way that brings broad-based, outside recognition to an individual or organisation.

Inspiration

The ability to move people to new attitudes and behaviours with a compelling vision of a better future. People feel connected to and driven by a higher purpose.

Interest Groups

Interest groups are advocacy groups, groups of people who join together to work for a common cause. Environmental groups, groups defending human rights, and groups working for social causes are all interest groups.

Interests

Interests are the underlying desires and concerns that motivate people to take a position. While their position is what they say they want, such as "I want to build my house here!", their interests are the reasons why they take that position (because I want a quiet lot with a good view of the city). Often parties' interests are compatible, and hence negotiable, even when their positions seem to be in complete opposition.

Intolerance

Intolerance is the unwillingness to accept the legitimacy of another person, group, or idea that differs from one's own. It may result in an effort to get rid of the "objectionable" person or idea, or it may simply result in treating them in a subservient way, as occurs when people of certain racial or ethnic groups are discriminated against by the dominant groups in society.

Internal Regulator

This maintains our standards of behaviour at the level our subconscious thinks is right for us, based on our beliefs about ourselves.. It's job is to pull us up or drag us down. If we don't think highly of ourselves, we can settle for lower standards than we are capable of, or we push ourselves to achieve perfection - either way we feel bad about ourselves. We can't change our internal regulator until we change our beliefs about ourselves.

Intuition

Is a feeling of knowing something, without knowing how you know.The skill of interpreting the language of human energy and the forces of will. Strong intuitive abilities are a gift, but they can be learned or enhanced as long as you believe they can. You have to trust yourself and be honest about your feelings. You must view events, people and challenges as having symbolic meaning.

J

Johari Window

This is a tool for improving self-awareness and mutual understanding between individuals within a group and between groups. Developed by Joseph Luft & Harry Ingram it is used to influence the use of 'soft' skills, such as behaviour, empathy, cooperation, interpersonal and inter-group development. It has been extensively developed by many other people. In essence it is very simple. It links the individual's characteristics to those of a group. They include the open/free, the hidden, the blind and the unknown. For example in new teams the open free space for any team member is small because shared awareness is small. More ...