[Businessmtg] OT Topic - Jerry-1

[Jerry]

Biz-Pals, 
  
[First off, really glad to see so many members attending and contributing!] 
  
The purpose of Al-Anon - to help friends and family of alcoholics - is not served well when our meetings become chaotic. Whether f2f or online, excessive interruptions of the topic diverts us from our primary spiritual aim. 
  
The literature speaks to how we get or give recovery: by the study and application of the Three Legacies. We study the Steps, Traditions, and Concepts to learn a new way to see our way through our miserable circumstances. I question whether, by permitting OT sharings to become more dominant, we are tacitly permitting a decrease in emphasis on learning this new way to live. 
  
In f2f meetings the opening often includes, "Our meetings last for approximately one hour. During this hour we come together to learn how to apply the Al-Anon principles." If meetings devolve into complaint fests or which last much over that hour "limit" it is recognized that the primary purpose of the meeting is diminished. I believe that this discussion ought bring into question not whether OT shares should be permitted, but are they beginning to divert us from our primary spiritual aim. 
  
>From my experience I say yes. 
  
ASP was formed with the intention of being as much like a f2f meeting as possible and has done a pretty good job of it. So my potential answers to this particular problem start with this question: What would my f2f meetings do if off topic shares started to be not just regular, but bordering on pervasive? Over multiple decades and thousand of meetings I've seen the following: 
  
~ Choosing topics to address, using principles, the perceived problem area. 
  (Often takes care of any problems.) 
~ Have the Chairperson gently interrupt and suggest sticking to the topic or moving on. 
  (Rare, but knowing it can happen tends to get members to self-limit. Application online? Don't know.) 
~ Having experienced members speak to "repeat offenders" after the meeting. 
  (Educates newer members on reasons for keeping to the topic.} 
~ Having separate Beginners' Meetings. 
  (Where the format could permit questions and etc. for new members.) 
~ Having regular Business Meetings to address group problems. :-) 
~ Repeat the above as often as it takes. 
  
Some suggestions / thoughts: 
  
~ Formulate a short suggestion as a part of our opening stating the importance of sticking to the topic. 
~ Continued reminders of the role of Sponsorship in discussing the details of our miseries and a willingness to discuss how unlimited OT shares hinder topic discussions. 
~ Can we support a separate ASP Beginners meeting? New members can be gently introduced to Al-Anon Principles and practices without worrying about shaming them.  
~ Anybody know if there is a way for individual members to block any email with OT in the subject line? Being able to opt out of OT would solve the whole thing. Everyone else could use the delete button. 
  
No f2f meeting I've attended over the past decades would tolerate the level of off-topic shares we now have at ASP. Perhaps this is a function of how many members we now have as opposed to 5 or 10 years ago. I know that a large percentage of Al-Anon members now report that their first contact with Al-Anon was over the internet. Maybe there is a sea change in how Al-Anon works these days and we are seeing this problem anew and no f2f solutions will work here. 
  
One thing sure: If we let this continue to grow it will get bigger. 
  
Jerry 
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