[Businessmtg] Web Page for BM Topics

[Steve Rankin]

Hi ASPers,

Jan presented a couple of interesting and perhaps common ideas that I'd like
to take a deeper look at. 

About a Resolution Column . . .

1. It expands the purpose of the Agenda List Page beyond the scope of simply
informing the members of the agenda topics that have been requested. Part of
the concept here is to keep the page simple. Simple to administer and simple
to understand for the membership. Adding a resolution column tends to
duplicate what we already maintain a record of on the Group Conscience page.


2. Adding a resolution column creates an opportunity for someone to
wordsmith the "resolution". Who decides the wording of the 'resolution' if
there is no group conscience? There is a reason that we require the Chair of
the Business Meeting to quote the EXACT wording of a motion as stated by the
member. Otherwise, someone is likely to wordsmith the motion and that can
have a huge impact on its meaning. I recall a group at an Area Assembly that
made a motion to do "X". The old guard struggled mightily to add just one
little comma to the motion. The group recognized that the comma would result
in reversing the intent of the motion. Details matter. 

3. Many topics and issues don't have solutions or resolutions. Not all
issues are problems. And even many of those that are problems don't have
solutions that can be determined by a Group Conscience of the Business
Meeting. Here in Al-Anon we are supposed to be learning to keep our focus on
the principles of Al-Anon - not on the outcome. It is the healthy discussion
that fosters a healthy Al-Anon meeting, not the resolution. In fact, many
'resolutions' or group consciences are actually unhealthy and result in
unintended consequences, such as the group's death. 

4. The real problem with having a "Resolution Column" is that it reinforces
the mistaken preconception that our objective is to solve a problem. This
kind of mindset tends to undermine the thinking that is needed to have a
healthy KBDM process. We see this all too frequently in our KBDM when
members speak up with stuff like "I vote for X" long before there's been
sufficient discussion of the issue to have reached anything remotely like a
consensus. 

How many people get to Al-Anon knowing how to have a healthy discussion with
others? Practically no one. Oh, a few are able to in their professional
workplace, but when they get home and have to deal with alcoholism? All bets
are off. What most don't understand is that having a Business Meeting where
members of Al-Anon can come and witness healthy discussions, "practice"
participating in healthy discussion where everyone is encouraged to focus on
the principles of our Program AND to let go of the results is real reason
for having Business Meetings. 

Members learn about participating in a healthy discussion in Business
Meetings. Opportunities to learn and grow.
OTOH, resolutions and group consciences rarely if ever provide for
opportunities to learn and grow. 

Lastly, if there is a resolution or conclusion in the form of a group
conscience, then that is recorded separately on our page of ASP group
consciences. 

About discussing topics in the order received . . .

The problem with this is that Topic Q may well have been requested before
Topic T, but Topic Q is trivia, while Topic T is both serious and time
sensitive. This is why the Chair of every organization I've ever witnessed,
including Al-Anon, has the authority to control the Agenda. This is
described in our KBDM process. 

OTOH, my reason for including the date on the list of requested topics is to
provide the Steering Committee and Chair with that information so they can
consider the age of a request when prioritizing topics. There are times when
we don't have pressing issues that need discussion, leaving time available
to discuss other issues. That is likely an excellent time to let the oldest
request rise to the surface on the Agenda. There are also times when the
Business Meeting needs a lighter and perhaps easier topic to discuss,
especially after spending some time struggling on a controversial or
challenging issue.  This is the reason I included a Date column in the list,
so that the leadership 

Does that mean that the Chair might make a decision regarding the Agenda
that you disagree with? Of course. But, we elected the Chair to serve in the
role of Chair, and we need to trust that she will do so reasonably fairly.
This is why we call them Trusted Servants, and why Concept 3 talks about the
Right of Decision that comes with the responsibility of being a trusted
servant.

Love and SERENITY,
Steve


-----Original Message-----
From: Businessmtg On Behalf Of Jan R
Sent: Saturday, January 11, 2020 7:54 AM
To: steve at serenitysys.com
Cc: ASP Business <businessmtg at asp-afg.org>
Subject: [Businessmtg] Web Page for BM Topics

Hi ASPers,

I like the idea, but I would like a fifth column added for resolution.
After a topic has been voted on it could be moved onto a resolved list, so
members can see what has happened in the past. As a fairly new member of
ASP, I have no knowledge of what has happened in the past.

And I would also like to see topics discussed in the order they are
received. The currently unaddressed topics would be used to start the list
and moving forward the new topics would be added in order. If it's something
that has been voted on before, a simple note of explanation should suffice.

Thanks for letting me share, Jan R