Working Up

by Dwayne Phillips

We can have too many people in the room to discuss something. We can also become locked in an inner circle where no one else understands what we are doing. There should be a balance.

There are too many people in the room: Twenty people (pick a number) is too many. There are too many ideas. There are too many side conversations. We need focus. Let’s just have four people (pick a number) present who understand others and can represent the desires and thoughts of others. We can reduce many of the distractions and “get somewhere.”

Only the inner circle understands: A small (pick the size) select group meets and meets and meets again. This small select group arrives at an understanding of the situation and what to do next. Great. Now the small select group tells everyone else what to do. No one else understands what the small select group understands. Nothing works.

Okay, neither edge case works well in all cases. What do we do now? Surely there is some compromise or consensus or something on how we do things well. Huh?

Here is one method: each person in the small select group spends a week explaining to one person. The number of people who understand has now doubled. Repeat this every week. The first week, four people understand; then eight; then sixteen, and after four weeks 32 people understand. A little slow, but it probably works.

Here is one method: the all-knowing supreme leader holds calls a hundred people into one room at one time. The all-knowing supreme leader masterfully explains the concept held by the small select group. In an hour, a hundred people all understand. A little hopeful, but it probably works.

Of course there are other methods, and some of them might work. Still, the more important step is to understand the problem of the inner circle and the problem of too many people in the room. We can do better.