Good morning Jane,

I read with interest your review of "The Art of Dialogue" article. I also read this article. I thought some of the problems that the author discusses in the article, such as becoming stuck or "breakdown" which is marked by the conflict of who's idea has the most precendence, could be found in the title of his book: Dialogue and the Art of Thinking Together. Misread, I think that may sum up why dialogue gets stuck. Many of us may believe that a successful dialogue is where one member of the conversation convinces someone else to change their view. "Thinking together" may sound like we have to have the same conclusions in order to be thinking together. I imagine the author is saying "thinking together" as in 2 people were together in the same room actually thinking and sharing ideas.

I had an initial (negative) reaction from reading that title that was very different from my reaction to the entire article. I guess you really can't judge a book from it's cover!

The reason that I felt compelled to respond to you on this article is because of the other postings you sent with it. The next posting on the strategic planning that is happening at the office cites many references to the need to increase communication and build community through dialogue.

You stated that you felt it took a lot of time to have a true dialogue and that may be why you don't embrace the idea as much as you should. Isn't it great then that your employer has given you time for this to occur by supporting the strategic planning activities. One of the helpful things that you can immediately bring to the table is some of the points in this article (and the others you mentioned). You can bring understanding to your colleagues of the stages of a good conversation. That can maybe set the stage for some productive conversations.

Good luck!

Melinda Re

-- Anonymous, November 15, 1999