Pregnant pause

On my last day in Simonesia, the entire staff of REDE had a meeting with a community about setting up a fruit processing business.

This blog isn't about the details of the community meeting because this meeting was much like any community meeting I have ever attended. 

For the first fifteen minutes, the REDE representatives explained their ideas for how the business might work, asked the community members to offer their suggestions, and did a nice job of facilitating the discussion.

Everyone was on board with the project. Let's be honest, who is going to say "no" to the idea of making more money and having a more stable income. 

Everyone decided that, in addition everyone's active participation, the project would also require a president, treasurer, and secretary. The facilitator explained what she thought would be some of the responsibilities of the each person and then came the best part of the formation of any group or club — deciding who would assume actual responsibilities.

The facilitator asked who they think would be a good president. 

Five seconds passed. No one spoke. No one made eye contact with any else.

Ten seconds passed. The silence continued. Everyone was looking at the floor. The tension is starting to build.

Fifteen seconds passed. The tension is really coming to a fore.

The facilitator asks again.

The silence continues. The tension continues to build.

Then, someone suddenly breaks the silence. In a rather meek, barely audible voice, someone says "I can't be the president because I live a little far from here, but I think that XXX would be a good president."

The rest of the group, relieved that they weren't nominated, starts explaining why XXX would be a good candidate while also explaining why he or she can't do it. 

By the time the dust settles, everyone has recused themselves from consideration except for the nominee. Then XXX, startled by the nomination, responds "I can't do it because I don't have the time." But it's too late. 

The facilitator, glad to have an option, tries to quell fears about the time commitment and explain why XXX has the ideal skills for the position. The more she explains the more everyone else is convinced that XXX is the perfect fit, even if XXX never expressed any interest in the position.

Then there is an election. By this point, XXX capitulates and accepts the responsibility. They move on to the next position where the same ritual is repeated. 

My favorite part of any community meeting is the time between when the facilitator asks for nominees and the first person speaks. The tension is palpable. The eye contact is non existent. And once someone speaks, the sighs of relief of everyone in the group, except the nominee, are audible.

I have often thought about why people in the United States often nominate themselves for these positions and express more interest in assuming the responsibilities, while people in communities that I have worked with might be just as ambitious but are not as apt to express it to the rest of the group.

Either way, I love the pregnant pauses that this reservation provides.