Daily work to-do lists can consume us. With so many e-mails, calls, meetings, and tasks to get to, it's sometimes hard to see the big picture.  To have the chance to seek a fresh perspective or creative approach to our work - never mind to educate our- selves about more global issues that will impact the future of our organizations - can seem a luxury.

Far from it, says Jeffrey Cufaude in this month's Leading Learning column (page 20). Anticipating upcoming trends and issues is a necessity in today's workplace and can only increase our value to our organizations. He recommends that we put into practice three "disciplines" to help us broaden our horizons and open us up to new possibilities.

Openness is a recurring theme this issue. Sara Torrence's article (page 52) takes a long look at Open Space. For the uninitiated, Open Space is a session format that is, well, largely unformatted. As explored at PCMA's Annual Meeting, it is a highly participatory way to meet with no prescribed agenda. Attendees organize educational topics themselves around a central theme and then break into working groups to discuss each of the topics. The room is set in concentric circles of chairs. Open Space has four basic precepts:

1- Whoever comes are the right people.
2- Whatever happens is the only thing that could have happened.
3- Whenever it starts is the right time.
4- When it's over, it's over.

I'd be the first to agree that this may sound too "New Age" to work for some groups. But those who experienced Open Space firsthand at PCMA's Annual Meeting found that while it may not work for every session or meeting they plan, the format inspired them to think about their meetings in a new way.

My own favorite rule of Open Space is the Rule of Two Feet, which has to do with giving participants the freedom to move from one discussion group to another (I also think it holds great career advice): If you are not contributing where you are, go someplace else.

Open Space founder Harrison Owen told Torrence that the concept for this new way of meeting came to him while relaxing over a martini. Perhaps all of us are just one martini - or long walk, soak in the tub, car ride, or flight - away from a brainstorm. We just need to be open and make space for inspiration.