Last updated: 25 Oct 07
Integral Salon Best Practices

Here's a great and inspirational list drawn from various salon leaders who are part of the German-speaking Integrales Forum. It's not the last word, you may have had other experiences too. Share them!*

Please send more best practice examples, workshop outlines, discussion formats, hot topics, warm-ups, meditations etc.

* I plan to add an outline of the 'AQAL workshop' format the London Integral Circle has used to work on a number of hot topics. The AQAL chart which appears – between the heads of Don Beck and Ken Wilber on the top right of the page – was produced during one suchworkshop.)

Best-Practice-List for Running Integral Salons (Version 1.0)

Collected from the salons leaders of the “Integrales Forum”
Please visit our website: www.integralesforum.org,
contact: dennis.wittrock@integralesforum.org

Best Practice recommendations in random order:

• Temporarily closed groups can increase the intensity of the experience for the members and create more intimacy and commitment.
• Create a cozy atmosphere, choose a quiet, clean, beautiful room. Prepare snacks and drinks, adjust the light, pick some good music.
• Do not only talk about integral theory all the time. Get practical. Do some body exercises (maybe Yoga), meditate together (at least 1 minute in the beginning and 1 minute in the end), do shadow work (3-2-1-process, etc.), dance, laugh, sing, vocalize, play instruments, read integral poems. Do whatever feels necessary to counterbalance 3rd person maps with 1st person practices and experiences.
• Balance masculine and feminine approaches to integral: Meta-theory AND embodiment, discussions AND sharing, etc…
• Ask participants for their fields of interests and create a program. Give an input/intro to the topic and open up the space for questions and discussions. Everybody may get the opportunity to contribute, prepare something, practice presenting and get the focus of attention of the group.
• Invite “Integral Experts” from outside the group to enrich and enliven the program.
• Show interesting films, video clips, listen to audios and discuss the material together.
• Play the “AQAL-Game” (created by Ulrike Vogel, Freiburg):

1. Draw a 4 quadrant model on the floor.
2. Ask the participants to place themselves in one of the quadrants.
3. Let the participants discuss a topic while representing only the perspective of the quadrant they are in.
4. Extra-challenge - include the level component simultaneously: Write cards with developmental altitudes (green, amber, blue, teal, red, etc…) on it, let participants draw a card.
5. Now let them discuss the same topic from their quadrant and their altitude.
6. You can experiment with the other components: states, types, lines.
   Maybe you can come up with examples for these as well! It’s fun!

• As a salon leader be reliable, make available relevant information constantly via email lists (e.g. YahooGroups), web-pages, phone-conversations, flyers, posters, etc. Be responsive and commit. Walk the talk, practice ILP.
• Choose up to date topics, challenging topics where AQAL may play a relevant role, is enhancing the view, integrating the dots.
• Boomer challenge: how to deal with pluralistic relativism? Face your own green shadow elements, don’t leash out, relax and befriend the pluralist within (Give him/ her a hug ;-) ). Point to the inherent contradictions and performative self-contradictions of pluralism. Integral is more “nonmarginalizing” than pluralism. Let people be where they are, and let the center of gravity of the group (hopefully around teal) speak for itself.
• Collect best practices and create lists that may serve as starter kits for new groups.
• Offer different formats: Reading Circles for in-depth discussion of the latest theory, ILP Practice Groups, closed groups, open groups, weekly groups, monthly groups, half-day events, weekend-events, weeklong intensives, workshops, seminars, special interest groups (Integral Medicine, Integral Business, etc…).
• Build an overarching organization with other salon leaders. Connect, inspire, enrich each other. Build a website with contact details and news.
• Collect your material: invitations, newsletters, handouts, protocols, presentations, flyer, poster. Make it available to others who may need it.
• Consider the modules of ILP while planning longer events: touch in on body, mind, spirit and shadow. Examples from our group “iMove” (from 5-day iTransform-Retreats):
  - Body: 3-body workout in the morning or Yoga-session
  - Spirit: 25 minute zen-meditation or guided meditation
  - Mind: theoretical input + discussion
  - Shadow: personal feedback rounds, “popcorn”, group reflection processes
• Additional practices: taking in meals in silence, collective cooking, dishwashing (working meditation)
• “Open-Up”: offer for people who are new to the integral model. Special program with eight one-day session that successively build on each other and give an overview about the key elements of AQAL, Wilber's work and its potential. (Developed in the salon in Munich by Susanne Manz and Gerd Klostermann)
• Practical Introduction into the elements of the AQAL model, extrapolated from: Ken Wilber, The JFK Sessions 2003- Track 27, "Feminine ways of presenting AQAL"
  http://www.formlessmountain.com/kw_audio/KW_27.mp3
  PDF version as manual for group leaders ( German language) created by Dennis Wittrock:
  http://s1.quicksharing.com/v/9782997/AQAL_Praxis_Intro_1.0_D.W..pdf.html (MK: Anyone have correct URL?)
• “Once a year I intend to ‘get back to basics’ and hold a ‘seeding salon’ to tune-up knowledge of terminology and the AQAL model, with an about 2 hours long ‘Ken Wilber unplugged’ intensive and virtual follow-ups on individual questions.” Monika Fruehwirth, Integral Salon Vienna.
• It is recommended to organize salons in teams, with two or more leaders. This helps to unburden the salon leader, creates synergies and a bigger degree of commitment through involvement. Delegation of small tasks (writing protocols, preparing the room, etc.) to other participants may also help to enhance the cohesion and the feeling of belongingness to the group.

Copyright © 2007 Matthew Kalman