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The Circle Way: A Leader in Every Chair
Collaboration and group cohesion are vital to any healthy enterprise. In collaborative environments, good ideas can come from everywhere. Today’s thoughtful leaders support interpersonal experiences that ensure clear speaking, open-minded listening, and well-grounded decision making.
Reintroducing our most ancient social process, the circle, welcomes everyone to equal participation. Here, two international leaders of circle as a modern methodology offer a comprehensive guide to this foundational human interaction.
The Circle Way lays out the basics of circle conversation based on the authors’ nearly two decades of experience implementing circle practice in organizations. Through illustrative stories that show the circle in action and delve into its deepest aspects, Baldwin and Linnea provide detailed instructions for getting started, setting intention, and resolving conflicts. Their work illuminates the profound impact of circle on people who participate in it.
Reintroducing our most ancient social process, the circle, welcomes everyone to equal participation. Here, two international leaders of circle as a modern methodology offer a comprehensive guide to this foundational human interaction.
The Circle Way lays out the basics of circle conversation based on the authors’ nearly two decades of experience implementing circle practice in organizations. Through illustrative stories that show the circle in action and delve into its deepest aspects, Baldwin and Linnea provide detailed instructions for getting started, setting intention, and resolving conflicts. Their work illuminates the profound impact of circle on people who participate in it.
240 pages, Paperback
First published August 21, 1987
90 people are currently reading
617 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
September 12, 2015
The Circle Way: A Leader in Every Chair by Christina Baldwin and Ann Linnea is a book about participating in conversations in which we can fully listen and speak to each other. The circle is an ancient social pattern, which invites participation and contribution. Because circle has been held around the common fire for thousands of years, it is remembered as a place of light and warmth. However, just as fire requires tending, the circle requires tending.
In circle, ancient ways of distributing leadership and responsibility are remembered. Leading from every chair means calling on the capacity for leadership from everyone in the circle. Everyone is accountable to everyone else as peers, and to the intention of the circle. Leading from every chair also means that it is helpful if different people host the circle over time so that leadership rotates and everyone has the opportunity to practice.
The circle's host and guardian complement each other. As host, there is additional preparation you need to do. You need to prepare the meeting space and make sure people have what they need to participate. You also need to take care of your own preparations so that you can host the circle with "relaxed preparedness". The host is typically responsible for the invitation and for introducing the components of circle. As guardian, you have the circle’s permission to call the circle back to its center, to ask the circle to slow down the conversation, and to remind the circle of its agreements. The guardian also works with the host to stick to the time frame of the meeting and to call for breaks when necessary.
Intention and center are the most basic circle components. Intention holds the rim, while the center holds the heart and the mindfulness of why the circle has gathered. Another important component is having an agreed time for the circle meeting, with clearly marked beginning and ending points. At the beginning each person is given uninterrupted time to check in and for the others to listen. At the end there is an exchange mirroring back what was said and heard. If the circle is the pattern, then its components are the seeds.
Calling on the willingness of everyone in the circle to participate fully is not an easy request to make. The redefinition of where leadership sits is a major shift. Leadership is understood to be a temporary authority, or as the authors put it, "a donation of one's skills, focus, and energy so that the collective well-being is tended and the inherent wisdom in the group may emerge". People assume increments of leadership when they willingly step into the circle, help each other, and move the conversation forward. Shared responsibility and reliance on wholeness are always in play in circle through the balancing of individual autonomy and group intent.
Part of the circle's resilience is becoming aware of how to handle ones own vulnerability while keeping focused on the intention of the group. What I find is most impressive is that the authors explicitly address the presence of shadow and related challenges for the circle. Shadow is the covert energy residing in the group, the undiscussables. The purpose of addressing shadow is to make it overt. As soon as something is named and looked at together, it is shifted from covert to overt energy. Addressing shadow is important because it is generative in the life of circle. As long as shared intention is held and a respectful environment is maintained, conflicting points of view can ultimately be empowering and confidence building for everyone in the circle. The circle can hold shadow work as long as the circle infrastructure is maintained and there are willing leaders in every chair.
In summary, the circle allows enough room for holding the energetic presence of tension, conflict, and even shadow. The energy which is released while listening and speaking to each other enables the emergence of spontaneous and empowered action. The circle is a way to bring people together for cooperation and conversation. It is a way to be more fully human with each other. The book provides excellent guidance on how to reactivate the fundamental familiarity with circle that is lying dormant in all of us. I give the book my warmest recommendations!
In circle, ancient ways of distributing leadership and responsibility are remembered. Leading from every chair means calling on the capacity for leadership from everyone in the circle. Everyone is accountable to everyone else as peers, and to the intention of the circle. Leading from every chair also means that it is helpful if different people host the circle over time so that leadership rotates and everyone has the opportunity to practice.
The circle's host and guardian complement each other. As host, there is additional preparation you need to do. You need to prepare the meeting space and make sure people have what they need to participate. You also need to take care of your own preparations so that you can host the circle with "relaxed preparedness". The host is typically responsible for the invitation and for introducing the components of circle. As guardian, you have the circle’s permission to call the circle back to its center, to ask the circle to slow down the conversation, and to remind the circle of its agreements. The guardian also works with the host to stick to the time frame of the meeting and to call for breaks when necessary.
Intention and center are the most basic circle components. Intention holds the rim, while the center holds the heart and the mindfulness of why the circle has gathered. Another important component is having an agreed time for the circle meeting, with clearly marked beginning and ending points. At the beginning each person is given uninterrupted time to check in and for the others to listen. At the end there is an exchange mirroring back what was said and heard. If the circle is the pattern, then its components are the seeds.
Calling on the willingness of everyone in the circle to participate fully is not an easy request to make. The redefinition of where leadership sits is a major shift. Leadership is understood to be a temporary authority, or as the authors put it, "a donation of one's skills, focus, and energy so that the collective well-being is tended and the inherent wisdom in the group may emerge". People assume increments of leadership when they willingly step into the circle, help each other, and move the conversation forward. Shared responsibility and reliance on wholeness are always in play in circle through the balancing of individual autonomy and group intent.
Part of the circle's resilience is becoming aware of how to handle ones own vulnerability while keeping focused on the intention of the group. What I find is most impressive is that the authors explicitly address the presence of shadow and related challenges for the circle. Shadow is the covert energy residing in the group, the undiscussables. The purpose of addressing shadow is to make it overt. As soon as something is named and looked at together, it is shifted from covert to overt energy. Addressing shadow is important because it is generative in the life of circle. As long as shared intention is held and a respectful environment is maintained, conflicting points of view can ultimately be empowering and confidence building for everyone in the circle. The circle can hold shadow work as long as the circle infrastructure is maintained and there are willing leaders in every chair.
In summary, the circle allows enough room for holding the energetic presence of tension, conflict, and even shadow. The energy which is released while listening and speaking to each other enables the emergence of spontaneous and empowered action. The circle is a way to bring people together for cooperation and conversation. It is a way to be more fully human with each other. The book provides excellent guidance on how to reactivate the fundamental familiarity with circle that is lying dormant in all of us. I give the book my warmest recommendations!
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August 15, 2021I suspect I’ve read this book with a different eye based on the fact that I spent a whole semester studying groups way back in the late 50’s (1950s that is) in my PhD program at Boston University. I was an academic then, reading and practicing with an analytic eye. Now I am warmly appreciative of this living, organic approach, so detailed in its coverage and yet so versatile in its application. I’m anxious to see what our social justice group does with it as we leave Zoom mode and move into circle mode. (Though Zoom might be said to encourage much about circle.)
It’s not a book to be read like a novel just for the fun of it. It is a book with wide application to respect for process and respect for each other.
It’s not a book to be read like a novel just for the fun of it. It is a book with wide application to respect for process and respect for each other.
February 10, 2016
A great read that I read for my work with the Indiana Voices of Women. Circle work in social settings can be put in business or leisure, personal or impersonal relationships, and it can really help all sorts of relationship formations. Through reading this work, I began to understand the history of using circles in social settings and how to create a space for honoring all voices, honoring our inner wisdom, and how get a step closer when discussing deep issues.
August 24, 2020
The concept is fantastic; this book is unfortunately bloated and incredibly difficult to get through. Concept, testimonial, and examples are given in confusing non-linear form throughout—almost as if it’s a very long ad for their consulting company. This might be intentional to drum up business because I sure wasn’t feeling confident about implementing the concept by myself after I finished the book.
August 22, 2020
....listening is a contribution we offer one another.
Who doesn't want to have more meaningful interactions? This is a guidebook for having better conversations, discussions, and meetings. It's an indispensable resource for participatory circles and addressing underlying issues. I picked my copy up years ago at a conference that starts in an opening circle and ends in a closing circle (although the last time I attended, the closing circle was not a circle.) I read this again in full because that same professional organization was having a session about having virtual (e.g. Zoom) circles. I took so many notes. Every one can find something in this short book filled with examples and alternatives.
When we show up differently, different things happen. People get curious.
Who doesn't want to have more meaningful interactions? This is a guidebook for having better conversations, discussions, and meetings. It's an indispensable resource for participatory circles and addressing underlying issues. I picked my copy up years ago at a conference that starts in an opening circle and ends in a closing circle (although the last time I attended, the closing circle was not a circle.) I read this again in full because that same professional organization was having a session about having virtual (e.g. Zoom) circles. I took so many notes. Every one can find something in this short book filled with examples and alternatives.
When we show up differently, different things happen. People get curious.
April 30, 2021
An introduction and guide to the Circle Way: a process for people to meet with intentionality and democracy. Through Circle Way, leadership rotates, the responsibility is shared by everyone, and the group relies on its wholeness. All members of the circle speak with intention, listen with attention, and tend to the well-being of the circle.
This book is full of incredible ways to foster deep, intentional conversation. I do wish that there was more focus on speaking in "neutral language" and at some points the text was quite dense; but, overall, it's well worth reading.
This book is full of incredible ways to foster deep, intentional conversation. I do wish that there was more focus on speaking in "neutral language" and at some points the text was quite dense; but, overall, it's well worth reading.
January 29, 2022
Plenty of useful concepts for creating a refreshed coworking environment and process in a group practice for therapists, but the text was way too long for what it needed to be. So much was repetitive, and even a little tangential. I would have preferred a more straightforward focus on the process/steps and evaluating efficacy. Probably could have been a 75-100 page book and been more effective. But I’m glad for some of the paradigm shifts offered and the free resources as well, and will absolutely be sharing the most useful components with my team.
July 12, 2021
I found it hard to get into, but then very rewarding when I persevered. I think there was something about the language that seemed a bit distant to me. The content was very useful - I want to understand what makes circles work or not work as I have experimented a bit with running circles with mixed results. The explanation of the different elements of circles that contribute to making them useful will definitely inform my next steps - my next experiment is planned for tomorrow evening, in fact!
September 21, 2019
Great introduction to this participatory methodology. Changed my life and led me to do proper training. I am NOT a facilitator, but you learn there's is so much to consider when having conversations that matter, and helping even everyday meetings be places of learning and listening. Excellent stuff.
October 20, 2019
I’ve wanted to read this book for years, I scoured bookstores for it and finally got intentional and ordered it. I’m so glad I did as it did not disappoint. I so resonate with this book and can’t wait to start practicing and using the circle in my life. A must read for anyone in leadership.
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January 22, 2021I just want to call circles in all spheres of my life and I am so grateful I get to do it for my job. It's been cool to read more about a way of gathering that I learned by doing. I appreciated all the case studies which helped me recognize the different contexts in which circles can be used.
Want to read
August 9, 2023Pam gave me this book on my birthday in 2015. I love Christina Baldwin.
May 20, 2024
A wonderful guide for facilitation and changing the culture.
July 18, 2020
I immediately felt like home when I started reading the book. I never thought to be brave enough to slow things down and showed people that it is important to to do so collectively. This book offers not only a framework but a call for a return to an ancient way of knowing embedded deep within our DNA, as well as a push for each of us to be brave and conscious as we are always a leader in our own chair.
October 27, 2012
Clearly written wisdom, drawing on ancient practices that makes sense in today's complex world.
February 10, 2015
Easy to read book with plenty of examples to validate the potential of using Circle for social change and people empowerment.
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April 20, 2017Recommended by Buffie Main (Visual Arts Collective & Alley Repertory Theater).
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews