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I posted another thread about looking for a timer...but this made me wonder...
How does your f2f (if you have one) deal with time? Is it open time sharing? Or do you set a time boundary? In what way? And if yes, how do you "enforce" it? And if someone continually takes up more than their alloted time -- what do you do?
Do you ever have time issues in your groups?
Thanks for your answers -- time boundaries seem to be an issue at the meetings in my town -- not always -- but they come and go and the issue sometimes causes problems...
It really doesn't become an issue very much in the meetings I go to. Depending on how large the group is, we may split up into 2 or 3 groups so everyone has ample time to share. Or, if there is a large group and we stay in one group, we ask at the start that everyone keep their shares brief so everyone has a chance. But, if someone seems to be going on for too long, we sometimes try to to wrap them up by saying "thank you for sharing" or "keep coming back" - something like that.
It's a touchy subject, because, sometimes people just need to let all of that stuff out. But, at the same time, you want everyone to have a chance to share.
I wouldn't like the idea of a timer in one of my groups.
Time is not usually an issue in my group either. We just let people share however long they want to share. If someone goes on and on and on, the chair could cut them off and go on to the next person but I've only see that happen once. Usually the people that share longer than they probably should are balanced out by the people that pass and don't share at all. If we don't get around to everyone in the hour, we stop at about 5 minutes until the hour and the chair asks if anyone has a burning desire to share. If so, the person gets to share. If not, we just continue.
I don't think I would like the idea of a timer in my group either. Although I'm always more on the brief side than the long-winded side, and I don't think I've ever shared longer than a minute and a half, sometimes people come into the group in a lot of pain and need to talk for longer. In my opinion, having a timer on those people may hinder the freedom they feel to share everything they need to get out there.
I'm in a small, cozy group so time is never a problem. Most of us get two shares.
I know the larger groups break up into 2 or 3 smaller groups after the chair's opening remarks.
I've never seen anyone cut off for speaking too long, or lack of time. In our last meeting, I was chairing and we had reached the end of our time when everyone else but me had shared twice. So I was getting ready to close the meeting, and all the members invited me to share again, saying that it was no problem to stay a few minutes extra.
I find it usually balances out -- some members have a lot to say at times, and others have little.
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Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could... Tomorrow is a new day. You shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense. - Emerson
I attend meetings that have timed 4 minute shares and meetings that are untimed.
In the timed meetings, a member of the group volunteers to be time keeper. She raises her hand at the 3 min. mark in an effort to let the person know that it is time to wind up and again raises her hand at he 4 min mark to indicate tat time is up Eveyrone abides by the time keeper.
In the meeting without a time keeper. a statement is read at the beginning of the meeting saying that the meeeting does not have time shares but that we each must be mindful of the time so that everyone has a chance to share. If someone appears to be going over the time, the chariperson reminds them that they are to wind up as others need to share. Both work. Have a group conscience and vote to see which procedure your group members perfer.
