After an inspring weekend session, I just did a contemplative write-up about our current efforts in Platform4 to craft a vision statement after almost four years of heavy experimentation with organization, user-involvement, activism, entrepreneurship and do-it-yourself spirit. If you're into such things, I am sure you'll find it quite entertaining. Here's an excerpt:
"Ironically, this has never been done before on such a basic level, because we've been too busy inviting people inside, creating demanding projects and workspaces - and building robots! We tried once, 3 years ago, but had to shop half way to organize some big project with a deadline, and subsequently never picked up the thread, as we thought that it was too boring and that the only result of finishing the vision statement would be to constrain our wonderfully unshackled and autonomous development project. "We can do that some other time," was our thought at the time. "Let's build pixel screens instead!" (or something similar to that).
Now, however, the Platform4 project has matured enough to justify the formalization of some of the basic elements in order to let the vigorous and sprightly tree grow much higher. In 2012, we'll kick off some very ambitious projects for which we need some sturdy substructure."
and
"Here's how we've started the process at the first all-day session. We compiled this step-by-step plan from bits and pieces collected in books and online, so it has absolutely no academic (or even tested) weight to it - it is simply our way of trying things out".
Read the full post and see some pictures at the Platform4 blog.