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Lifespace was born in a
flash of intuitive doodling one day in 1974 when Gary John, EdD. was
experiencing overload in his work setting. He was missing appointments,
failing to complete assignments and commitments on time, and in general,
losing it. As a professional counselor, this was most embarrassing.
In an effort to regain
control, he decided to write down everything currently happening in his
work on a sheet of paper to get a better "handle" on his various
responsibilities. Instead of putting the items in a column, however, he
placed each one on a different "spoke" of a wheel to form an overall
picture of how his work looked and felt. Simply stated, Gary had created
a "right brain" view of his responsibilities and concerns. While each
item was individually significant, it could also be evaluated as part of
a larger whole. He dubbed this picture Workspace.
He then put a value on each item by placing
a + or
–
by it. Once completed, he taped this sheet of
paper on the back of his door, so with a quick glance, he would have an
instant reminder of his work responsibilities and how he valued them. As
he shared his Workspace idea with others, especially students in his
classes, it became obvious that work is only one facet of most people's
lives. Soon the process was extrapolated to include all elements of a
person's life and the Lifespace process was invented.
Taunee Besson met Gary
around 1977 when she was putting together the curriculum for an
internship program for the Women’s Center of Dallas. She was intrigued
by the Lifespace/Workspace process and did some brainstorming with Gary
to expand it to include more analyses, a visualization of the future
and goal setting techniques. With her contributions, Taunee became a
partner in the process.
In 1979, when the Women’s
Center closed its employment service, Taunee began a career and
life-planning firm named Career Dimensions. Since that time, Career
Dimensions has further expanded its applications for individual and
organizational development. Many of process’ alumni are now outspoken
advocates of Lifespace/Workspace as a tool for career/life/organization
planning. |
