Think: In planning circles, a "wicked problem" is defined as a problem that is difficult or impossible to solve because of incomplete, contradictory, and changing requirements which are often difficult to recognize. Our rapidly changing climate is a wicked problem. The visual to the right is only a partial picture of its complexity. This complexity does [...]
Think Fast: Folks, this is crazy: AI models went from $100 million to $5 million to $30 in a week. I particularly enjoyed this paragraph from the article: "To put this breakthrough in perspective, the telegraph reduced the time it took the Pony Express to deliver a message from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California, [...]
Milepost 7: A 2100 acre toxic basin only miles from Lake Superior As a futurist, I am deeply concerned about the long-term safety of Milepost 7--a large basin containing toxic residue--which sits only miles from Lake Superior outside of Silver Bay, Minnesota. As the Star Tribune has reported, the dam containing the basin [...]
Think in Silence: As I explain in this post, the future will not be so much about humanity conquering outer space as it will be about us conquering inner space. To do so, however, we first need silence. Think Strategically: Bill George, the former CEO of Medtronic, has written an insightful article: Dealing with Today's [...]
Over the years, as my thinking about the future has evolved, the following statement captures an important shift in my perspective: The future will not as much be about conquering outer space as it will be about conquering inner space. In my previous work as a corporate futurist, I was focused almost exclusively on the [...]
Think: I've written extensively on the power of the human imagination but I'd never contemplated the notion that we are "living in the product of other peoples' imagination"--and, yet, it is true. As I argue in this post, The Future as Battle of Imaginations, this startling insight of “living in the imagination of other people” [...]
Recently, I was listening to Kristen Tippett interview Adrienne Maree Brown on her podcast “On Being.” One particular phrase from their conversation jumped out at me. Brown said we “are living in the imagination of other people.” “That’s it,” I thought to myself. As a futurist, I have written and spoken extensively about the vital [...]
Later this evening, I will be addressing 500 young farmers in Iowa. One unusual question I intend to pose to them is this: Why should farmers care about a new line of cocktails (and mocktails) now being served at the Ritz Hotel in London?* The answer lies in the nature of the cocktails–all of the [...]
Think in Questions: As you think about your future, I encourage you to spend some time thinking about questions. Specifically, what question(s) do you want to answer with your life? In my case, I have a "secular" question and a "spiritual" question. Both inform how I live my life. If you're interested, you can read [...]
Poetry has been helpful on my journey of personal and professional discovery. One poem I’ve come to admire and reflect upon is Rainer Maria Rilke’s poem “Live the Question Now.” I especially enjoy this advice: “... have patience with everything in your heart and to try to love the questions themselves as if they were [...]
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