There are a number of ways to question the future. A recent trip back to my old high school got me reflecting upon how to prepare today’s youth for a world of constant change.
My first piece of advice centered on getting the students to think about intelligence from a different perspective.
Instead of focusing on the question: How intelligent are you? The question of the future is: How are you intelligent? Everyone is intelligent in a unique way. It is our task to discover, nurture and exploit this innate intelligence.
In this same vein, I encouraged the students to think of creativity in a different light. Instead of trying to answer the question: How creative are you? The question of the future is: How are you creative? It is our job to find, refine and grow this creativity.
These two insights lead directly to yet another important way to question the future. Too often people wonder: How will the future affect me? The question of the future is: How will you affect the future?
Every person is uniquely intelligent and creative. This reality leads me to believe that the future won’t be something that passively happens to you. It will be something that you create–something that you affect–through your thoughts and actions today.
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