How Does a Futurist See the Future: 4 Questions You Need to Know | Jacob Morgan
Summary
TLDRIn this video, the speaker clarifies that futurists don't predict the future but prepare for it, helping to anticipate and adapt to change. They emphasize the importance of thinking like a futurist, especially for leaders, and liken it to strategic thinking in chess. Four key questions are introduced to guide decision-making and future-oriented thinking: why might something happen, what else might happen, what factors will influence outcomes, and what do you want to happen. The speaker encourages proactively shaping the future rather than passively accepting it.
Takeaways
- 🔮 A futurist doesn't predict the future but prepares for it, ensuring one is not surprised by what it may bring.
- 🚀 The pace of change is accelerating, making it crucial to anticipate future scenarios to navigate chaos effectively.
- 👑 Thinking like a futurist is akin to thinking like a chess player, considering multiple moves and responses in advance.
- 🤔 The first question for futurist thinking is 'Why might something happen?', which explores the factors that could make a scenario real.
- 🛑 The second question is 'What else might happen?', encouraging the consideration of alternative outcomes and possibilities.
- 🔄 The third question focuses on 'What factors will influence the outcome?', identifying variables that could affect the realization of scenarios.
- 🌟 The most important question is 'What do you want to happen?', reminding us that we shape our future and should actively work towards desired outcomes.
- 💡 Regularly asking these four questions can enhance decision-making, investment considerations, and priority setting in a dynamic world.
- 📚 The speaker recommends a PDF from thefutureemployee.com for insights on employee evolution and organizational adaptation.
- 💼 Thinking like a futurist is a valuable asset for leadership, aiding in making informed decisions in a rapidly changing environment.
Q & A
What is the primary misconception about futurists according to the video?
-The primary misconception is that futurists predict the future, but in reality, they help ensure that one is not surprised by what the future might bring.
Why is it important to learn how to think like a futurist?
-It is important because the pace of change has increased, and being able to anticipate different scenarios can help one adapt and lead effectively in a rapidly changing world.
How does the speaker compare thinking like a futurist to playing chess?
-The speaker compares thinking like a futurist to playing chess because both involve considering multiple scenarios and potential responses, rather than predicting a single outcome.
What are the four questions the speaker suggests to help think like a futurist?
-The four questions are: 1) Why might something happen? 2) What else might happen? 3) What are some of the factors that will influence or impact why something will or will not happen? 4) What do you want to actually happen?
What is the significance of the first question, 'Why might something happen?'
-This question helps one to consider the factors and scenarios that could lead to a particular outcome, preparing for various possibilities.
How does the second question, 'What else might happen?', contribute to futurist thinking?
-It encourages considering alternative scenarios and outcomes, broadening the perspective beyond a single anticipated event.
What role do external factors play according to the third question?
-External factors such as government regulations, team decisions, or funding can significantly influence whether a scenario will occur.
Why is the fourth question, 'What do you want to actually happen?', considered the most important by the speaker?
-It emphasizes that the future is not just something that happens to us, but something we can actively shape and create.
How can one take the fourth question further according to the video?
-One should not only consider what they want to happen but also plan how to make that desired future a reality.
What resource does the speaker mention for further insights on employee evolution?
-The speaker mentions a PDF available at thefutureemployee.com, which provides a breakdown of employee evolution and actionable items for organizations.
Outlines
🔮 Understanding Futurism and Its Relevance
The speaker begins by introducing the topic of futurism and the common misconception that futurists predict the future. Instead, they explain that futurists help individuals prepare for the unexpected in an increasingly chaotic world. The speaker shares their personal journey of obtaining a professional certification in foresight from the University of Houston. They emphasize the importance of thinking like a futurist, especially for leaders, and compare it to thinking like a chess player, who considers multiple scenarios and responses to their opponent's potential moves.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Futurist
💡Foresight
💡Scenario Planning
💡Chaos
💡Chess Player
💡Investment
💡Leadership
💡Decision Making
💡Variables
💡Reality
Highlights
A futurist's role is not to predict the future but to prepare for it.
Futurists help ensure you're not surprised by future changes.
The pace of change has increased, making futurist thinking valuable.
Futurist thinking is akin to being a strategic chess player.
Futurists consider various scenarios and how to respond to them.
Four key questions to start thinking like a futurist.
Question 1: Why might something happen?
Question 2: What else might happen?
Question 3: What factors will influence the outcome?
Question 4: What do you want to happen and how will you make it so?
The future is not something that happens to you; it's something you help create.
Futurist thinking is an asset for leadership in a rapidly changing world.
Regularly asking the four futurist questions can shape your decision-making.
The importance of not just predicting but preparing for the future.
Futurist thinking helps in setting priorities in a chaotic world.
Encouragement to take action towards the desired future.
Introduction of a new PDF resource on employee evolution.
The PDF provides a breakdown of employee evolution and actionable items for organizations.
Resource available at thefutureemployee.com for further insights.
Transcripts
in today's video i'm going to talk about
what a futurist is and why you should
learn how to think like one
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
a couple years ago actually went back to
school to get my professional
certification in foresight from the
university of houston now a lot of
people think that what a futurist does
is predict the future but of course as
we all know nobody can predict the
future but what futurists do is they
help make sure that you're not surprised
by what the future might bring this is
an important skill to have because
things are changing so quickly things
have always been changing quickly but
now it seems like the pace of change has
increased there are a lot of variables
that are out there and it's just
becoming more and more chaos so being
able to think like a futurist is really
going to come in handy especially if
you're considering to be a leader now
and in the future thinking like a
futurist is to me at least analogous to
thinking like a chess player now i play
a lot of chess those of you who watch
this channel know that i talk about
chess all the time i play chess
professionally if i'm sitting at a chess
board and sitting across from my
opponent and i move my pawn i'm already
thinking how might my opponent respond
maybe they'll move their knight maybe
they'll move their rook maybe they'll
attack one of my pieces maybe they'll
castle
and i'm constantly having to think about
well if they do one of those things how
might i be able to respond in other
words i'm not predicting the move that
my opponent is going to make but i'm
thinking in terms of scenarios what my
opponent might do and if they do do that
how might i respond so i want to give
you four questions that you can start
using on a regular basis when you have
to make a decision when you're thinking
about making an investment in something
four questions that are going to help
you think like a futurist question
number one is why might something happen
so think about any scenario any
possibility that might arise if you had
to make that become a reality what are
some of the factors that would make that
true why might something actually happen
question number two
what else might happen so let's say
you're thinking about that one scenario
that one possibility well what are some
other possibilities some other scenarios
that might happen if that one doesn't
actually come to fruition question
number three what are some of the
factors that are going to influence or
impact why something will or will not
happen this could be government
regulation
this could be a decision that somebody
else on your team makes this could be
funding what are the different factors
or variables that are going to impact
why one of these scenarios will or will
not happen and the fourth and final
question is the one that i consider to
be the most important one and this is
what do you want actually happen this is
a question we oftentimes forget to ask
because we assume that the future is
something that happens to us but the
reality is that the future is something
that you help create and shape and
define and build so what is it that you
actually want to happen and i always
encourage people to take it one step
further and say well what is it that you
want to happen and how are you actually
going to make that future a reality
thinking like a futurist is going to be
a tremendous asset during your
leadership career and your leadership
journey and it's going to serve you well
especially as you're trying to make
decisions and think about investments to
make and how to set priorities in this
rapidly changing chaotic world that we
are all a part of so start asking
yourself these four questions on a
regular basis and you're going to find
that you too are going to start to think
like a futurist hey it's just a quick
reminder to check out my brand new pdf
thefutureemployee.com which looks at how
employees are evolving and changing and
what you as an organization need to do
to evolve and adapt you'll get a
complete breakdown of what that
evolution looks like as well as action
items that you should be taking it's an
invaluable resource and you can grab it
at the futureemployee.com
again that's the futureemployee.com
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