The Top 3 Questions and Answers for the Future
Well as I’ve discovered them! These three questions (and my normal answers) are based on what I get asked consistently when I’m presenting or facilitating a session about Strategic Planning, ‘the future of…’, and how societies might look five, ten or twenty years from now: Question One – ‘What is the most important thing to know about the future?’
My Answer: ‘That there will be one!‘ Now that might sound a bit obvious and please appreciate the answer for what it entails. The reality for most people is that they do NOT take the future into any real consideration and as such, make choices and take actions that will not help them to get the kind of life they would rather have.
Question Two – ‘What is the future of (enter subject here, i.e technology, company, industry sector, country, lifestyle…). My Answer: ‘That all things known right now, it is likely to seem very similar to what it is now, even IF it is fundamentally different than what it is right now.’ This answer reflects how we as a species generally approach the idea of change. Prior to the change we wail at the clouds, wring our hands and scream to the wind. And then the change happens, we experience a period of somewhat uncomfortable adjustment (or as more often happens, ‘no noticeable adjustment’) and get on with life. Usually, ‘five minutes’ later we are already experiencing the new normal. We are a far more flexible species than we give ourselves credit for, something many leaders seem to ignore.
Question Three – ‘Why are there no flying cars like you futurists promised years ago?’ My Answer: Because when there is a simpler solution, the simpler solution will alway win out. My answer here takes a not so gentle swipe at people who like to make things more complex than they need to be. So if you plan to design a future, look to include the least possible components that you truly need because you’ll likely maximise the chances of getting what you want. Sometimes what is needed are complex solutions to complex challenges. But RARELY are complex answers the best things for SIMPLE challenges.
I’m heading to Singapore for a few days to facilitate a scenario planning workshop on behalf of the Asia Business Forum. There is something intimately exciting for a futurist to be going to arguably the most future focused of all countries and to spend just a brief time immersed there. There’s no doubt that great…
Read More >Greenwashing is a term used to define marketing actions by organisations, claiming to take an environmental approach to their products or services, when in fact, they are doing nothing or very little. Greenwashing is a form of marketing hype, and in turbulent times, many companies may be contemplating ‘sexing up’ their image by tapping into…
Read More >Strategic Futurist Marcus Barber will be the key note speaker at the Australian Computer Society’s annual conference to be held in Adelaide on July 30 at the Adelaide Convention Centre With the theme ‘Survive and Thrive’ Marcus will discuss the likely issues of the near term future and why right now, organisations do not have…
Read More >The next Advanced Strategic Planning one-day workshop being run by The Australian Strategic Planning Institute will take place at Rydges in Adelaide on the 13th of July and bookings are now open The TASPI workshops are jam packed with ideas and processes to ensure that your operational, business and strategic planning efforts deliver the…
Read More >Hands up if you remember the dot com bubble? Or how about the Y2K bubble? Housing bubble? ‘Bubbles’ as they apply to all things economic are little more than an oversupply of positive confidence in a particular area of economic concern. In fact ‘Bubbles’ are caused by the SAME things as ‘Recessions’ just at opposite…
Read More >Just a handful of places are left for The Australian Strategic Planning Institute’s one day Advanced Strategic Planning workshop at Karsten’s in Melbourne on the 26th of May. Please note that there are no places available for the June workshops in both Brisbane or Sydney, and the Adelaide workshop in July is half filled though…
Read More >Richard Pratt has succumbed to a battle with prostate cancer and there’s no doubt that many words will be written on paper destined to end up as recycle materials at his VISY Industries plants. There’s a harmony in that thought – all those words of type and paper discussing Richard Pratt will be recycling through…
Read More >Thousands of Australians are just receiving or are about to receive a pretty handsome cheque from the Federal Government as part of the economic stimulous package. The question then is ‘what do I spend this on?’ Below I offer a futurist’s view on where certain generational types might consider spending the bonus. As a…
Read More >It is almost a year since the Australia 2020 Summit was held in Canberra and it is expected that Prime Minister Kevin Rudd will provide feedback on the summit, the ideas it generated as well as the ideas of those not at the summit who provided input and thinking. Of course a lot has changed…
Read More >A few years ago whilst researching and generating ideas for the National Geographic Channel’s futures based TV shows ‘Future Matters’ I discussed the idea of what I then called ‘WEs’ or Wearable Electronics. I mentioned that this was a substantially different approach than portable electronics, which is what most mobile phones and laptop computers were…
Read More >