Think Forward: Conversations with Futurists, Innovators and Big Thinkers
Steve Fisher
Welcome to the Think Forward podcast where we have conversations with futurists, innovators and big thinkers about what lies ahead. We explore emerging trends o...
FIF Series EP 20- Reflections - Building Your Futures Literacy
We've reached a milestone in our Foundations in Foresight series, making this the perfect time to reflect on how our thinking about the future has evolved and what to do with all we've learned.• Reflecting on the shift from seeing the future as overwhelming or distant to actively making sense of change• Building futures thinking into daily practice through better questions and tracking signals of change• Teaching futures concepts to others helps internalize and deepen understanding• Upcoming episodes will explore major forces shaping the future and advanced foresight methods• The future isn't something that happens to us—it's something we're actively shaping through today's decisionsPick one futures thinking habit to commit to practicing consistently, whether keeping a signals journal, questioning assumptions more often, or simply staying curious about what's possible. ORDER SUPERSHIFTS! bit.ly/supershifts 🎧 Listen Now On: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/think-forward-conversations-with-futurists-innovators-and-big-thinkers/id1736144515 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IOn8PZCMMC04uixlATqoO Web: https://thinkforward.buzzsprout.com/ Thank you for joining me on this ongoing journey into the future. Until next time, stay curious, and always think forward.
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FIF Series EP 19 - Exploring a Spectrum of Futures
We explore why thinking of the future as a single destination is a dangerous habit and how to break it. Understanding multiple possible futures is essential for making better decisions and navigating uncertainty in business, careers, and life.• The future isn't a fixed point but a spectrum of possibilities• Four categories to understand: possible, plausible, probable, and preferable futures• No one can predict the future with certainty, but we can prepare for multiple outcomes• The "probable" future is constantly changing as industries shift and technologies evolve• Many breakthroughs started as preferable futures that seemed unrealistic at the time• Challenge your assumptions by asking "what if?" about dominant trends and technologies• Practice imagining multiple scenarios for the same trend (optimistic, challenging, unexpected)• Forward-thinking people and organizations prepare for multiple futures, not just oneTry this exercise: Pick one trend affecting your life or work. Instead of assuming you know where it's heading, imagine three different ways it could unfold – one optimistic, one challenging, and one completely unexpected. ORDER SUPERSHIFTS! bit.ly/supershifts 🎧 Listen Now On: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/think-forward-conversations-with-futurists-innovators-and-big-thinkers/id1736144515 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IOn8PZCMMC04uixlATqoO Web: https://thinkforward.buzzsprout.com/ Thank you for joining me on this ongoing journey into the future. Until next time, stay curious, and always think forward.
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FIF Series EP 18 - What Drives Change?
Understanding the five major forces driving change—technology, economics, demographics, environment, and politics—helps us anticipate shifts before they become obvious to everyone else. Steve Fisher explains how to move from reactive to proactive thinking by examining what's beneath surface-level trends.• Technology changes everything but its impact depends on how people use it, not just what it can do• Economic drivers like cost reduction explain why innovations like renewable energy suddenly gain traction• Demographic shifts including aging populations and generational values reshape societies over decades• Environmental challenges are becoming economic and social disruptors across industries• Political decisions and regulations can accelerate or impede changes in surprising ways• "Trend layering" helps understand how multiple forces interact to shape complex developments• "Backcasting" involves working backward from future scenarios to identify change paths• Tracking early signals helps spot emerging forces before they become mainstreamYour challenge this week: Pick a current trend and analyze what's truly driving it—economics, demographics, technology, or something else entirely? Once you understand the underlying forces, the future becomes less unpredictable. ORDER SUPERSHIFTS! bit.ly/supershifts 🎧 Listen Now On: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/think-forward-conversations-with-futurists-innovators-and-big-thinkers/id1736144515 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IOn8PZCMMC04uixlATqoO Web: https://thinkforward.buzzsprout.com/ Thank you for joining me on this ongoing journey into the future. Until next time, stay curious, and always think forward.
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FIF Series EP 17 - Challenging Your Biases and Assumptions
Steve Fisher explores how cognitive biases affect our ability to think about and prepare for the future, showing why our brains take mental shortcuts that feel like common sense but often lead us astray.• Confirmation bias leads us to seek information that supports our existing beliefs while ignoring contradictory evidence• Status quo bias makes us assume things will continue as they are today, despite history showing constant change• Recency bias causes us to overvalue recent events as predictors of the future• Groupthink pressures us to conform to consensus views rather than challenging them• Historical examples like Kodak, Blockbuster, and the 19th century "horse manure crisis" demonstrate how bias blinds us to coming disruptions• Strategies to combat bias include actively seeking opposing viewpoints, using premortem thinking, practicing "future flip" scenarios, and surrounding yourself with diverse perspectivesOver the next week, pick a future scenario you strongly believe in, then actively look for evidence that suggests it won't happen. Read something, watch something, or talk to someone who sees the world differently. ORDER SUPERSHIFTS! bit.ly/supershifts 🎧 Listen Now On: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/think-forward-conversations-with-futurists-innovators-and-big-thinkers/id1736144515 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IOn8PZCMMC04uixlATqoO Web: https://thinkforward.buzzsprout.com/ Thank you for joining me on this ongoing journey into the future. Until next time, stay curious, and always think forward.
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FIF Series EP 16 - The Role of Empathy
Empathy emerges as a critical but often overlooked skill in futures thinking that allows us to see beyond our own perspectives and imagine how different people will experience tomorrow's world. This strategic advantage helps us anticipate change more effectively, design more inclusive solutions, and avoid the blind spots that come from viewing the future through a single lens.• Different backgrounds create different visions of the future—urban dwellers might focus on smart cities while rural residents prioritize community resilience• Technology adoption varies dramatically across different groups, with some embracing change while others feel overwhelmed• The most successful innovations don't just push technology forward but bring people along with it• Persona-based futures exploration helps identify how different generations, professions, and backgrounds might experience change• Seeking diverse perspectives through reading, conversations, and travel expands our futures thinking capacity• Historical examples like mobile phone adoption in developing countries show how empathy gaps lead to missed opportunities• Social media platforms demonstrate how failing to anticipate different use cases created unexpected problems• Empathy transforms futures thinking from a theoretical exercise to a practical tool for building better tomorrowsJoin us next time as we explore why challenging your own biases and assumptions is one of the hardest and most important things you can do to think more clearly about the future. ORDER SUPERSHIFTS! bit.ly/supershifts 🎧 Listen Now On: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/think-forward-conversations-with-futurists-innovators-and-big-thinkers/id1736144515 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0IOn8PZCMMC04uixlATqoO Web: https://thinkforward.buzzsprout.com/ Thank you for joining me on this ongoing journey into the future. Until next time, stay curious, and always think forward.
About Think Forward: Conversations with Futurists, Innovators and Big Thinkers
Welcome to the Think Forward podcast where we have conversations with futurists, innovators and big thinkers about what lies ahead. We explore emerging trends on the horizon and what it means to be a futurist.
Listen to Think Forward: Conversations with Futurists, Innovators and Big Thinkers, The Infinite Monkey Cage and many other podcasts from around the world with the radio.net app
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