Methods for learning about the future have been available and in use by businesses for decades, but the process has
simply been too complex for most individuals. The Personal Futures Network introduces some new, easily understood approaches
that will help you to think like a futurist and learn about your personal futures.
Think like a futurist? What does that really mean, think like a futurist? Well, each futurist may
have some different thoughts, but generally futurists think about longer term futures, usually 10 or more years ahead. Futurists
believe that the future is not predetermined, but that several futures are possible. If several futures are possible, then
one of those futures may be better than the others, or a "preferred" future. Very important; futurists believe that
individuals or groups can take actions in the present that will help determine the future.
That brief paragraph helps explain why most futurists don't make predictions about the future,
but rather suggest multiple possible futures, often in the form of "scenarios" or stories about the future.
The next page, Personal Futures offers a brief
outline showing how to use futures methods to explore and prepare for YOUR future in three steps:
Understand your life
Explore plausible futures (personal scenarios)
Plan to achieve the future you want (personal strategic planning)
Personal Futures Activities
The Istanbul Futurist's Summit 2008 was
an exciting event for me, and I'm sure for the other speakers as well. I addressed 400 or 500 students at Bancesehir
University on Thursday, then a full presentation in Turkish and English on two screens to about 1000 people
on Friday, all focused on Personal Futures.
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Recently
I had a very interesting meeting with a group of high school principals to talk about Personal Futures. They were considering
the possibility that exposing "at risk" students (at risk of dropping out of school) to long term thinking and futures
methods might help keep young people in school. We discussed conducting some trial classes, but no decision has yet been
made. I think it's a great concept, but high schools are very short of time for new programs, as their students
are now testing frequently to meet state and federally mandated standards.
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Istanbul Futurist Summit
Personal Futures presentation at the Istanbul 2008 Futurist Summit November 21.
This site is about planning for your future. You
will find a system that uses the same methods that futurists have used for decades in business and government. This is
not advice about how to run your life, but offers methods and tools that will let you anticipate and plan for your future.
The newest version of the Personal Futures Workbook is now available as
a free download.
The workbook will lead you step-by-step through the personal
futuring process. Visit the "Downloads" page. The free download makes the Personal Futures Workbook available
to everyone everywhere at the same price, free. This version is in PDF, so you can fill in and save the workbook
and your information on your computer.
Pages on this web site
The
PERSONAL FUTURES page describes the overall process of exploring your own future, including the three key steps: Personal
Research, Creating Personal Scenarios and Developing a Strategic Plan that will lead you to the future you have chosen.
The LIFE STAGES page is the first step in understanding the rest of your life and the
lives of your family members. Here you will develop images of your future.
The PERSONAL
DOMAINS page describes and explains the six primary driving forces in your life. Here you will learn how each of these
forces will affect your future.
The LIFE EVENTS page discusses events that will probably occur
in your life that can, in many cases be anticipated. This section helps you to understand the different kinds of life events
and which events you should prepare for.
The FOUR SCENARIOS page will show you how to create scenarios and
stories about your futures. With the information from your personal framework you will construct four scenarios that describe
your plausible (including one about wild cards) futures.
The STRATEGIC PLAN page is where you will create
a vision of your future, then develop plans and strategies to achieve that future. Then you will create contingency plans,
just in case a wild card pops up
The AUTHOR page explains the who, how and why relating to the creation
and future of this site
The DOWNLOADS page offers the most recent version
of the Personal Futures workbook as well as an Excel spreadsheet that can be downloaded to your computer. These downloads
are free.
The BOOKS AND ARTICLES
page lists some books and articles theat you may find interesting and helpful as you explore the future. Links to web sites
that relate to Personal Futures will also be on this page.
Personal
Learning
Personal Futures offers three
types of learning:
Learn
about your own future
Learn
to think long term
Learn
to use futures methods
These three types of learning are important not only in your personal
life, but also in your career. Explore this site, and see what you think.
