FutureThink:
How to Think Clearly
in a Time of Change

Summary Throw Away Your Blinders, See What's Coming... and Ride Change to Unprecedented Success! FutureThink will help you discard the blinders that keep you from seeing what's really happening around you-so that you can anticipate waves of change and ride them to unprecedented success. Futurists Edie Weiner and Arnold Brown reveal breakthrough thinking techniques that can liberate your mind from its old assumptions and sensitize it to the earliest signals of change-so you can start responding while your competitors are still asleep. Weiner and Brown share techniques they've used to help hundreds of leading enterprises get a powerful jumpstart on the competition. You'll discover how to overcome both personal and institutional biases so that you can see both the forest and the trees. You'll learn how to recognize when trends aren't linear, and when tomorrow won't be "just like today, only more so." The authors show how a football game can help you clarify your priorities in attracting and retaining customers, why the law of entropy explains why benchmarking often fails, how to understand the profound implications of demography, and much more. Above all, they help you act on what you learn-and overcome the human tendency to reject or deny the signs of change. This book's 16 mental paths to insight and foresight are rooted firmly in today's scientific understanding of how the mind works. You'll learn how to see patterns more clearly, weigh choices more effectively, understand trends, and make more innovative decisions: Choices that don't just prepare for the future, but transform it. Grounded in research and supported by the authors' exceptional track record as futurists with clients such as GE, Proctor & Gamble, and Target, FutureThink teaches the most important skill you can learn right now: How to manage the future. ABOUT THE AUTHORS Edie Weiner is president of Weiner Edrich Brown, Inc., a leading futurist consultancy based in New York City. She has thirty-five years experience in issues analysis and strategic planning and was the youngest outside woman elected to the Board of a major financial institution. A guest lecturer at Wharton and Harvard, her work has appeared in Harvard Business Review and The Wall Street Journal. Arnold Brown, chairman of Weiner Edrich Brown, Inc., pioneered strategic scanning for management. His clients have included 3M, the IRS, Merck, and the U.S. Congress. He is a director of the World Future Society. The authors' previous books include Supermanaging and Insider's Guide to the Future. Blurbs Advance Praise for FutureThink "FutureThink stretches the boundaries of our perception and opens new azimuths for development. Incisive and useful!" General Wesley Clark US Army (ret.), Former NATO Commander "We have exposed many of our people to the thinking technologies contained in this book, and they have proven extremely useful. I recommend this book to anyone who needs to get a grip on what the future may hold." Beth Comstock Chief Marketing Officer General Electric "This primer on critical thinking is a vitamin-B shot to the brain. I loved it." Barry I. Herstein Senior Vice President International Marketing & Communications American Express "Weiner and Brown have taken the innovative and far-reaching vision that earned them respect and admiration in the foresight community and translated it into practical advice for daily business decision-making. Their insights into social dynamics and corporate governance strategies are extraordinarily useful." Tim Mack President World Future Society "Weiner and Brown see connections and causalities that no one else sees. FutureThink rattles convention and cliches and does nothing short of challenge the way we look at the world." Ed Nardoza Editor–in–Chief Women's Wear Daily "This is a fantastic book–not the kind you read and forget. The thinking techniques of Weiner and Brown have been extremely useful to us, and we would certainly recommend them to others." Claudia Kotchka Vice President Design Innovations and Strategy Procter & Gamble "The future is hidden in plain sight. It's right in front of us, if only we could see! Weiner and Brown show us how." David Forrest Publisher InnovationWatch.com "This is a great book and a must read. It frees your mind and stretches you to think in different ways." Rita Foley President Consumer Packing Group MeadWestvaco Corp. "This book helps to improve your insight and foresight in a time of rapid change. It also helps you to look beyond today in order to help create a better tomorrow." David M. Walker Comptroller General of the United States U.S. Government Accountability Office "I've spent rich time with Weiner and Brown for 25 years, and they are clearly two of the best thinkers in the world of business and in life in general. This book should be a must have for everyone." Marty Edelston CEO Boardroom, Inc. Publisher of Bottom Line newsletters