What is a Futurist and Why did I Become One?

When I tell people that I’m a certified Futurist — I get some confused looks. Even when talking about applying these concepts to my organizational and workplace strategy projects, I often leave people scratching their heads. Today, I thought it might be helpful to talk about what a Futurist is and what we do, along with why I felt it was so important to move my career and business in this direction.

This past year, I completed several training programs toward becoming a Futurist. I loved studying these new ways of thinking with the Copenhagen Institute for Future Studies, Future i/o from Germany, and MIT. I took intensive courses on Applied Strategic Foresight, Moonshot Thinking, and Leading from an Emerging Future. I also learned to apply these techniques to business and how to help innovative leaders prepare for the future as a futurist. So, what does this all mean?

First, Let’s talk about what a futurist is not.

Futurists are not fortune tellers and we don’t necessarily try to predict the future.

A Futurist is someone who looks at emerging trends in specific areas and then applies critical thinking tools such as Applied Strategic Foresight and scenario planning.

Futuristic thinking expands people’s view of what’s possible in the future. This allows us to develop…