Sharing ideas concepts with papernote writing strategy on wall glass office.Business marketing and communication
getty
One of the most valuable practices I encourage my corporate clients to adopt is shifting constantly between the demands of the present state and the possibilities within their future state.
The ability to mentally step out of today’s activities and spend time visualize tomorrow’s opportunities is a discipline shared by the innovators, former prisoners of war, elite athletes, and top performers I’ve interviewed throughout my career. They imagine the future as they want it to unfold, and once that picture is clear, the next essential step is developing a strategy to bring it to life.
Innovators think strategically even when the chips are down. When change was slow and largely linear, strategy was optional. But in an era of accelerating disruption, crafting and executing a personal strategy is not just advisable – it’s necessary. Webster defines strategy as the art of maneuvering forces into the most advantageous position prior to engagement with the enemy. Today the “enemy” is complacency: resistance to change, isolation, a poor information diet, and the false comfort of familiar routines. Your strategy shapes how you respond to the unexpected, but just as importantly, it guides you toward opportunity and helps you make your own luck.
Change Your Narrative
What can you do to ensure your relevance and viability in a post-pandemic, fast-shifting world? The first step is to begin incorporating yourself mentally. Think of yourself as You, Incorporated. A global enterprise with one employee and one mission: your long-term growth. You may currently serve a single client, your employer, but your unique mix of capabilities, experiences, and aspirations belongs to You, Inc. Research suggests most knowledge workers will have five careers in their lifetime. That makes it vital to continually build the skills and aptitudes you’ll need for your next move.
Equally important is becoming a lifelong learner. Not long ago, what you learned in school could carry you for decades. No longer. We now generate 2.5 quintillion bytes of information daily, and the pandemic only accelerated the knowledge explosion. Endless Zoom calls and digital distractions create the illusion of keeping up while pulling our attention toward celebrity dramas and political theater instead of toward meaningful signals of change. The innovators I’ve interviewed learn out of curiosity, not fear. They binge-learn. They discover a topic, plunge into it, consume the books, devour the articles, and seek out experts who stretch their thinking.
Another vital mindset is to consider yourself a student of change. Recent history—from 9/11 to Moore’s Law to the global financial crisis to COVID-19—reminds us that no one is insulated. Events far beyond your industry or geography can reshape your career, your livelihood, and your future. Innovators are students of the past and the future. They monitor technological, political, demographic, social, and environmental shifts because they understand these forces can upend markets overnight.
The next dimension is managing your mental environment. When IBM surveyed 1500 CEOs about the most essential leadership trait in a fast-changing world, they named creativity. Whether you’re running a company, leading a team, or guiding a household, your effectiveness hinges on the quality of your mental inputs. By curating your information diet—choosing what you read, watch, and think about—you shape the conditions for your own future success.
Finally, unleash your inner visionary. We have never needed visionaries more. Vision isn’t limited to think tanks or ivy-covered institutions; it’s a mindset available to anyone willing to imagine what will be needed next. My hometown of Santa Barbara is praised for its vision because, after a devastating earthquake in 1924, leaders reimagined the city’s architectural future with intention and aesthetic ambition. Their vision shaped a place now known for its distinctive Spanish-style architecture and rare sense of coherence.
To tap your own visionary potential, reflect on the question: What do you see when someone asks about your next breakthrough idea? The answer reveals not just your imagination, but the future you are preparing to create.
