"Sell hope. Not fear." - Futurist Jim Carroll
It should be obvious, shouldn't it?
Doesn't it make sense to give people a vision of tomorrow that provides a dream of hope rather than a nightmare of fear? Isn't it a fact that it’s often better to inspire people with the hope of what they can achieve, rather than the fear of what they cannot? Shouldn't it be the case that you would do better to provide a vision of tomorrow that is focused on opportunity and growth rather than one of despair, anger, and vengeance?
And yet here we are.
When you are trying to speak to people about tomorrow, what's your approach? Shouldn't you be a relentless optimist? Spend time speaking about the opportunities of building a new future, rather than bemoaning the loss of our old one.
It's better to be someone who can share dreams and visions – rather than a person who aggressively shares a message of pessimism and doom. To always accomplish this, take the time to find the information tunnels of opportunity and growth that are related to the trends of tomorrow, rather than sharing old ideas that have no future with ideas that are stuck in the past. Don't preach the gospel of the fear of the unknown - share a sermon of certainty as to what tomorrow might bring. Don't be stuck in this current moment full of fear – make sure you are moving forward to our future in our ship of hope.
I will be the first to admit that every future trend involves both aspects – challenges, AND opportunities. And on stage, I’ve always tried to cover both issues with any trend or aspect of the future. But at the end of the day, I try to paint a picture of hope rather than an abstract of fear.
As they say, we live in interesting times.
Futurist Jim Carroll pursues a steady diet of relentless optimism.