It’s the era of acceleration, and the future belongs to those who are fast!
Archives for December 2018
Daily Inspiration: “You don’t need a business case – you need a velocity case!”
“You don’t need a business case – you need a velocity case!” – Futurist Jim Carroll
Here’s a great photo from my keynote last month in Muscat, Oman, with a room full of executives from the global transportation, trucking and supply chain industry!
Check the slide on the screen – if you follow me, you’ll know that is my standard closing slide. It’s the one that I notice people scrambling to write down in their notes, because it has caught their attention and imagination. It gives them a structure for their plan to implement the message I deliver on stage.
Look at the third bullet – ‘scale fast.’ One of my key themes through the years has been that “faster is the new fast” — that the biggest challenge that organizations must now face is how to keep up with the high-velocity economy and the pace of rapid change that envelopes them.
In that context, think about these potential realities of the way you might work and plan today:
– by the time you come up with a business case, it might already be outdated
– by the time you have a great plan, it will be too late to implement it
– by the time you’ve assembled the right team, your need for them will likely have disappeared
– by the time you get your new product to market, it might already be obsolete
– by the time you figure out how to deal with your competitors, you’ll have new ones
– by the time you figure out how to build a great customer relationship, they will probably have moved on to someone else
– by the time you have developed a great new brand image, people probably view you as already being from the olden days
– by the time you figure out how implement a structure for speed and are moving fast, you are probably already moving as slow as molasses compared to your competition
– by the time you think you’ve got things figured out, your insight has already been superseded by new trends
– as soon as you have figured out the next great opportunity, the opportunity is already gone
Far-fetched? Not in the era of acceleration!
Daily Inspiration: “The opposite of imagination? It’s stagnation!”
“The opposite of imagination? It’s stagnation!” – Futurist Jim Carroll
Over the years, I’ve spent time exploring the future, trends & innovation with many leading global organizations.
And as a futurist, I also spend my time looking back. I’ve seen many of them that are stuck, blinded by the speed that surrounds them in the era of acceleration. They’ve failed to move when the opportunities of the future have been so clear.
To this point: I’m often called in by a senior executive to deliver message that emphasizes the need for action over inaction; for creative thinking; for breaking out of an innovation funk.
I’ve learned that in many of these situations what has happened is a failure of the imagination, and because of that, the organization fails to pursue potentially big opportunities.
Sometimes I will look back at a client to see how they have made out with the future we talked about.
Consider a construction industry client of a few years ago. The trends in the industry are massive in terms of imaginative opportunities: robotic and other new methodologies, 3D printing of construction materials including concrete, intelligent building technology and renewable energy opportunities, the acceleration of new design methodologies!
Looking back, I can see that this particular organization has failed to grab onto the obvious trends for innovation that were clearly defined in our session. Since our time together, I’ve regularly seen news articles that indicates massive change in the construction sector; yet this organization seems to be stuck.
Why? Actually, when I returned home, I wrote my original “Jetsons and Flintstones post”, noting that “over the years, I have come to realize that while the majority of my audience appreciates a whirlwind ride into the future, there are others who just wish the future would go away.”
Go and take a look at the results of the live polling in the room and then read my closing comments. Mindset matters!
Daily Inspiration: “Creativity doesn’t flame out – it simply needs a different type of fuel!”
“Creativity doesn’t flame out – it simply needs a different type of fuel!” – Futurist Jim Carroll
Sometimes a creative soul can temporarily lose their creativity. That can be a bit of a problem if you haven’t experienced that particular type of problem, and you aren’t sure of a particular path to recovery!
The thing is, you might only *think* that your creativity has flamed out. But it probably hasn’t – once a creative mind, always a creative mind! And so while you might worry about your ability to do what you have always done, you probably need to, for a bit of time, do something different altogether.
I’ve learned that the secret to reinvention is to choose a different vehicle to get to the destination when some sort of barrier gets in the way. Or if the fuel mix is causing a problem – change the mix!
Through my career, I’ve had multiple ups and downs, and at various points along the way, I’ve panicked over my ability to do what I’ve always managed to do – think about what comes next, identify the next big trend, write the next book, take on the next new speaking topic.
But what I’ve learned is that worry is a lousy lubricant, and sometimes it make no sense to try to fix things with an engine tuneup. Heck, I’ll just jump in a different vehicle!
That’s why I’m doing so much video as of late – it’s become my creative fuel while I continue to struggle to work on my latest book.
The book is actually based on the daily quotes that I’ve been doing here for close to 2 1/2 years. It’s coming together, it’s exciting, and it’s going to be awesome!
But it’s a bit of a slog, really. It’s such a big, overwhelming project that I need some small hits of adrenaline to keep my creative mind engaged. I’m getting that fast with my gimbal camera hits.
Daily Inspiration:”By justifying your excuses for your inaction, you recommit to it!”
“By justifying your excuses for your inaction, you recommit to it!” – Futurist Jim Carroll
If you know me, you’ll know that I embrace winter. I love it! So do my sons – one even has a backyard snowmaking machine!
Why? Because long ago, I decided that if you live in a northern climate, you’ve got to make the most of it. (Of course, it doesn’t hurt that after skiing on the weekends, I often find myself on stage in Miami, Orlando or Las Vegas, with a commensurate round of golf in the schedule). And so this weekend, I was busy with my sons setting up the outdoor rink at the chalet; some great freezing temps were happening, and we wanted to get some ice down!
Somewhere in the midst of this, one fellow I know made a comment in a message about my daily inspirational quote (i.e. the thing you are reading here). He called it ‘corny.’ Well, harrumph! That got me going!
The thing is, he then indicated in his next message that he hated winter, and couldn’t find a way to get up off the couch to do anything since he was so miserable about the cold temperatures.
The poor fellow is doomed to a regular season of misery unless he picks up and moves south, or otherwise embraces his inner-polarness.
My view? One person’s corny #motivationalmonday quote is another person’s #inspirationalguidance.
Yet the exchange got me thinking: once you are locked into an attitude, it’s all too easy to keep it going. Once you decide on your outlook, that’s your destiny. Once you determine your destination, there’s a good chance you’ll end up there.
Once you start making excuses for your behaviour – such as doing nothing about the negative circumstance you might find yourself in – you are implicitly deciding to regular reap the negative results that come from such inaction.
If you’ve set yourself up for a shitty destination, clearly you’ve made a shitty decision. But you always have a choice… and could decide through some positive action to do something about it.
So – how’s that for corny thinking! LOL!
Daily Inspiration: “Reinvent – Relentlessly!”
“Reinvent. Relentlessly!” – #Futurist Jim Carroll
You always need to try to be a new you, because today is a different day. Maybe yesterday’s you won’t be good enough for the you that you need to be today!
Crazy message? Not really – as a species, we have never lived through a more dramatic period of fast paced change.
This stage shot? I’m at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, which celebrates the science, insight and inventions of one of the greatest minds of our time, Benjamin Franklin. What a fabulous setting for a dinner keynote a few months ago!
I was actually speaking at an innovation dinner awards celebration for Chemours, a leading global chemicals company. Called the 2018 Chemours Plunkett Awards, the evening celebrated key customers who had achieved breakthrough results through a focus on innovative and creative thinking.
I love awards dinners, and I’ve done quite a few over my 25 year speaking career! Let’s celebrate those who have done great things!
Part of my message to the audience was that continual reinvention though innovation is critical in today’s world. Products go out of date faster than ever before as product lifecycles collapse; fickle consumers can send a brand from hero to zero in moments; there is always a potential competitor around who is eager to ‘steal your lunch.’
So – reinvent!
Fun fact: it was the discovery of one single new chemical substance that permitted Apple to miniaturize the hard drive for the original Apple iPod, leading to the birth of a multi-billion market. Guess how many new chemical substances will be discovered in next 50 years? Billions!
Opportunity abounds in such a reality! This requires a mindset in which the ability to come up with new products is critical, and that is why we celebrate innovation heroes – like those who were in the room this particular evening.
Past glories won’t define your future success – so change yourself. Your track record from the past is irrelevant for the future if you don’t align yourself quickly to new realities. Your old success will not define your new success.
Your ability to reinvent yourself is the essence of your future being. Do it now!
#motivationalquotes #inspirationalquotes #speakerlife???? #innovation
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