Futurist, Trends & Innovation Expert Speaker Jim Carroll

Futurist. Trends & Innovation Expert

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Daily Inspiration: “When the village is raising an idiot…”

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“Look, if the village is raising an idiot, it’s probably a good idea to leave town!”

Apparently windmills cause cancer.

Oh, and the earth is flat, man didn’t walk on the moon, JFK was assassinated by little green men, and the holocaust never happened.

That’s the insanity of the world that we now live in.

Here’s an interesting thought – in the era of the Jetson’s, where do you think companies are going to choose to locate future economic investment? In an area or region that subscribes to the ideas of the crazy, goes to the church of the lunatic fringe, and embraces the ideals of the white supremacist?

Or, will it choose to locate in an era of open minded, progressive, future-aligned people who think that science is a real thing?

I’m off to Indiana later today; tomorrow, I’ll speak to several hundred utility executives from small and mid-sized towns throughout the state. Utility is being massively disrupted by science. According to Bloomberg, 90% of the $150 billion to be invested in energy in the future will go into wind, solar, renewables, battery storage tech, microgrids, EVs and more. Only a small portion will go into natgas, oil, nuclear….

So these regions really have a choice. Wind doesn’t provide power 24 hours a day? Um, there’s this thing called battery storage technology, and it is fundamentally re-architecting what we can do with renewables through advanced architectural design that loads it into the grid only when required.

I know that my audience in the morning will be a mixed bag – and I won’t be able to reach those who are busy with an idiot.

But I will tell my story of the reality of the future to those who still have an opportunity to leave town.

##motivationalquotes #inspirationalquotes #speakerlife🎙

Daily inspiration: “Insurmountable opportunities…..can be beat!”

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“Those ‘insurmountable opportunities’ that block your way can always be beat!”

My youngest son turns 24 today. How did this happen?

Both my sons are remarkable young men, and both have made their way into my stories on stage over a 25 year speaking career – because they have been so inspirational! And so this quote comes from Thomas and the ‘hockey blocker,’ a story I first began telling on stage in 2003 as part of my ‘What I Learned from Frogs in Texas’ business parable.

The quote comes from Walt Kelly and was used in a well known Pogo strip – ‘We are faced with insurmountable opportunities.’ A massive admission of helpless defeat – but the embedded contradiction in the phrase is meant to get you thinking.

Which brings me to the hockey blocker – as seen in this photo.

For many years, I told the story on stage of Tom and his hockey blocker. You see, when he was 3, he wanted one (a goalie blocker glove). We explained to him that we wouldn’t just go and buy one at the spur of a moment…

So he made his own. Out of a cereal box. While he was at his sitters for the day. Because we told him he couldn’t have one, he made his own.

What an inspiration! He kept it and used it for two years, until it was absolutely falling apart.

Around that time, I often used Tom and the story of his hockey blocker as part of my “What I Learned from Frogs in Texas” story — which eventually became a book of the same title. His part in the story was the power of initiative, determination and action. It remains for me a powerful lesson.

Happy birthday Tom! Always make sure that you construct the hockey blockers in your life – and always take the initiative!

No block is too significant to get in the way of success! Around that time, I often used Tom and the story of his hockey blocker as part of my “What I Learned from Frogs in Texas” story — which eventually became a book of the same title. Read more about that remarkable story – and in essence, how the hockey blocker story became a part of a 3 minute stage performance that changed my life.

Happy birthday Tom! Always make sure that you construct the hockey blockers in your life – and always take the initiative!

19 Trends for 2019: It Goes to 20! – “A Child Alive!”

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Spinal Tap went to 11 – why can’t I go to 20?

Why not do one more trend and bend your mind a bit! With that, here’s trend #20 of my ‘19 Trends for 2019′ – ‘A Child Alive!’ 

Can you imagine what the world of 2062 – the year the Jetsons’ TV show was set in – might look like for a child alive today? 

I find it hard to do so, given that the pace of change is accelerating so quickly. We will probably see advances with science, technology, society and more that we can barely begin to comprehend. And yet, there are also warning signs. What we do right now has the good chance to destroy the world that they might find themselves in.

And yet there is no doubt these children will live in a fascinating, wonderful world if *we* do the right things.

A child alive today? Consider my buddy Chase! His dad had a brief visit with my son and I in the home office to ‘talk shop’, and he brought Chase along. I had to keep Chase busy while his dad worked on a technical issue with my son, and so I put him in front of my home studio green screen. In moments, he understood it, and Chase went travelling!

What types of travels might he have in the future? Will he actually go to space? Will he be able to time travel? Will he have virtual reality travels that are incomprehensible today?

Or consider Ivan! He’s a precocious 10 year old who I had the good fortune to discover just before I keynoted a global event for Godiva Chocolates in London, England. Watch this clip!  It’s a great, fun story – but consider this: we are in a world in which 10 year olds have food video blogs. What will happen when these kids – who show so much initiative at the age of 10 – grow up and are in the workforce?

They will probably be working in jobs and careers that do not yet exist, utilizing knowledge not yet generated, with scientific discoveries not yet discovered. A few years ago, I went into the Grade 5 class of my good friend Ian Bates – and we did a project to encourage the children to think about the careers that they might work in at some point in the future.

The simple fact is – there is a child alive today who will do the amazing science fiction like things that we find unimaginable – and yet which they find routine!

19 Trends for 2019: #19 The End of the Concept of Inventory Changes Everything

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Supply chains? They’ll start to disappear as we move the physical production of product closer to the consumer with 3D printing, end of runway manufacturing, and tremendous innovations in last mile delivery!

I covered this trend in Muscat, Oman, when I headlined the International Roads Union conference; in this case, speaking to the significance of the innovations occurring with last mile delivery.

Think about what I’m saying here: the innovations occurring with last mile delivery are going to lead to a LOT of new innovative ideas. Watch this!

This trend doesn’t impact not just how we manufacture, and last mile delivery innovations.

The reality is that it sees the birth of entirely new companies who are busy chasing the side opportunities and innovations that come from the trend.  Such as the development of battery technology, home design, and so much more. I was busy skiing the day before posting this trend, and headed over to the local Amazon warehouse to film this clip to put this into perspective what happens as we see last mile delivery innovations.

Warning – HELMET HAIR!

19 Trends for 2019: #13 The Acceleration of Risk

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Over the last few years, 3 of the world’s largest global legal firms have asked me in for a talk on the new risks and challenges they are faced with in the era of acceleration.  In addition, another one invited me for a similar talk in Dallas and Chicago for their major clients – a vast collection of chief legal officers from global Fortune 500 companies.

The challenge? Our new world of hyper connectivity, driven by technology, the Internet of Things, accelerating science and other issues is leading us quickly into a new world of unforeseen legal challenges. Somehow, we need to minimize our risk from legal issues which we do not yet know exist. That’s a pretty tall order.

Here’s a quick little video I filmed which puts a concise perspective on these new challenges..

The acceleration of legal and other forms of new risk has been a component of my keynotes for several years – not just for legal firms, but for the many corporations and association events I speak at.

The acceleration of legal and other forms of new risk has been a component of my keynotes for several years – not just for legal firms, but for the many corporations and association events I speak at.

The challenge? Our new world of hyperchange, driven by technology, the Internet of Things, accelerating science and other issues is leading us quickly into a new world of unforeseen legal challenges. Somehow, we need to minimize our risk from legal issues which we do not yet know exist. That’s a pretty tall order.

How do you mitigate against risk when you don’t know what that risk might be? How do you guard against legal issues that don’t even yet exist? How do you guard intellectual property for products you don’t even yet know you will invent? That’s the challenging reality of our new world of risk today.

Want some fun? At one of these events, I put up a list of 40 new areas of legal risk management that did not exist 10 years ago. Protecting shared 3D printing models of your new products that could be easily counterfeited. Drone technology and surveillance law. Genetic counselling laws, LGBTQ issues, fantasy sports league management, organic certification, and laws involving cannabis use in the workplace and place of business.

That’s a short list. There’s lots more!

Article: Artificial Intelligence In Construction: ‘Massively Transformative’

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When I spoke in Oman last November, I spent a little bit of my time on stage talking about artificial intelligence. It caught the attention of the folks from Gulf Construction, the most prestigious publication in the Middle East when it comes to the construction industry. They asked if I might put down my thoughts on the role, impact and timing of A.I. and robotics within the industry.

AI in construction? It’s simply the next step in the digitisation of the industry. As we go down the technology path, we follow its inevitable result.

 

AI In Construction – Massively Transformative
In an exclusive article for Gulf Construction, JIM CARROLL, futurist, trends and innovation expert, highlights the far-reaching impact of artificial intelligence on the construction industry.
Gulf Construction News, January 2019 (link)

Artificial intelligence (AI), the very phrase conjures up images of futuristic mechanical brains doing all kinds of intelligent work. Scare stories abound – AI and robots are going to take away all of our jobs! Science fiction scenarios paint a picture of enslaved humans being subjected to the evil whims of smart computer technology.

[Read more…] about Article: Artificial Intelligence In Construction: ‘Massively Transformative’

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THE FUTURE BELONGS TO THOSE WHO ARE FAST features the best of the insight from Jim Carroll’s blog, in which he
covers issues related to creativity, innovation and future trends.

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