Four careers over 50+ years. USMC, engineering, consulting, education. Past twenty years have focused on helping leaders become and remain relevant during times of change.
MindPrep 283 – Bets on the Future
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Reader Every decision you make today is a bet about the future. Sometimes the future is near and sometimes the future is far. Sometimes our decisions produce that results we want; and sometimes they don’t. It’s always “the present” when you decide, but every decision plays out in the future. If you want to make better decisions in the “here and now” you should do two things: 1. (Re)confirm your assumptions underlying the decision. 2. Think about the unintended consequences of the decision, not just what you want to happen. Sometimes the unintended consequences are good, sometimes not-so-good. Question: Regarding a pending decision, what assumptions must be true for you to succeed? And, what could go wrong? Happy New Year, Bill |
Bill @ MindPrep
Four careers over 50+ years. USMC, engineering, consulting, education. Past twenty years have focused on helping leaders become and remain relevant during times of change.
Reader, Have you ever seen decisions that seemed like a great idea at the time—only to see them backfire later? For example, the widespread use of antibiotics saved millions of lives, but overuse led to antibiotic-resistant bacteria, making some infections harder to treat. Or maybe you held on to your bestselling product for too long and you became irrelevant (Kodak). These are examples of unintended consequences—the hidden, second- and third-order effects of decisions that only become...
Reader, Foresight and the lack of it has been on my mind. Here's a short piece about "news" that has almost become background noise. Leaders should be paying more attention. Facts According to the CDC, as of February 21, 2025, the ongoing H5N1 avian influenza outbreak has led to the culling of approximately 162.8 million poultry in the United States. This extensive loss has significantly disrupted the egg industry, resulting in soaring prices and supply shortages. In January 2025 alone, over...
Reader, Did Sears Roebuck intercept the future of retailing? Did Tesla intercept the future of the automobile? Who is in the process of intercepting the future of “intelligence?’ For too many organizations the question of “Can we intercept the future of our industry?” is a work in progress. This issue of MindPrep continues our examination of the work associated with building and using foresight for our businesses and our careers. The last issue addressed the question of “Where is the future...