You've been asked to talk about foresight

Congratulations. Someone has asked you to speak about the future of your area of expertise.

Congratulations. Someone has asked you to speak about the future of your area of expertise. Are you a futurist or a foresight practitioner? Have you received any training in thinking about futures? If you answer yes, then this post isn't for you. If you answer no, read on.

Please do...

1. Talk about the future, not today or the near future. Talk about 10-20 years out not 5 years. Speak to your brief which is not necessarily what you know in detail today. This may require you to do some environmental scanning in areas that you don't normally research. Go there, have fun, find how your audience's futures are being shaped and how many possible futures there might be and talk about that.

2. Admit the uncertainty and complexity that surrounds the future and explore that uncertainty. Being asked to speak doesn't mean you have to know everything about the topic. It does mean you have to give people a way of making sense of change shaping that future.

3. Challenge today's assumptions and platitud…