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Ready, Set, Future! Introduction to Futures Thinking

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Ready, Set, Future! Introduction to Futures Thinking

This course is part of Futures Thinking Specialization

Instructor: Jane McGonigal

59,630 already enrolled

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4 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

1,332 reviews

Beginner level

Recommended experience

Flexible schedule

1 week at 10 hours a week

Learn at your own pace

96%

Most learners liked this course

4 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

1,332 reviews

Beginner level

Recommended experience

Flexible schedule

1 week at 10 hours a week

Learn at your own pace

96%

Most learners liked this course

What you'll learn

Define futures thinking and give examples of futures projects
Collect and analyze signals of change
Identify historical change in the past to predict new changes in the future
Learn how to avoid future shock - and help others avoid it, too!

Skills you'll gain

Details to know

Shareable certificate

Add to your LinkedIn profile

Assessments

8 assignments¹

AI Graded see disclaimer

Taught in English

91% of learners achieved a positive career outcome

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Build your subject-matter expertise

This course is part of the Futures Thinking Specialization

When you enroll in this course, you'll also be enrolled in this Specialization.

Learn new concepts from industry experts
Gain a foundational understanding of a subject or tool
Develop job-relevant skills with hands-on projects
Earn a shareable career certificate

There are 4 modules in this course

Do you want to think about the future with more creativity and optimism? Do you want to see what’s coming faster, so you can be better prepared for disruptions and more in control of your future? Do you want to get better at changing what’s possible today – in your company, your industry, your community, and in your own life?

This course will introduce you to the practice of futures thinking, as developed and applied for the past 50 years by the Institute for the Future, a Silicon-Valley-based research and learning group founded in 1968. In this course, you’ll build your understanding of what futures thinking is and what you can do with it. You’ll master essential foresight techniques. You’ll meet some professional futurists. And you’ll choose one or more future topics you want to investigate with your new foresight skills. This course is for anyone who wants to spot opportunities for innovation and invention faster. You can gain the skills and confidence to help YOU become someone who makes the future, instead of letting the future happen to you. Many thanks to the Enlight Foundation and the Enlight Collaborative, which provided a grant to support the creation of this course.

Module details

The adventure begins! This week, you'll meet some professional futurists and learn: What is futures thinking? What are the benefits of futures thinking? Who hires futurists, and where can you put your new skills to use? By the end of this week, you'll be ready to choose your own future topics to explore throughout the rest of this course.

What's included

9 videos8 readings3 assignments1 peer review2 discussion prompts

9 videosTotal 42 minutes

Are you ready to learn how to think like a futurist?4 minutes
Welcome to the course! Meet your professor Jane McGonigal3 minutes
Give me some examples of futures thinking!3 minutes
Meet some professional futurists2 minutes
What is futures thinking?5 minutes
Mini-Masterclass: The Future Belongs to Everyone8 minutes
When does the future start?6 minutes
What are the benefits of futures thinking?7 minutes
Choose your own future!3 minutes

8 readingsTotal 83 minutes

Take our 2-minute survey about the future2 minutes
What is Futures Thinking?10 minutes
Who Hires Futurists?5 minutes
Important notice for Ready, Set, Future learners1 minute
How to think like a futurist: The 5 key principles15 minutes
Why Companies Work With Futurists15 minutes
Who Owns Your Future?15 minutes
Six Possible Futures of Food20 minutes

3 assignmentsTotal 25 minutes

What is futures thinking?10 minutes
When does the future start?5 minutes
What are the seven benefits of futures thinking?10 minutes

1 peer reviewTotal 20 minutes

Choose your own future20 minutes

2 discussion promptsTotal 20 minutes

Introduce yourself!10 minutes
Future of Food10 minutes

This week, you'll learn how to collect and work with signals of change. Signals are the most important "raw material" of futures thinking. First, we'll show you some of our favorite signals and how we found them. Then, it's your turn: Collect and analyze signals related to your own future topic.

What's included

7 videos2 readings2 assignments1 peer review1 discussion prompt

7 videosTotal 43 minutes

Introduction to Signals7 minutes
Examples of Signals10 minutes
Five Minutes in the Future of Food5 minutes
Five Minutes in the Future of Economic Justice6 minutes
How to Interpret Signals7 minutes
Your Turn! Analyze a Signal3 minutes
Where do you look for signals? And other FAQ6 minutes

2 readingsTotal 40 minutes

Future of Work in 2030 - Signals Report30 minutes
More Examples of Signals of Change10 minutes

2 assignmentsTotal 15 minutes

What's a signal of change?5 minutes
Future of Work - Signals of Change10 minutes

1 peer reviewTotal 60 minutes

Collect and analyze a signal!60 minutes

1 discussion promptTotal 15 minutes

Your turn to analyze a signal!15 minutes

It's time to strengthen your futures thinking skills by thinking about the past. It sounds strange, but to be a good futurist, you have to be a good historian as well! This week, you'll learn how to use our most powerful tool for "looking back to look forward."

What's included

3 videos4 readings1 assignment1 peer review1 discussion prompt

3 videosTotal 17 minutes

Get Better at Noticing Change5 minutes
How to Look Back to Look Forward (Part I)3 minutes
How to Look Back to Look Forward (Part II)9 minutes

4 readingsTotal 50 minutes

Excerpt: Hope in the Dark10 minutes
TOOL: Look Back to Look Forward15 minutes
The Future of Work is Task-Based, not Time-Based10 minutes
Who Invented Futures Thinking and Why?15 minutes

1 assignmentTotal 5 minutes

Who invented futures thinking, and why?5 minutes

1 peer reviewTotal 60 minutes

Look back at your future topic.60 minutes

1 discussion promptTotal 10 minutes

How have YOU changed over the past 10 years?10 minutes

This week, you'll learn: What are the four different types of futures thinking, and when should you use each type? You'll also try out a fun futures thinking tool: the "Future Four-Square" game. This tool will help you dig deeper on your own future topic.... whatever you're interested in exploring the future of! Finally, get ready to help a friend or colleague think about the future. After all, the best way to learn something new is to teach someone else!

What's included

7 videos4 readings2 assignments1 peer review2 discussion prompts

7 videosTotal 29 minutes

What's Your Future State of Mind?6 minutes
The Four Types of Futures Thinking9 minutes
Why I Future with Youth3 minutes
Why I Future with Musicians3 minutes
Why I Future with Incarcerated People3 minutes
Why I Future with My City3 minutes
Congratulations! You've finished this course1 minute

4 readingsTotal 52 minutes

The Future as a Way of Life10 minutes
A Guide to The Four Types of Futures Thinking10 minutes
How Professional Futurists Imagine the Future30 minutes
An invitation to join our free Alumni Network2 minutes

2 assignmentsTotal 20 minutes

Can you identify the four types of futures thinking?10 minutes
Why do people use futures thinking in their work?10 minutes

1 peer reviewTotal 60 minutes

Help someone find their future!60 minutes

2 discussion promptsTotal 25 minutes

Share your results from the four-square game!10 minutes
What's your biggest "a ha" moment from this course?15 minutes

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Instructor

Instructor ratings

(512 ratings)

Jane McGonigal

Institute for the Future

6 Courses79,334 learners

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Institute for the Future

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5 stars
88.15%
4 stars
9.14%
3 stars
1.34%
2 stars
0.67%
1 star
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Reviewed on Dec 9, 2019

Completely worth the time and content. It helps you to explore future possibilities with a better framework and science coming directly from practitioners in the field.

Reviewed on May 16, 2020

Excellent overview of foresight studies. Nothing in any of the follow-on courses is technically hard, but I suspect putting it into practice is a bit like the game of Go: the rules are the easy part.

Reviewed on Feb 20, 2021

Thinking systematically about the future it's a skill that is really required in the time being. The curriculum of this course applies to every discipline. I highly recommend this course.

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