Signals of the future are all around us.
What's a signal?
The photo above is an example. It was the first mask I saw lying as litter in my neighborhood in 2020. It made me wonder if we'd see more thrown-away masks in the future.
In futurist-speak, I wondered if this mask was a weak signal of the future.
A weak signal is:
- Any observation that is surprising, amusing, ridiculous, or annoying. Novelty can be a sign of emergence.
- Any observation that tells about change and makes sense to you, e.g. observations that convince you something is increasing or decreasing.
Learn more about signals here and here.
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Rebecca Ryan, APF
Rebecca Ryan captains the ship. Trained as a futurist and an economist, Rebecca helps clients see what's coming - as a keynote speaker, a Futures Lab facilitator, an author of books, blogs and articles, a client advisor, and the founder of Futurist Camp. Check out her blog or contact Lisa Loniello for more information.
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