October 24, 2007

Book Review - FutureThink

FutureThink: How to Think Clearly in a Time of Change
Edie Weiner and Arnold Brown
HD 58.8 .W45 2006

This is a book about mental discipline. Weiner and Brown present 16 techniques that can be used to open your mind, consider new possibilities, and become better aware of what is going on around you. These techniques are divided into four broad categories. First, they offer several ways of overcoming individual biases, blocks and traps. Second, they suggest ways of moving beyond institutional biases and resistance to change. Third, they encourage looking at the big picture. Fourth, they reinforce the need to use imagination and non-traditional thinking to think outside the box. Each technique is supported by multiple examples of how it can be used in real life situations. The authors also reference a tremendous amount of scholarly, popular, and news material to support their suggestions and help the readers further expand their thinking.