Get your leadership future-ready.
Ten minutes a week is all it takes to get started.
Three things are certain about the future: it's complex, it's unpredictable, and it needs great leaders.
Every week, we help leaders like you start thinking about the near future not in vague trends or speculative stats but through relatable products and services your organisation or industry could be working on or catching up to in the next few years.
Build up your confidence and resilience for the increasingly unknown tomorrow, one short story at a time.
Leaders like you get the most value out of Practical Futures by using it for:
Guided Self Reflection
Read the story.
Use the first set of prompts to anchor products and services from the story in the context of your personal life experiences.
Switch to your professional context.
Use the second set of prompts to train strategic imagination in the context of the industry, organisation, team or product you are working with.
Turn the story into a mock interview if you need more variety or increased stakes.
Leadership Positions Interview Training
Dive into the story.
Use the first set of prompts to anchor products and services from the story in the context of your personal life experiences.
Use the second set of prompts as questions on a leadership position interview.
Back up each answer with examples of your real experience to demonstrate the value you bring to the company.
Record yourself to train confidence and calmness and evaluate content and delivery.
Speaking of recording.
No matter which mode you choose, remember to record the most promising ideas or realisations you come up with, which will lead us to the next use case.
Journalling
Write down the title or save the link to the story.
Read the story.
Write down your answers to personal prompts.
Switch to your professional context and answer the professional prompts.
Compare your notes with previous weeks to see how (and if) your answers to professional and personal prompts have evolved over time.
If you’re a visual thinker, consider taking the note-taking process to another level that will bring even more clarity to your career goals and more resolution to your insights.
Career Vision Board
Look at your career goals.
Dive into the story.
Use the first set of prompts to anchor products and services from the story in the context of your personal life experiences.
Switch to your professional context and reflect on whether your answers bring you closer to the leader you want to become.
Update your board with new ideas.
If you’re afraid that thinking alone means thinking with a single brain, you probably prefer using someone as a sounding board.
Use Practical Futures as a structure for regular conversations with someone special to your career, like a business partner, accountability buddy, career coach, or mentor.
Structured Conversations
Read the story.
Take turns using the first set of prompts to anchor products and services from the story in the context of your personal life experiences. Comment and build on top of each other’s answers.
Switch to your professional context and discuss how your answers are aligned with your current career goals.
For best results and faster progress, combine Practical Futures with things you already enjoy (like a favourite drink, playlist, workout, or particular time of day) or enhance something you already practice (e.g., meditation, journaling, or exercise).
Looking for ideas on how to use Practical Futures with your team?
