Rohit Bhargava predicts 10 megatrends in new book
New Delhi: A new book features 10 new megatrend predictions that can shape the world in the coming decade by transforming how people work, play and live.
For the past 10 years, innovation and marketing expert Rohit Bhargava has come out with annual Non-Obvious Trend Report for readers to discover more than 100 trends changing our culture.
Now for the first time, he and his team of Non-Obvious trend curators reveal these 10 new megatrends in a completely revised 10th anniversary edition of "Non-Obvious Megatrends", published by Ideapress Publishing and distributed by Penguin India.
How might the evolution of gender fluid toys change our culture? What can the popularity of handmade umbrellas and board games teach us about the future of business? Why do robot therapists and holographic celebrities actually demonstrate the importance of humanity?
"The answers to these questions may not be all that obvious, and that's exactly the point," a statement by Penguin India said.
The new book also offers an unprecedented look behind the scenes at the author's signature Haystack Method for identifying trends, and how one can learn to curate and predict trends for themselves.
Curating trends, according to the author, is certainly about seeing what others miss.
"But it's also about developing a mindset of curiosity and thoughtfulness. It's about moving from being a speed reader to being a 'speed understander', as Isaac Asimov wrote," he says.
"The future will belong to these non-obvious thinkers who use their powers of observation to see connections between industries, ideas, and behaviours and curate them into a deeper understanding of the accelerating present.
"Can non-obvious thinking save us from an asteroid 867 years from now? I hope so. But more immediately, embracing this way of thinking can change the way we approach our lives and our businesses today. Preparing for the future starts with filtering out the noise and getting better at understanding the present - as it always has," he writes.
One of the goals of this book, Bhargava says, is to challenge lazy or obvious ways of thinking that are, sadly, no more useful than these hyperbolic futuristic predictions.
"In fact, seeing the world in a narrow or one-dimensional way is even more damaging than a doomsday prophecy, because it often leads to people make flawed decisions today - not just spread empty dread for our distant future," the book says.
"This book intentionally doesn't offer geopolitical arguments for why Denmark is going to become the world's next superpower by 2050 thanks to wind energy production, or sexy guesses about how self-driving, flying cars might enable virtual-reality tourism during daily commutes.
"These kinds of predictions are fun to write and read. Some might even come true. But most are cloaked in uncertainty. Predicting our future should involve far less guesswork," it says.
"The benefits of learning to be a non-obvious thinker go far beyond just being able to identify trends. Seeing the non-obvious makes you more open minded to change and can help you disrupt instead of getting disrupted," he says.
"Non-obvious thinking can make you the most creative person in any room, no matter what your business card says and help solve your biggest problems. Most importantly, non-obvious thinking can help you anticipate, predict and win the future," he writes.
"Ultimately the biggest lesson may be that you don't need to be a speed reader to win the future. Being a speed understander is a far worthier aspiration," he suggests.
