In The Future You, Brian David Johnson guides from where we are to where we want to be by posing a series of questions to engage critical thinking. He calls himself a “futurist,” but there’s a lot of coaching in this book as well. A futurecasting specialist, Johnson lays out a formula for “backcasting” that focuses on both long- and short-term action-oriented strategies. And, he explains how our ability to recognize and embrace that “the future is local” has a direct bearing on our ultimate success. With an optimist’s view of the role of technology, Johnson encourages readers to consider the potential impacts of tech while facilitating a subtle shifting from a bystander mindset to one of proactive control. He provides advice for putting fear into perspective by getting specific and sitting with what haunts us – in past, present, and future terms. The reader is reminded that “plans are worthless, but planning is everything” because getting from here to there is never one and done. It’s a way of life. It’s also, apparently, like cooking. Applicable on the macro and micro level, this book is also a good reference to reread any time we know where we want to go, but we get stuck getting there.

I received a digital pre-publication copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Interesting book about planning a future told by a futurist. He shares stories of his own experiences and offers life lessons along the way.

The Future you is a timely book both in terms of new year as well as the uncertain times. You mgiht have already heard that the best way to know the future is to make it happen. Following that, the author empowers you to face your fears, dream beyond that, get specific about it and find your halfway and monday acts to your glorious future.
There are many examples of how the author' process have helped various people and organizations, to peek into their future and change it the way they envisioned. Money being all about people is profound.
I wish you all clarity about the future. I liked the way of changing your perspective of the machines taking over jobs all through the future. In most cases, it only made the pie larger.
The forces that can make your future happen reminded me of the Porter's Five forces. Loved the final comparision of the process of cooking to futurecasting which both provide much joy when you are in the drivers seat.

The need for certainty

Unfixed future

Power to change the future

This was a pretty good guide for anyone questioning their future. The author has a lot of knowledge on helping people plan for the future that they want and the book had a lot of useful advice.

The Future You by Brian David Johnson is non-fiction title that tries to help the reader stop letting the past impact their present and instead become a "futurist' by making your present self the same as your future self. To open up the book, the author explains his background and provides interesting anecdotes about his experiences. In the first chapter he writes a bit too much about his experiences and successes which can be distracting at times, but the writing is more balanced in later chapters. Within each chapter he provides "Quick Questions" which actually are not so quick for many of the questions as they probe deeper questions such as "Write the story of the future you want, or don't want". Throughout the book the author highlights the importance of recognizing you have control and your life and taking small actions in your immediate environment are pivotal to your future. Overall, this was an interesting read and I recommend this book for anyone wanting to change their present and future life and are willing to self-reflect.

Many thanks to the publisher HarperOne and Netgalley for the ARC in return for an honest review.

This book is a breath of fresh air in the self help genre. Although couched in some self-aggrandizing terminology (“futurist” is just “planner,” IMO) the author walks readers through the strategic planning process slowly and thoughtfully, with great impact. This has the potential to be a truly transformative exercise for those who are ready for it.

If you’re like most people, thinking about tomorrow makes you anxious. You may have dreams of what you want to do or where you want to be in the next few months, years, or decade, but you’re fearful because you don’t know what may await. Unfortunately, this apprehension affects how you make decisions today—the kind of decisions that will impact your life tomorrow.

Acclaimed futurist Brian David Johnson has spent a quarter century helping governments, Fortune 500 corporations, and other organizations chart successful paths forward by showing them what the world will soon look like. Now, he uses his prognosticator’s skill to help you be your best self—to help you see the future, and your place in it, in a new light.

Johnson’s method isn’t magic and doesn’t rely on a crystal ball. It’s grounded in science and highly practical. In Future You, he lays out a series of pragmatic steps to help you better understand the present and to actually envision your tomorrow. In this groundbreaking, eye-opening guide, he makes clear that you’re responsible for creating the future you want—and you have the power to do it.