Non-Obvious: How to Think Different, Curate Ideas & Predict The Future

A non-obvious trend is a unique curated observation of the accelerating present.

As marketing becomes broader than just promotion, leaders and organizations abandon traditional silos, embrace content marketing and invest in the customer experience.

The 5 Habits of Trend Curators BEING CURIOUS – always wanting to know why and always seeking to learn more about the world and improve your knowledge by investigating and asking questions. BEING OBSERVANT – learning to see the small details in stories and activities that others may ignore or fail to recognize as significant. BEING FICKLE – moving f

For his part, Naisbitt believed deeply in the power of observation to understand the present before trying to predict the future

Naming Questions - How to Ensure You Have an Effective Trend Name ... Is the name not widely used or already well understood? Is it relatively simple to say out loud in conversation? Does it make sense without too much additional explanation? Could you imagine it as the title of a book? Are you using words that are unique and not overused or cliché

here: Being curious means asking questions about why things work the way they do, and embracing unfamiliar situations or topics with a sense of wonder. Being observant means training yourself to see the details that most others often miss. Being fickle means capturing ideas without feeling the need to fully understand or analyze them in that moment

Let’s look at each of these three elements in detail. Idea – Great trend ideas are unique descriptions of a shift in culture, business or behavior in a concise enough way to be meaningful without being over simplified. Impact – A trend has impact when it causes people to start changing behavior, or companies to adapt what they are selling

Elevating Questions - How To Think Bigger About Ideas What interests me most about these ideas? What elements could I have missed earlier? What is below the surface? What is the bigger picture? Where is the connection between ideas?

The Haystack Method describes a process where you first focus on gathering stories and ideas (the hay) and then using them to define a trend (the needle) that gives meaning to them all collectively.

Idea Sources - Where to Get Ideas Personal conversations at events or meetings (ask lots of questions) Listening to live speakers or TED Talks (write down memorable quotes) Entertainment (TV shows and movies that actually make you think) Books (Nonfiction and fiction) Museums (the more obscure the better!) Magazines and newspapers (as unexpected or