Expand Perspective for Better Foresight

In foresight we often talk about the keyhole view; a narrow view shaped by our roles, routines, and experiences. To build better foresight, we need to widen our view by asking different questions. We also need to examine in more interesting and unconventional ways.

This can be hard! Examples help. Our favorite example to illustrate this is Paulo Coelho’s exploration of a tie in his book Veronika Decides to Die:

“You see this thing I’ve got round my neck...An answer a perfectly normal person would give: it’s a tie! A madman, however, would say that what I have round my neck is a ridiculous, useless bit of coloured cloth tied in a very complicated way, and which makes it harder to get air into your lungs and difficult to turn your neck.”

This is a great illustration of an unorthodox perspective that points out assumptions we’ve made based on cultural or societal norms. Inquiry like this is often referred to as “thinking like an alien”.

Here are four questions to ask yourself that will help broaden your view and look at the world in new and expanded ways, maybe even like an alien:

• What feels obvious or unquestionable here? 

• What would someone from a very different background or context say about this?

• What habits, systems, or narratives have “always been this way”?

• Who or what is missing from this picture?

Remember, taking time to focus on new ways of seeing and thinking will produce better foresight outcomes.