Rating: 
Summary: Quo Vadis?
Review: Since it was first published, this book has become a "must read" for those who are struggling to understand what is happening and, more to the point, what will probably be happening in the global marketplace. Drucker has suggested that one of the greatest challenges for any organization is to manage the consequences and implications of a future which has already occurred. I agree. However, I also agree with Barker that it is possible to recognize what he calls a "paradigm shift": a major change of the rules and regulations that establish or define boundaries, a change which suggests that new behavior will be required within those redefined boundaries.One of the most important concepts in the book is what Barker calls "paradigm pliancy": "the purposeful seeking out of new ways of doing things. It is an active behavior in which you challenge your paradigms [ie the status quo, assumptions and premises] by asking the Paradigm Shift Question: What do I believe is impossible to do in my field, but if it could be done, would fundamentally change my business?" Have you asked this question? Do you realize that one or more of your competitors may have already asked that question? Although the book's subtitle is "The Business of Discovering the Future", the fact remains that (back to Drucker) the challenge is to identity and then measure the degree of probability of various contingencies...many of which may have already occurred or are now in process. Barker asserts that every organization must anticipate and then innovate to achieve excellence in an age during which change is the only constant. He suggests that there are five components to "strategic exploration": Understanding influences which shape our perceptions, divergent thinking which enables us to consider more than "one right answer", convergent thinking which enables us to integrate data while prioritizing choices, mapping which reveals pathways from the present to the future, and finally, imaging which (with words or drawings or models) documents what is learned during the process of exploration. This is a business "classic" which will continue to be relevant so long as leaders of organizations remain hostage to assumptions and premises which are either already obsolete now or will soon become so. What about yours?
Rating: 
Summary: Waste of Time
Review: This book is so basic and so poorly written I threw it out after I read it. This book could not even be a required text at an elementary school! If you want to learn about paradigms read Steven Covey's Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. If you want to stay warm in the winter throw this book into the fire.
Rating: 
Summary: About aGreat Book: A very good concept but too many examples
Review: This is a great book from a very knowlegdeable author. Joel really knows his topic and his way to bring it across is marvelous. This book is easy to read, it is fun to read and the content makes a difference in my life.
On the downside are the many examples. After several of them you spot easily the punch line. So this gets a bit boring.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent guide for enhancing your strategic exploration!
Review: This is actually the paperback version of "Future Edge: Discovering the New Paradigms of Success," by the same author. In fact, both books are sort of brief updates of the author's earlier book, entitled "Discovering the Business of Paradigms," written in the mid-80s.
Drawing essentially from the pioneering work of Thomas Kuhn, who wrote the classic, The Theory of Scientific Revolutions, in the 70's, this author has very artfully expounded the concept of paradigm shifting in the world of business, in contrast to the world of science. From a strategic exploration viewpoint, this is an excellent guide book.
Understanding - and mastering - your paradigms is one important thing for making progress in life and in business, but I personaly feel that the real essence of this book is succinctly captured by the author in the five strategic exploration tools outlined in the book. The five tools are intended to help you to enhance your anticipation skills. They are! the real gems of the book.
I would recommend readers to buy and read this book jointly with Wayne Burkan's Wide-Angle Vision. Wayne Burkan has been a collaborator of Joel Barker, and he introduces some more new and practical ideas to the paradigm phenomenon.
Better still, view also and learn more from the videos (in which both authors are the lead facilitators), The Paradigm Prism and The Implications Wheel, which bring the whole paradigm concept to life and which showcase some more real-world business examples.
If you want to explore your future, read this book! As the author puts it, before you can create your future, you must first explore it. You must create and shape your future, otherwise some one else will! One of the very few books that have impacted my life design in the second half.
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