A guide for both everyday readers and policymakers on using creativity and knowledge to imagine the best, prepare for the worst and live with surprise.

Widespread pessimism and fear of the future are everywhere. With times to come often seeming threatening and uncertain, this book offers new perspectives and fresh ways of thinking. Futurologist Florence Gaub shows that everyone can influence what lies ahead--in their personal or professional life, or in society. Her ideas are for those who refuse to be paralysed by fear, instead seeing the future as a space full of possibilities.

Gaub explores how humanity's visions of tomorrow have changed throughout history; she explains what the future is, how it works, what disruptions may arise and how to fix them. She draws on insights from neuroscience, psychology and philosophy to show how humans conceive and construct the future, as individuals and as a society.

A bestseller in Germany, this smart, snappy handbook of ideas is an antidote to passive fatalism. It challenges our lack of faith in our own ability to shape what is to come, or how it will affect our lives. After all, we're the only beings who can imagine the future in such detail that we can actually create it. Gaub is a brilliant guide to rediscovering that gift.

‘Finally! A strategic foresight manual that doesn’t require top secret clearance. Florence Gaub fights uncertainty and she’s winning.’

'Climate change, war, inflation: It's not easy to believe in a bright future right now. Political scientist and futurologist Florence Gaub explains why we nevertheless have every reason to do so and how we can gain more confidence in our own lives.'

‘There are many serious papers and weighty books on the future; this is something rarer. Beautifully written, elegant and accessible, The Future democratises futures thinking and makes it genuinely engaging for everyone. Fun, international and rich with examples and provocations, it invites readers to interact, reflect and challenge themselves. Both pragmatic and practical, it builds a vital capability for our times—leaving you not just informed, but changed.’

‘Caesar, Napoleon and Patton were all renowned for anticipating risks and opportunities and then exploiting what they believed would happen, well ahead of their adversaries. Napoleon said this was not because of his genius but because he had considered the possibilities and so was ready to act when the time came. Florence Gaub’s excellent “user’s guide” to the future may not make the reader a “Napoleon”, but it will definitely help them become more effective at strategic foresight, at anticipating risks and opportunities, and exploiting them in domains of the future.’

'This woman, who is familiar with crises, believes we have every reason to be optimistic. Like Kant, she is someone who not only wants to empower us, but also truly encourages us not to endure or suffer this/our future, but to shape it. Her book is a call to optimistic thinking and living. Required reading, therefore, for all grumblers and also for many politicians and media professionals with their tendency toward negativity.'

Florence Gaub PhD is a political scientist, military strategist and futurologist. The NATO Defense College’s Director of Research, a World Economic Forum Global Future Council member, and former vice-president of the European Forum Alpbach, she holds degrees from Humboldt University, Sciences Po, the Sorbonne and the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich.