HOW TO LIVE FUTURE READY

“This book…allows dreamers to become doers in shaping the futures they wish to inhabit.”

Daniel H. Pink
New York Times bestselling author of "Drive" and "The Power of Regret"

“What’s Next Is Now changes your thinking about tomorrow…and helps you build a compelling future.”

Amy C. Edmondson
Novartis Professor of Leadership at Harvard Business School and author of "Right Kind of Wrong: The Science of Failing Well"

“This book…allows dreamers to become doers in shaping the futures they wish to inhabit.”

Daniel H. Pink
New York Times bestselling author of "Drive" and "The Power of Regret"

“What’s Next Is Now changes your thinking about tomorrow…and helps you build a compelling future.”

Amy C. Edmondson
Novartis Professor of Leadership at Harvard Business School and author of "Right Kind of Wrong: The Science of Failing Well"

Preparing for the future isn’t about predicting what’s to come. It’s about cultivating the mindstate to navigate and shape what lies ahead. What’s Next Is Now reveals how to transform uncertainty into opportunity and empowers you to create your future.

Advance praise

“Inspiring, practical, and timely, this is a book to share.”

Seth Godin, author of “The Song of Significance”

“What’s Next Is Now inspires us to work with others to shape the lives and livelihoods we all deserve and co-create a vibrant and inclusive future.”

Linda A. Hill, Harvard Business School professor and co-author of Collective Genius: The Art and Practice of Leading Innovation

“A transformative guide to grasping opportunities and crafting the future you envision.”

Sebastian Thrun, Stanford University professor and founder of Udacity, Waymo, and Google X

“A call to action for anyone who wants to invent the life they dream to live.”

Tina Seelig, PhD, author of What I Wish I Knew When I Was 20 and Creativity Rules

“These insights will transform not just how you look at work, but how you look at everything.”

Robert J. Waldinger, Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School; co-author of “The Good Life”

“This book is a masterful guide for anyone looking to navigate the complexities of the modern world.”

Esther Wojcicki, educator and author of “How to Raise Successful People and Moonshots in Education”

“You owe it to yourself to dive in.”

Tim Brown, Chair of IDEO and author of “Change by Design”

“A manifesto for innovators and a must-read for anyone eager to transform their now into an extraordinary tomorrow.”

Whitney Johnson, bestselling author of “Disrupt Yourself and Smart Growth”

Get the essence

Renowned thought leader and Google’s first Chief Innovation Evangelist Frederik Pferdt introduces a forward-thinking mindstate that will help you navigate ambiguity and uncertainty with intention, transform problems and challenges into profound opportunities, and create the future you want to see.

Discover the essence of the book in five ways:

Your mindstate is the perspective you have in any given moment that encompasses your current thoughts, feelings, and focus and determines how you experience the present. It perceptually and cognitively influences the choices you make about how you act or react. In the same way your pupils get bigger or smaller to adapt to the amount of light around you, your mindstate fluctuates based on the content and context of the moment.

When your head is in the right place, you can be ready for whatever happens next. This is the future-ready mindstate. Tuned up in the key dimensions of the future-ready mindstate—radical optimism, unreserved openness, compulsive curiosity, perpetual experimentation, and expansive empathy—you put yourself right where you want to be, poised and eager to take on anything that comes your way. Together, the dimensions of the future-ready mindstate form a way of looking at the world that reveals the opportunity all around you and influences the choices you make that comprise the future you create for yourself.

Compulsive curiosity turns you into a native in the land of the unknown. It gets you caught up in mystery and wonder exploring roads you’ve never taken. Each discovery makes you bolder and more inquisitive and creates pathways to opportunity that didn’t exist before.

“In order to have the new experiences I knew would take me toward the life I wanted to live, I had to let go of stuff that I was holding too tightly. To be curious is to take leaps and plunges that can be a shock to the system, but that also reveal all the opportunities and possibilities that shape a path of purpose.” –Newton Cheng

Sometimes getting to the best answer requires you to be curious enough to ask a rogue question. First look at the problem you’re trying to solve. Say you’re getting anxious because sales of your top product have been flat for months. You’ve been pestering your team with the question “How can we increase sales?” They keep answering with the usual responses—marketing, advertising, consumer research, etc.

The discussion that follows the upside-down question will be lively and illuminating. It will point to issues you hadn’t considered and ultimately to the answers you’re looking for along with some others you weren’t looking for at all.

Make a square frame with your fingers.

Look through this frame panning to the left then to the right.

Look above you. Now look down. Zoom in and out.

Do you see something different(ly)?
dO YOU SEE the opportunity
aLL AROUND YOU?
dO YOU SEE the opportunity
aLL AROUND YOU?
What’s in the book
CHAPTER 1
The Future and You
CHAPTER 2
Radical Optimism
CHAPTER 3
Unreserved Openness
CHAPTER 4
Compulsive Curiosity
CHAPTER 5
Perpetual Experimentation
CHAPTER 6
Expansive Empathy
CHAPTER 7
Your Dimension X
CHAPTER 8
A Day in the Life of Future-Ready You

Get access now

Order your copy of What’s Next Is Now and you’ll receive an invitation to a live, intimate, virtual FUTURE READY MEETUP in September 2024 with Frederik and the “Future Readies” featured in the book. This unique opportunity allows you to listen to transformative stories, ask questions and gain valuable insights on how to craft your future.

As an added bonus, you'll receive a downloadable PDF of a MINDSTATE PRACTICE, an engaging exercise that opens your eyes to the possibilities around you. Don't miss out on this chance to shape your future with us!

Embark on your journey with these steps:

Order your copy

Visit online retailers such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, or Bookshop.org to order What’s Next Is Now.

1
Receive MINDSTATE-PRACTICE

Send me an email at iam@future-ready.me and I’ll send you a downloadable MINDSTATE PRACTICE and an invitation to the FUTURE READY MEETUP in September 2024.

2

Others say

More praise for What's Next Is Now

“This book's expansive yet action-oriented outlook makes it easy to begin building a future of intention and promise today.”
Zoe Chance
Yale School of Management professor and author of "Influence Is Your Superpower: How to Get What you Want Without Compromising Who You Are"
“Pferdt suggests modifications to everyday life that anyone can make to successfully navigate the ambiguity and uncertainty of life.”
Dr. Bernard Roth
Stanford University Professor of Engineering, co-founder of Stanford’s d.School, and author of "The Achievement Habit"
“This book offers the ultimate recipe to help us live and create the life we wish for.”
Dalad Kambhu
Michelin star chef and founder and head chef of Kin Dee restaurant in Berlin, Germany
“Pferdt doesn’t merely talk about the future; he empowers you to shape it.”
Gopi Kallayil
Chief Business Strategist for AI at Google
“More than a guide, this book is an expedition towards a brighter future.”
Cyril Bouquet
co-author of "ALIEN Thinking: How to Bring Your Breakthrough Ideas to Life"
“Pferdt’s lucid writing style and contagious curiosity takes the reader on a journey that will make you wonder why you didn’t learn some of these things before.”
Peter Sims
founder of BLK SHP, Inc. and author of "Black Sheep: The Quest to Be Human in an Inhuman Time"
“This book is about changing how we think to create the world we want to live in.”
Alan Eagle
co-author of "Trillion Dollar Coach", "How Google Works", and "Learned Excellence"
“A powerful and insightful guide that offers a blend of practical wisdom and a mindful approach to achieving balance and readiness in an ever-changing landscape.”
Chip Conley
founder and CEO of the Modern Elder Academy and author of "Learning to Love Midlife" and "Wisdom @ Work"
“With practical strategies and thought-provoking insights, this book empowers readers to embrace the future with confidence and agility.”
Bobby “Boom” Beck
founder and CEO of Animation Mentor and lead animator of "Finding Nemo"

FREDERIK ON TOUR

May 15, 2024
AI Conference - Keynote and Breakout Masterclass - University of Portland - Portland, US
Tickets
Oct 13, 2024
The world's largest event for startups and investors - Dubai, UAE
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Jul 17, 2024
Shape What’s Next, Now Fotografiska, Berlin
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Nov 6, 2024
ada Lovelace Forum am Schlosspark - Ludwigsburg, GER
Tickets

Hi, I’m Frederik.

To me, the big question isn’t “What will the future bring?” It’s “What future do I want to create?” That’s because I’m thinking about the future that’s right here in front of me, not some future way off in the distance. As Google’s first Chief Innovation Evangelist, I helped to shape one of the most fabled creative cultures in the world. There I realized something important: it's not who you want to be in the future, it's how you want to be.

Every day, you have the power to decide how you perceive the world, how you respond to your experiences, and how you use your thoughts and feelings to build your path forward.  I wrote What's Next Is Now: How to Live Future Ready because I want you to start shaping your tomorrow today.

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In the NEWS

How to train your brain to embrace change.

Change can be scary, but here’s how to embrace it and make it work for you.

Logo of FastCompany
Jun 21, 2024 FastCompany

Finding Your Dimension X

Why do some people thrive, while others fall behind? As Google’s first chief innovation evangelist, I believe I found the answer: Successful people harness what I call their “Dimension X.” Here’s what it is.

Logo of Entrepreneur Magazine
Apr 18, 2024 Entrepreneur Magazine

"Estar preparado para el futuro y la innovación tiene que ver con el estado mental"

Logo of La Republica
Jun 12, 2024 La Republica

Invite Frederik to shape your future together

For media requests:

Jessica Krakoski
mail: jessica[at]jessicakrakoski.com
phone: 512-761-7085