Future Edge: Discovering the New Paradigms of Success
Author: Joel Arthur Barker
List Price: $25.00
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ISBN: 0688109365
Publisher: William Morrow (January, 1992)
Sales Rank: 145,602
Average Customer Rating: 4.8 out of 5
Customer Reviews
Rating: 5 out of 5
Paradigms: Who, What, Where, When and Why
Have you ever had an unconscious thought that could possibly change the world? Well, this is one book you won't want to miss. Barker's knowledge about paradigms will definitely assist with transforming your, "big ideas" from thoughts to reality. "Future Edge" can take any organization through a successful reformation. For instance, being an administrator in a rather large urban school district with magnet schools being the "heart" of racial integration, paradigm shifts are an on-going necessity. Barker's book has truly answered the five "W's" of paradigms.
WHO: The "Paradigm Shifters" have the big idea, however, the "Paradigm Pioneers" are the individuals who have the courage, faith and "intuitive judgment" to ensure a successful paradigm shift. Segregated schools are simply not right, and as pioneers, integrating our school is a vision that is "not an act of the head, but an act of the heart."
WHAT: What "set of rules or boundaries," or simply stated by Barker, paradigms, are in need of a facelift in your organization? Federal mandates stated that busing can no longer be the means of integration, however, our schools must reflect our world today; diverse. This mandated created a sense of urgency (Kotter) in the change process.
WHERE: "To not quest for excellence might be considered sacrilege." Raising the expectation of what success is in your organization will inevitably create a need for a paradigm shift. Current enrollment is 92% African-American, 2% Hispanic, and 6% Caucasian. Yes, this is 130% better then years previous, yet it should not be considered as integrated. The where is most likely within your organization as well!
WHEN: "Paradigm Paralysis" is what an organization will face if there is no "paradigm pioneer" to lead the conscious thought to real life. "A leader is a person you would follow to a place you wouldn't go yourself."
WHY: In conclusion, if you read this review and are highly curious as to the paradigm shift that must take place to integrate the school that I work in, then Barker has definitely fulfilled his mission of taking an individual through the process of "Discovering the New Paradigms of Success."
Rating: 4 out of 5
Helpful framework but lots of missed forecasts
To its credit, ten years after this book was first published, it remains a commendable work of business futurism. One significant exception to this assessment comes from the poor record of Barker's identification of existing and coming trends for the 1990s. By now, we can see the weakness of "gambling instead of taxes", "national health care" (surely the result of Barker himself falling into a paradigm trap), "solar, hydrogen, fission" (at least ten years too early), "time taxes", "virtual reality", and others that didn't make it very far. Barker, however, is not a prophet but a guide to a more expansive way of thinking about the present and the future. Barker brings philosopher Thomas Kuhn's work on paradigms into focus with clear applications to business and any form of strategic thinking. Definitely merits a quick read by anyone interested in thinking more effectively about the future.
Rating: 5 out of 5
If you want to explore your future, read this book!
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. They are the real gems of the book. Actually, this book is a sort of brief update of the author's earlier book, entitled Discovering the Business of Paradigms in the mid-80s. 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 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! Similar Products
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Book Index