Five Key Leadership Mindset to Embrace the Future

The world of the future will demand capacities that, until now, have been mere options. Have you begun developing those capacities-- in yourself and others?

WE LIVE IN A TIME OF VAST changes that include accelerating globalization, mounting quantities of information, the growing hegemony of science and technology, and the clash of civilizations. Those changes call for new ways of learning and thinking in school, business, and the professions. In the Five Minds for the Future, noted psychologist Howard Gardner defines the cognitive abilities that will command a premium in the years ahead:

The disciplinary mind - Mastery of major schools of thought (including science, mathematics, and history) and of at least one professional craft

The synthesizing mind - Ability to integrate ideas from different disciplines or spheres into a coherent whole and to communicate that integration to others

The creating mind - Capacity to uncover and clarify new problems, questions, and phenomena

The respectful mind - Awareness of and appreciation for differences among human beings

The ethical mind - Fulfillment of one's responsibilities as a worker and a citizen

Armed with these well-honed capacities, a person will be equipped to deal with what is expected in the future - as well as what cannot be anticipated. Without these "minds," individuals will be at the mercy of forces they can't understand overwhelmed by information, unable to succeed in the workplace, and incapable of making judicious decisions about personal and professional matters.