The One Trait All Great Tech Futurists Share

A breakdown of thinking about thinking for Technology Futures

Photo by Joshua Sortino on Unsplash

There is one trait, in my opinion, all great Tech Futurists share. This one trait is layered thinking. While layered thinking is not the only trait or skill, I contend it is the most important. Don’t worry though, if you don’t think in layers, you can build this type of thinking through practice. If you naturally think in layers, you can hone such thinking into a sharp Technology Futures mindset. Both are possible if we practice thinking in the core 4 layers.

Let’s explore!

I’ll begin by asserting that layered thinking is an intrinsic part of cognition. This type of thinking is the superhighway on which thoughts enter and exit our awareness. I suggest layered thinking fundamentally involves processing a topic or problem into multiple layers or levels of depth. Each layer represents a different dimension or perspective of the topic, from its surface-level aspects to its deeper, more intricate details. Notably, all layers exist and must exist for the topic or problem to be instantiated as a thought.

I contend layered thinking represents a comprehensive understanding of complex issues. I recognize it is not the only means to do so but I think layered thinking uniquely addresses them from…