Future Books

Great book - I studied with Galen and he is a great guy and the world expert on cash-futures basis. Well worth the price and a place in your library!

After reading the Doctors masterpiece three times, i had enough of his theta gamma explanations. I am an avid reader who greatly enjoyed the Doctor's complicated explanations. I totally agree with Elvis. Great work again doctor

After reading the Doctors masterpiece three times, i had enough of his theta gamma explanations. I am an avid reader who greatly enjoyed the Doctor's complicated explanations. I totally agree with Elvis. Great work again doctor

I've been working in Futures & Options research for 3 years now, and this has proven to be the best refernce guide available. Terrence elucidates the concepts and mechanisms underlying the treasury bond basis with eloquence and intellect. His other work, Eurodollar Futures and Options, is also a great reference for the shorter end of the curve.

This is simply the only truly readable and authoritative book on its subject. Terry Belton is acknowledged as being the foremost authority on futures research, and this book bears it out. If you're thinking about basis trading, or work in the derivatives market, this book is well worth a look.

(I should also mention that Terry is my boss..doesn't stop it being a good book, though. Hope I get that raise!)

Michael H. Hart gives his unique view of what the world might be like in the year 3000. This book is well written and quite imaginative. You will enjoy reading this title.

Educational, thought provoking and thoroughly entertaining. This is a book for all tastes. The non-fiction entries give us interesting and informative profiles of the men and women who have or are shaping our world. The other entries, speculating on the major events of the 21st century and character types behind those events, are as entertaining as they are intellectually facinating and plausible. This is a carefully thought out and well written work whose chapters can be reread and enjoyed in any order. It's a keeper that you don't want to miss.

An interesting read. I wouldn't agree with some of the predicted technological developements (an easy sex change? - a little too PC) but I still enjoyed the exercise. The 'real' entries were a good review of history. I actually learned a little Chinese history too - enough to make me want to learn more.

Dr. Hart presents a unique vision of the future. However, he expects nothing wonderous from artificial intelligence (it is legally banned) and rather little from computers in general. In his world of the future, virtual reality is also banned, but sex change operations flourish--with most people undergoing multiple operations in their lifetime.

The system of education, too, is curious. First, it must be truly important, because all of his new entries in this book (I think there are fifty five in all) have attended university for a long time. Today, highly educated people attend universities for years after high school, but in the distant days of the future fantastic described by Dr. Hart, it often takes them decades to do so--obviously this arrangement may be more appealing to academics than the population in general. This protracted schooling takes place despite the fact that direct downloading of information from computers into the brain is possible in that world of the day after tomorrow. Explanation for this paradox: downloading of information provides only the knowledge of facts, but no "understanding." One wonders how perfect brainwashing (another idea that Hart describes as almost imminent) can be real when "downloading" can do no more than supply the human brain with facts. Also, people generally work between 20 and 60 years before they retire; in fact, his most influential people after the year 2000 go to school for almost as long as they work afterwards--then they either live in perpetual retirement, or perish in some accident (although there is at least one suicide). This vision of the future of long schooling, important intellectual work, and endless retirement is the academic's utopia.

One striking feature of Hart's predicitions is that almost everybody who is among the most influential after the twnety-first century comes either from Asia or Africa. As far as I am able to tell, nobody among the most influential people born after the twenty-first century comes from Western Europe. Few of the influential people are people are born outside the earth--mostly in sun-orbiting colonies.

I think in some sense Dr. Hart's view of the year 3000 is too conservative. By 3000, I expect contact with other civilizations in outer space. (While Dr. Hart states very explicitly his view that life is very rare or nonexistent outside the earth, at least in our galaxy.) I also expect cyborgs, genetically engineered creatures of all kinds, virtually real worlds, and very advanced artificial intelligence, whose knowledge and understanding will surpass by far anything a human being can attain.

Having said all that, no one can rule out the possibility that mankind will destroy itself before the fantastic world of 3000 is reached--the world is precarious place to inhabit.

Michael Hart's brilliant imagination takes the reader on a tour de force of history from the great religious, political and scientific leaders of the past to the imagined ones of the future. See how Jesus, Moses, and Mohammed compare with Hitler, Stalin and those yet to come in influence (whether good or bad, history is the judge). Or Newton, Darwin, and Einstein, with the biotechnologists of the 21st century. Fantastic entertainment and erudition. I enjoyed every moment.

Excellent Book... I didn't have the oppertunity to read any of Bruce Moen's book before attending one of his workshops.. Btw his workshops are excellent.. Bruce is very effective in his presentation of the material and the tools. Awesome experience... Bruce is a wonderful down to earth regular kind a guy. He is warm and attentive and the process for exploring is really simple to experience...

This book is the second in Bruce Moen's "Exploring the Afterlife" series. It is just as interesting and important as all the volumes in this series.Start with book one if you haven't read any. If you are looking for some answers about what the after life is all about, these are your books. I work as a psychic, often helping people to cross into the light and know that there are many books out there filled with nonsense. These books are on a high level, and I recommend them to my clients. The world is ready for this information.

This book nicely expands on Mr. Moen's first book providing more information about his techniques and his own development. People who read his first book should definitely read this one too. But Mr. Moen did not learn about the pitfalls of publishing from his mentor Bob Monroe.

Bob's first book described his experiences of out of body explorations and his conclusions of what was happening. His second book was published twelve years after his first and refuted most of his original conclusions. Time and experience, provided him with lessons and perspective to see what was real and what was projection. Imagine the novice Jedi Knight, Luke Skywalker, writing a book on Jedi training before he met Yoda. It would be a great book with relevant information but not a complete revelation of the skills and world of the Jedi. And like Luke, Mr. Moen's mentor died before he could complete his training.

Mr. Moen has exercised tremendous courage and skill writting three books in three years about a skill he has only been doing for six years. The result is some excellent books, with a lot of heart, that outline the possiblities availalbe to anyone who desires to explore. These books can serve the explorer well, but the reader's experiences and impressions may greatly differ from those presented in this book. And they too, would be correct.

I for one can't wait to see the book he writes ten years from now.

Bruce Moen's first book was engaging and provocative but this one (his second in a series of five) is even better! His explorations and insights are believable and consistent with my own albeit limited experiences. Having read Robert Monroe's books I was already familiar with a lot of the lingo and concepts but everything was quite theoretical. Moen gives an immediacy and meaning to this exploration that is very powerful.
These books are a must-read followup to the Monroe books especially for people who have been toying with the notion of trying hemi-sync.

Bruce's descriptions of his journeys give credence to exploring the Afterlife. It inspired me to consider the possibility for myself. I appreciated his need for validations of his experiences.

I have been stagnent in my life for years. I felt trapped by circumstance. I blamed life and everyone in it for my feeling of being unfullfilled. After reading Ms. Gilley's book I realized that I was afraid, afraid to step out of being who my family thought I was and into the person I knew I was. Ms. Gilley may have written this book for the business world but I feel like she wrote is just for me. It spoke volumns to me and as I followed the path Ms. Gilley laid out my world started changing for the better. I smile and laugh now and the unhappy person that I once was is gone. Bless you Ms. Gilley and God for giving you the words!

Kay Gilley has done it again. She has cut to the bone of the corporate malaise and shown us how to lead by inspiration and intrinsic rewards, a far cry from the traditional approach to management. If we think of corporate culture as a collective hallucination that is generally subscribed to by employees, then here's a formula for waking up to a more functional reality. We can not only do better business, but lead better lives as well. Isn't that why we work in the first place? If you work for a company, buy this book. It will help you make it a healthier place. If you can't change the culture of the company you work for, you may find yourself thinking about finding a more human place to work. If you run a company, it will likely change how you think about and do leadership. Kay is one of our most valuable business thinkers and has the academic credentials and practical experience to back it up. Buy this book now. You'll be glad you did.

THE ALCHEMY OF FEAR although oriented toward business was invaluable to my personal growth. It showed me that I was hiding in my little world out of fear of failure of new challenges. It showed me how to use & face my fears and to succeed getting my career and personal life back on track. This is definitely a thought provoking good read.

Kay Gilley is living her message by demonstrating the courage to take on one of business world's most unmentionable subjects: the pervasive climate of fear and its devastating consequences to individual lives and group performance. Companies have relied on fear to motivate and control emplyees for so long that most people are unaware that this is the case. And that, says Gilley, is the problem.

The author provides practical, personal advice on how we can awaken from our trance states and provides a rich description of the new beliefs and behaviors that we can adopt. The end result, Gilley maintains, is a more rewarding life for individuals and dramatic increases in performance for organizations.

Buy this book, and change yourself so that you can lead the life you were born to live. Then buy this book and use your new found courage to deliver a copy to your boss and co-workers. Imagine a fear-free workplace... it will be worth it!

Kay Gilley has transformed my ideas about love and fear in the workplace. In "Alchemy of Fear", it became clear to me that in most workplaces, the foundations on which services and attitudes are built are primarily fear-based and serve the corporate structure rather than the human heart. Our programming demands that, as experts and successful companies, we know all the "right" answers and be able to spit them out cleanly and efficiently in order to maintain our status in this culture. The fear of "not knowing" blocks creativity and closes our minds to a diversity of options. Facing this fear and the resulting chaos this unleashes, and transforming them into energy which holds us in "not-knowing", creates opportunity for amazing growth when combined with clear and soulful intent. This book is required reading for all corporate alchemists who want to practice the new magic of success.

Competing for the Future is a must read for leaders over 35 and aspiring individuals under 35. The digital revolution requires clear understanding by every leader in modern society; including those who would guide nations, businesses, and institutions dedicated to education and social services. Older individuals, including those of us in our 60's, will better grasp today's global challenges by accepting the revolutionary changes created by the intellectual horsepower that invented and applied digital technologies, enabling globalization. The "digital" genie is best managed with knowledge, business savvy and a longer-term view of return on investments.

Competing for the Future shows how a handful of U.S. inventions launched the digital revolution, and traces how digital technology has sparked economic growth and improved human life around the world.

Henry Kressel and Thomas Lento reveal how digital technology has sparked the globalization of commerce and enabled the rapid industrialization of previously underdeveloped countries, particularly in Asia.

They warn that the U.S. risks losing its competitive edge - and the basis of U.S. prosperity - by outsourcing - at least more recently - much of the production to the developing countries. The book shows the close link between invention and production, and notes that if you don't produce what you invent, you eventually lose the resources and knowledge to invent it.

Ultimately, Competing for the Future argues, the U.S. must encourage the manufacturing of high-tech products if it is to continue to be an important source of technological and economic progress. The message is just as pertinent to other countries that are allowing their manufacturing prowess to decline.

Readers come away with a basic grasp of the technology, an appreciation of the mechanisms created to finance its commercialization, an understanding of how technical skills have spread around the world, and a sense of what is required for a country to maintain its status as a technological and economic leader.

Once in a while, watershed events are understood in the midst of the very event itself - and those willing to engage in a serious assessment of the challenges can help change the course of history. The United States can avoid mortgaging its future, but only if those in positions of leadership right the ship by rethinking the definition of success in the current era. Delayed gratification - in taking profits - is but one step. So too must educators guide intellectually curious students to refine their minds with the rigors of math and science alongside interpersonal and cultural skills. If the road to hell was paved with good intentions, then most certainly the road to ruin is created by greed, laziness and ignorance. Competing for the Future is a wake-up call - and should be required reading for every student who enters a college or university - regardless of career objective. Competing for the Future is the primer for being a responsible citizen in Twenty-First Century America.

He was in on the development of the first transistor and has been involved in the development of new discoveries and products ever since. What he says about discovery, development and marketing is more than "must reading" for the technocrat or policy analyst; it's a new hornbook for anyone touched by technology. If you want to understand where modern technology has been and where it's going, start here.

Despite the technical nature of the subject, this book is easy to read and understand. Kressel's ghost writer, Thomas Lento, has used simple sentences and kicked deep technical matter into appendices, to keep the narrative going. The text scans in places, and illustrations illuminate.

If you want a quick Ph.d. course in technology, its diffusion, and its implications for national economic and social policy, as well understanding what key tech companies have done and are doing, start here. Even an English major can understand it; I did.

Dr. Henry Kressel's "Competing for the Future" is a must-read for anyone responsible on any level for technological innovation. Here, captured in one book, is the innovation roadmap as only Dr. Kressel with his wealth of experience and obvious keen intellect could construct. The book transcends industries as it exposes the illusive innovative process critical to creating not only the next generation, but new generations, of products based on technology leaps.

The innovation process is complex, and in a technology driven organiztion, it must be endemic, shared across all functions. "Competing for the Future" helps us understand that dynamic through powerful examples over the years. As such, it's an inspiring and exhilerating read for cross funtional teams and technology leaders across the entire spectrum of industry. Dr. Kressel started out in electronics and my backround has been in pharmaceutical research, but the principles are the same and that's what makes Dr. Kressel's book such a valuable read.

In Competing for the Future, Dr. Henry Kressel takes us through a fascinating journey, from the invention of a few basic digital technologies to the birth and growth of the digital age.

As a starting point, Dr. kressel introduces us to semiconductor technologies and devices. It takes an exceptional mastery of the field to summarize the physical basis of digital electronics in a few key concepts, and Dr. Kressel, a physicist by training, manages that feat. He goes beyond the technologies themselves and expands on the history of their development; how and why they came about. With this foundation in place, Dr. Kressel takes us to the next leg of the journey, namely how these new electronics enabled the development of new computing, networking and communications systems.

How did these revolutionary technologies turn into new industries? This is the subject of the second half of the book, in which the author discusses the industrialization and globalization of R&D, the development of new manufacturing processes and finally, venture capital financing of product launches and company build-ups.

Competing for the Future exposes the complexity of the overall innovation process. Dr. Kressel writes with the wisdom, insight and experience of someone who not only took part in, but was very successful at, all the steps of that process. His experiences as a physicist, manufacturing manager, leader of an R&D organization and venture capitalist, give him a very clear overall picture and a unique ability to show how all the pieces of the puzzle fit together.

Competing for the Future provides a timely and comprehensive analysis of the innovation process, and of the various forces shaping the digital age.

"Competing for the Future" is a thought provoking journey through digital electronics starting with the transistor and laser, proceeding through computers, fiber optics and the internet, and ending with a prescription for the future prosperity of the United States that includes technology innovation, risk capital and advanced manufacturing. It is fascinating as Dr. Kressel examines the interactions between the technological innovations themselves, the source of the R&D as it moved from US industrial labs to world-wide start-ups, the funding of the R&D as it evolved in parallel, the tight coupling between R&D and advanced manufacturing, and the role of governments.

Dr. Kressel provides a unique perspective because he is walking this road. He helped create the digital electronics age while he was at RCA Labs with his pioneering work in lasers. After a successful career there, he moved to Warburg Pincus where he funded many of today's successful digital electronics startups. His hands-on experience and lively anecdotes bring the book to life.

This book is "required reading" for anyone who wants to understand the future of hi-tech innovation and what that future might hold for the United States and for the world.

I used to read a lot of the church growth books, but became rather disillusioned with many of them. Too much marketing strategy or this is the way we did it at First Mega Church (which means it probably won't work very well at Small Town USA Stuggling Church). This is among the better ones I have seen. It sounds like the strategies would work. Some good food for thought and some good exercises for church leaders to be involved with to discover their church's identity.

This book was the foundation on which a 'new' (or rather renewed) church is being built. I've had the privilege of working with Richard and Robert and am seeing wonderful changes in our church as a result. We've been able to put into words who we really are and be true to ourselves. As a result we have been able to attract those who have been seeking a church just like us. They have been able to find us now that we can say "This is who we are! Join together in our spiritual journeys toward God!" I look forward to both Book #2 AND Book #3...especially #3!

I've been implementing some of the procedures in Cracking Your Congregation's Code, and I've found it answers many basic needs of busy pastors and lay leaders. I know it helps answer mine. It's a practical book, that's easy to read, and easy to use. It describes how a church can transform itself. The surveys the authors provide for the four congregational systems give a church a way to quickly evaluate and strengthen their work. From my standpoint, as someone looking for how-to's, I'd say the information in chapter seven on how to create a strategic map is worth the price of the book alone.

My congregation worked with Southern and Norton over the course of several months. We found their strategy for church growth and renewal to be easy to follow, highly participatory, and full of wisdom. It has totally transformed our congregation and organizational systems!

"Cracking Your Congregation's Code" is a great contribution to the church growth movement! It not only offers a theoretical framework for congregational health and vitality, but provides easy to use surveys and inventories. Their recommendations for church growth and renewal are not "one size fits all" but are easily tailored for each congregation's unique "DNA". The end result is the development of a "strategic map" that will guide one's congregation to a new place of enthusiasm and growth!

Concise, easy to read, easy to understand. A good read for any pastor or church leader who wants to get some clarity on the strengths and uniqueness of his or her congregation. The REALLY good news is that this is NOT another "How I Did It" book. To be sure, "How I Did It" books are inspiring, and you can pick up a lot of good tips and tricks. The trouble is that most of them probably won't work in YOUR situation! What Southern & Norton have done is given us a method which will help us understand and analyze our own unique settings - to discover our own congregation's values and unique giftedness - so that we can focus on doing the things that are right for us, not for somebody else! Share this one with key leaders in your congregation!

12. Solar/Hydrogen/fission: These three elements combine in patterns in the trend toward energy conservationism. All three elements cost more than conventional energy production methods. I think the author missed the energy paradigm and should have listed coal, wind power and geothermal as emerge sources of energy.
13. Time Taxes: The process requires Senior citizens to go to schools in their area and do various jobs, in exchange they are paid by have their property tax reduces allowing them to keep their homes. High property taxes against the Seniors demonstrates a stronger trend towards socialized redistribution of wealth and threatens their constitutional rights of life, liberty, and property.
14. The buffalo commons: Frank and Deborah Popper predicts "large chunks of the rural west will be abandoned and eventually drift into public or quasi-public holdings." The land will be accumulated and returned to its natural state; the Buffalo commons is a pattern shift in the agricultural community as hundreds of thousands of Buffalo thundering across the plains.
15. Education K through competence: Many of the graduating high school students can to read, write, or compute. The value of their high school diploma, in real world competition is zero. The K-competence movement attempts to reverse the trend by measuring student performance levels and retaining students until they achieve the competence level desired. I think the trend seems less jobs for graduating high school seniors and more outsourcing too third world countries with higher K scores.
16. Magical, mystical polymers: Plastics that carry electricity better than electricity (IBM polymer-nanotechnology-lithograph technology for circuit design); arranged molecules in parallel orientation (Paul Smith - plastics ten times the strength of steel); build bridges, buildings, and cars out of plastic. I think the most exciting idea the author suggests is using polymers as a material coating for chips to make electrical connections between the transistors.
17. Nature's wisdom: animals may know what plants to eat to cure certain diseases. Animal intelligence is more than language skills.
18. Negawatts: Amory Lovins began in paradigm shift back into the 1970s. Lovins started with the assumption that in the United States electrical energy consumption could be reduced by 70 percent with no less quality of life. Lovins points out fact about energy savings through energy efficiency by improvements in lighting systems and efficient motors.
19. New building materials: The problem: Too many people are living homeless or in structures that don't get adequate shelter. Robert Gross, former NASA engineer has designed a machine that can make adobe block from a mixture of mud and machine to squeeze out the water using a high-pressure hydraulic ram. Each block is twelve by ten by four inches and weights about thirty pounds. The cost is about 1/20th of any other building material on the market today. Wolf Hilbertz discovered how to grow structures beneath the sea using steel mesh and low levels of electricity. The resulting material is like limestone and can withstand more than four thousand pounds of pressure per inch and does not weaken when dried.
20. Gaia (The earth is alive and her name is Gaia) Robert Loveland found himself asking questions about the earth like "What are the key measures one could take that would prove, irrefutably, that there was life on earth". Loveland discovered many indicators of life, such as: the chemical imbalance of the atmosphere and an extremely stable level of temperature; the richness of life at every level; a mechanism that seemed to create an ideal condition for life (oxygen production systems, CO2 absorbing systems, and salt capturing systems). Loveland concluded that all living organism where collective integrated into a larger organism called the biosphere.

This new paradim is forcing biologists and geologist to fundamentally readdress perceptions of the planet.
21. Loans to the third world power: The poor of the world are credit ready. The loans are small and periodic. Some loans involve more than one person and rely on peer pressure to achieve the 99 percent repayment on the loan.
22. Fractals and Chaos Mathematics: A new form of mathematics. The author incorrectly identified the new math as fractals and chaos. Stephan Wolfram, the inventor of Mathematica and it based on discovers from a programming technique called cellular automation. Wolfram published a book called "A new Kind of Science", some two decades in the making, and claims to be redefining the foundations of virtually every branch of science. Wolfram noticed pattern in the cellular automation and started to wonder if nature follow rules that created similar recognizable patterns. Wolfram advocates that instead of looking for a complex equation that explains everything, they instead should be looking for a cellular automation that corresponds to what they are observing.
23. Personalized production: A move to deliver customer satisfaction by personal production.
24. Masters and patrons: Bill Weimer abstracted from European history seeing two groups to learn from masters and patrons. The masters of the modern age are the works, engineers, scientist, and salespeople. Good patrons optimize the output of the masters. The masters and patrons are form a coequal partnership. Patrons get the Masters the resources from which the masterpieces are created.

Actually, this book is a sort of brief update of the author's earlier book, entitled Discovering the Business of Paradigms, & published in the mid-80s.

Drawing essentially from the pioneering work of Thomas Kuhn, who wrote the classic, The Theory of Scientific Revolutions, in the 70's, this author has very artfully expounded the concept of paradigm shift & pliancy in the world of business, in contrast to the world of science. 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. [Bear in mind that the author is a process futurist, unlike most other futurists who write books & who are primarily content futurists. The five specific tools mentioned in the book are the exact process tools to aid & enhance your strategic exploration. Do not get carried away by the content part of the book pertaining to some perceived trends illustrated by the author.]

In addition, the author defines the concept of paradigm very well & also elaborates at length on its key characteristics & effects, with illuminating examples, as well as enlightening comparison/contrast of paradigm pliancy vs. paradigm paralysis.

He highlights the importance of paradigm shift, pliancy & anticipation. I particularly enjoyed exploring the two specific thought-provoking questions posed by the author:

(1) What do I believe is impossible to do in my field, but, if it could be done, would fundamentally change my business?

(2) Who, outside my field, might be interested in my unsolved problems?

By thinking about & answering these two challenging questions on your own, & against your own background, you will begin to understand & appreciate the essence of the author's proposition. This will be the beginning of your own paradigm shift, as it has happened in my own life design for the second half.

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!

This is the author's first pioneering book, which he wrote after leaving the teaching world to embark on a career as a strategy consultant/process futurist in the early 80's. This was also one of the very first few books that propelled me into the world of strategic exploration.

Drawing essentially from the scholarly work of Thomas Kuhn, who wrote the classic, The Theory of Scientific Revolutions, in the 70's, this author has very artfully expounded the concept of paradigm shift & pliancy in the world of business, in contrast to the world of science. 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. [Bear in mind that the author is a process futurist, unlike most other futurists who write books & who are primarily content futurists. The five specific tools mentioned in the book are the exact process tools to aid & enhance your strategic exploration. Do not get carried away by the content part of the book pertaining to some perceived trends illustrated by the author.]

In addition, the author defines the concept of paradigm very well & also elaborates at length on its key characteristics & effects, with illuminating examples, as well as enlightening comparison/contrast of paradigm pliancy vs> paradigm paralysis.

He highlights the importance of paradigm shift, pliancy & anticipation. I particularly enjoyed exploring the two specific thought-provoking questions posed by the author:

(1) What do I believe is impossible to do in my field, but, if it could be done, would fundamentally change my business?

(2) Who, outside my field, might be interested in my unsolved problems?

By thinking about & answering these two challenging questions on your own, & against your own background, you will begin to understand the essence of the author's proposition. This will be the beginning of your own paradigm shift, as it has happened in my own life design for the second half.

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!

[The updated versions of this book include the hardcover 'Future Edge: Discovering the New Paradigms of Success,' & the paperback 'Paradigms: The Business of Discovering the Future.' Also, video versions are available from www.atsmedia.com.]

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."

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.

I took this out at my local library and loved it. I read it THREE times. It is written like a sociological study, So it doesn't come accross as 'sappy' and predictable.
Should you get this book? Well, of all the books I have read about near death experiences/life after death it was the best reasearched of documented NDE. For many, it will be comforting and to others it is confirming what they already must know.

Want a glimpse of where you will ultimately be living when you die?
Read this book. If you don't believe, you will when you die!
Also see my review of "The Message"
Enjoyed this book.

Angelfish

This book was great so good that i ordered a total of six so i could give one to each of my family members. i recieved great service also.

The Eternal Journey's best insight is that what kindnesses sincerely we do especially for the lowly and helpless is what is the most important thing we will be judged by once we reach the afterlife. All the earthly cares and pleasures we are focused on such moving up in the world will not matter much in the afterlife and going after material things solely will deaden our spiritual growth, which has eternal value. We grow by love and according to this book, our faith in the right sort of religious doctrine will not matter as much as how loving we were, even to those very different from us.

As far as practical problems on earth, the book leaves one confused. Things have to be done and set up properly for society to function well and some ideas on how to do that are better than others. So I don't see how one could just sit back and not worry about such temporal problems, as the book seems to suggest we should.

The book suggests we should love everyone, but this suggestion doesn't make much sense to me on a practical level when enemies bent on our destruction will just take advantage of our love and attempt to take all of our power from us.

Another interesting insight is that we, our lives and our decisions are important both temporally and eternally. What we think and do or don't do rightly or wrongly will have an effect on everyone being that we are all interconnected. We should be careful of what we do, think, or say and we should consider what effect that we bring to us and others. This is not a meaningless existence, all of it is rather very meaningful and we are important players in this existence both here and now and in eternity.

Also, we are given a mission that relates to our families, which we should fulfill for spiritual progress of the family. Unfortunately, we don't know exactly what that mission is while we dwell on earth and have passed through the veil of forgetfulness. The mission probably has something to do with love, I suppose. Families and their relationships are important on earth and in heaven.

There are also other interesting tidbits such as it not a good idea to get addicted to something until it becomes a spiritual addiction. You will not be able to slake your cravings in the afterworld without a physical body.

The Eternal Journey has a Christian world view mostly. You get one shot at living a proper life and then you are judged eternally. You don't keep coming round and round like in reincarnation to get it right. It makes this one life much more important, if this is true. Some hellish NDE's are reported, which are about 12 percent of all reported NDE's. Whether hell is eternal or not is debatable, according to the book, but it is appropriately scary. A lot of what is reported in the book illuminates some scriptures such as earthly losers being winners in heaven (the last shall be first) and everything hidden shall be revealed (there will be no hidden secrets in the afterlife).

Reading this book may encourage readers to think about their lives, their values, and whether they are living right and valuing the right things.

I've read this book twice, and I intend to read it again. This is simply the best organised, straight-forward, most scholarly account on the nature and purpose of life that I have ever read. Yet, at no time did I feel that I was being "sold" a particular dogma. There was nothing that I had to sit down and struggle to accept or rationalise;it just simply had the ring of truth. One look at the table of contents reveals the clear, logical organization of the book- there is no fuzzy minded pseudo- mysticism here. Everything from the nature and purpose of pre-earth life, life on earth, and post-earth life is right here. You find definate information on everything from angels, bewildered spirits, pets; to the big questions like the purpose of life and the nature of suffering. If you've been told that you can't possibly understand the great mystery of God's will, try reading this book- it gives some satisfying and comforting answers in clear and simple language.

The stories that make up the bulk of the book are compelling and heart-wrenching. Anyone interested in the problems of youth or in our attempts to provide psychiatric services will find this a fascinating book. I found myself drawn into as if I were reading a good novel. And afterwards I found myself dwelling on the issues and lessons the book addresses. A very good book - I highly recommend it.

Is it really the right answer to send a kid away from home when they have a mental problem? "The Forgotten Future: Adolescents in Crisis" is an examination of children throughout the country who are suffering from mental disorders - and are placed in mental hospitals, foster homes, boot camps, and other 'treatment' solutions so often suggested by professionals. Are these solutions actually solving anything, or could they be feeding the very problems they've set out to cure? Calling for improvements in the mental health care system, "The Forgotten Future: Adolescents in Crisis" is highly recommended for community library psychology collections.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

This narrative non-fiction is gripping and informative about the untold problems with our psychiatric care when it comes to adolescents. I did not know about these issues before reading this book but it has appauled me that we, as a nation, have not done more to remedy this issue. This book is a must read for anyone who has a teenager or is concerned about the mental health care of our future.

I normally read fiction, and I have to say that this book is not only educational and certainly a must for anyone who has troubled children, but also reads like a novel. An excellent read and a valuable font of information on this subject. I was especially impressed to see the sections on what to look for in an institution if you are contemplating getting your child help in this fashion. This really should be a textbook for people in the field of adolescent psychology. I highly recommend this book to professionals and laymen alike.

Writing a book about troubled teens has been an enormously challenging task. While pulling together the notes-to-self that I had written and saved over the years, I found myself re-experiencing many of the emotions I felt as I worked with the kids. It was as if time had not passed, as if I could hear the kids talking, laughing, acting out, threatening, pleading, sobbing--as I were once again in a position of wanting to help but often not knowing the best way to do so. Being constrained by my role and hoping with all my heart that what I had learned--and continued to learn every day--would carry us through. Hoping that the hurt and the pain and the trauma experienced by so many could recede, would recede, back in their minds to a place where each child would become his or her best self. Fearing that would not happen but hoping that the care each child received might make a difference in their lives. Coming to learn that the system of care which I had so believed and trusted in was often a system that I did not know or understand.

The Forgotten Future: Adolescents in Crisis tells the stories of a handful of young people with whom I have worked over the years. You will hear them speak and feel their pain and you will come to hope for the best for each of them. You will learn the magnitude of the problem facing America as we deal with and help troubled children to grow and become our leaders: our doctors, teachers, legislators, electricians, mothers and fathers, and others. With an estimated twenty percent of America's children under the age of 18 afflicted with emotional and behavioral disorders, hundreds of thousands of these young people are confined each year to psychiatric hospitals, residential treatment centers, therapeutic foster homes, boot camps, and behavioral academies. While in some cases children may very appropriately be referred to and treated within inpatient psychiatric facilities, one must question the benefit of many of these out-of-home placements.

The Forgotten Future offers an unprecedented eye-opening look into the lives of a group of seriously-troubled teens whose families have entrusted them to the care of inpatient psychiatric hospitals. You may come to question whether our hospitalized children are really receiving the best mental health treatment available, while at the same time you will be encouraged to learn of the dedication and hard work of individuals who work with our children despite the many challenges of their chosen profession. You will come away convinced that our nation must rally to provide a mental health care system that truly works, and you will agree that our children deserve a chance to reach their goals and live to their greatest potential. Their futures must not be forgotten.

email me, I'll let you know...

It's okay, I had to read it for a class. He raises some good questions but he's long winded. A lot of us have already thought about these questions. Talbott feeds you some good food for thought though.

Once being an engineer, a scientist, a professor of Electrical Engineering, etc., etc, now I'm watching this world amazed by its reality and its beauty. My soul is awaken. The wonderful book by Stephen Talbott tells us who we are and to where we do belong

This book is well written, provocative and covers a lot of ground in a very short space of time. The author presents a well-reasoned argument for reversing the usual cause and effect critique of the evil computer, and his suggestion that the problem is in the way we think about technology is right on.

This book should be read by all those who live with the Internet and technology. While not exactly a Luddite (Talbott uses computers and the Internet a great deal), the author presents many reasons why we should not just accept the promises of a technological paradise without reflecting on its consequences.