The Language and Core Concepts of the Disruptive Futures Institute

The Disruptive Futures Institute's Language and Core Concepts are the words they use to describe and operate in the current state of our complex and nonlinear world. This collection of terms and concepts is designed to help you build fluency with the evolving language of systemic disruption, complexity, and unpredictability. This report provides a high-level overview of the language and core concepts that are foundational to the Disruptive Futures Institute.

1. Techistentialism: Studies the nature of human beings, existence, and decision-making in our technological world
2. The AAA Framework and Being AAA+: Explores the traits that must be developed to remain relevant in the age of systemic disruption.
3. Metaruptions: A multidimensional family of systemic disruptions that cause widespread and self-perpetuating effects that extend beyond their initial disruptions.
4. UN-VICE (UNknown, Volatile, Intersecting, Complex, and Exponential): An updated way of capturing the state and velocity of the world, to replace VUCA.
5. The Complex Five: Five animals that represent a matrix of highly impactful events according to their degrees of uncertainty.
6. The 6 i’s: Unlock the mindsets necessary to embrace uncertainty — keys to not just surviving, but thriving.
7. Disruption 3.0: Omnipresent and systemic disruption, a constant that establishes entirely new paradigms, which themselves will evolve.
8. The 8 Laws of Systemic Disruption: Reframing and defining disruption in a world that is no longer linear, where patterns become increasingly hard to interpret.
9. Greenaissance: An era of renewal with momentous innovation and investment opportunities, with the common objective of sustainable energy transition.
10. The Disruptive Thinking Canvas: A dynamic process to design, implement, and drive disruption for yourself, your projects, or your organization.
11. Business Models-as-a-System (BMaaS): How to design a living business model as an adaptable, evolving piece in a larger ecosystem.
12. The Inflection Paradox: The conflicting drivers and cognitive biases that contribute to a failure to spot inflection points.
13. Info-ruption: A pervasive and radical change in worldwide data dynamics, with cascading effects on how information will be interpreted, used, and misused.
14. Internet of Existence (IoE): The integration of internet-connected technology into previously disconnected areas, bringing biology, geology, and physics online.
15. Minimum Viable Fields (MVF): Technology, energy, and media drive all companies, which replace the conventions of “sectors”.
16. Chief Bridging Officer (CBO): Proposed C-suite position responsible for reconciling the long-term goals of an organization with impactful and relevant everyday actions.
17. Chief Existential Officer (CEO²): Proposed C-suite position responsible for acting upon the increasing number of low-probability but very high-consequence existential risks.
18. Six Degrees of (Un)Predictability: A set of filters you can use to critically evaluate assumptions and stakeholder incentives.
19. Failovation: A model for the sort of failure that generates innovation (potentially prompting a standing ovation).
20. DECODE: Techistential’s foresight framework to structure our visions, imagine pathways, and connect the shifting dots to develop anticipatory mindsets.

The language of disruption is one of activity, agency, and action. Disruptive times deeply affect the shared terminology we use. Speaking the language of change will support capacity building and decision-making for this uncertain world, adopting new mindsets essential for thriving amidst ambient disruption.

Categories: global_geographic_scope | complexity | development | education | analysis | innovation | systems | governance | 2030s_time_horizon