Future Crunch - The radical act of optimism

Inside Influence

We live in a digital world – not news to many of us that woke up next to our mobile phone this morning. But in this world three quarters of adults now have a device that we spend on average 8.5 hours a day attached to (9-10 hours for teenagers – another podcast).

With this digitisation we have now entered a world where our attention is the primary currency. Some of the largest organisations in the world are now focused purely on buying, earning and trading (i.e. selling) our attention as their only product. Algorithms are being constantly written and rewritten to pull us further and further into a silo of information – that then leads onto the next – and the next. Which raises one very interesting question.

What actually works when it comes to winning the war for our attention? Massive companies are asking this question now – 5 billion hours. They have discovered some amazing things about story telling, about product placement…

But the answer. The real answer – as always with human beings - involves getting really primal.

If you look at what drives our most basic operating system. It’s fear and survival. Possible dangers and threats will always get our attention before good news, opportunities – or reasons to celebrate. Unfortunately – as the majority of media and advertisers have always known – when it comes using fear, drama or outrage as a tool – we are hard wired to stand to attention.

My next guests would call the use of fear as a tool to influence your attention – a mind virus. So – how do you inoculate yourself? How do we pull back some of our most precious resource – so we can use it instead to create – not from fear – but from a place of optimism, hope and resilience? Because let’s face it – regardless of how you feel about some of the world’s largest question marks right now – AI, digitization, immigration, changes in the workforce, the impact of social media on children – reactions that come from fear are rarely ever the solution.

In this episode we dive into the Radical Act of Optimism - as we spend time with the incredible Dr Angus Hervey and Tane Hunter the co founders of Future Crunch.

Future Crunch are a a global movement of scientists, artists, technologists and entrepreneurs - who believe science and technology are creating a world that is more peaceful, transparent and abundant. With gold plated facts at the heart of the narrative they present an optimistic and narrative on the the story of the human race in the 21st century. The mission is to foster intelligent, optimistic thinking about the future – In order to assist us in reframing how we allow fear and negativity to influence us, and even more significantly influence the world in which we live.

In this fascinating conversation we discuss…

● Our consumption of information the same way we would a diet – where balance and conscious choice is the key to health

● Why the evidence and facts must always be sacred if you want to drive epic influence

● The implications of world driven by bad news, and the mind virus of fear

● Why storytelling is the most powerful tool to evolve humanity

● The Influence of optimistic thinking and overcoming the neuroscience of negativity

● And why some media – reality TV I’m talking to you - should come with a smokers warning

So get ready for a dose of optimism based upon cold hard facts. To challenge your thinking on change and disruption - and reframe the opportunity of new technologies such as data, automation and robotics in order to create a better world. Some of the examples these guys use about how this is already happening will blow your mind.

Significantly this is an opportunity to become more conscious in the news we share - and the news we choose to consume. Stepping back just far enough from drama, fear and outrage – to recognize it as simply that – a tool that is used to capture your attention.

So – enough pre-amble – please sit back and enjoy my conversation with my new double dose of brains crush.

Dr Angus Hervey and Tane Hunter – otherwise known as Future Crunch.

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