"The 500-Year Delta was an interesting book. The Visionary's Hand-book is an important book. Not just a quick read, this book requires an intellectual engagement from the reader, a full involvement work-ing through the exercises and aggressively absorbing and processing its contents. The personal return on such an intellectual investment will be endless, continuing as far in the reader's future as can be imagined. I can see no way that your life and business future could fail to be enriched if you take the time to really think through the principles and issues presented in this book. What a lucky circumstance! About how many books can we say that?"

In THE VISIONARY'S HANDBOOK, Watts Wacker and Jim Taylor refuse to paint a simplistic picture of the future; instead, they show where to look for the insight needed to compete and grow in the years ahead. Authors of the prophetic The 500 Year Delta, they now proclaim the Age of the Individual-a world where life has never been more difficult, because it has never been easier. Today, individuals have far more power to claim their own futures than ever before, which means they have to follow four major rules to chart their courses:

Know who you are.

Know where you want to go.

Recognize your own seminal moments.

Adopt an attitude of insurgency.

A bold, incisive book, the visionary's handbook captures the interlocking web of paradoxes that abound in everyday business life, and provides an essen tial map to help make the future work for every individual and every company in the challenging and uncertain times ahead.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

PREFACE TO THE PAPERBACK EDITION

THE PARADOX OF THE VISIONARY

II

PARADOXES OF THE EVERYDAY

1 * The Paradox of Value

  BOX 1: The Brand Promise

2 * The Paradox of Size

  BOX 2: What Color Is Your Disaster?

3 * The Paradox of Time

4 * The Paradox of Competition

  BOX 3: Global Metaphors and Global Brands

5 * The Paradox of Action

6 * The Paradox of Leadership

  BOX 4: Governance, Patriotism, and Loyalty

7 * The Paradox of Leisure

III

THE SERIAL FUTURE

IV

THE PARADOX OF REALITY

INDEX