Future Mind
The Hopi Nation is one of the oldest cultures on this continent. Yet, these ancient people hold an extraordinarily modern and instructive perspective on the turbulent currents encircling all of us:
There is a river flowing now very fast.
It is so great and swift that there are those who will be afraid.
They will try to hold on to the shore.
They will feel they are being torn apart, and they will suffer greatly.
Know the river has its destination.
The elders say we must let go of the shore, push off into the middle of the river, keep our eyes open, and our heads above the water.
See who is in there with you and celebrate.
At this time in history, we are to take nothing personally. Least of all, ourselves.
For the moment that we do, our spiritual growth and journey comes to a halt.
The time of the lone wolf is over. Gather yourselves!
Banish the word struggle from your attitude and your vocabulary.
All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration.
We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.
We believe that both an artistic and an analytical orientation are necessary for future success during this era of profound change and uncertainty. This means that the person, the group, the corporation, the community, and/or the society that conscientiously studies the world of actual experience and manifests insights with an aesthetic integrity will survive and thrive in the world that is unfolding. They will see the structure generating the future, and the way they live in the present will be shaped by what they know and sense about the future.
Those possessing an artistic attitude along with tough-mindedness — the ability to face facts and difficulties with strength and determination — have the mental agility that the future requires. A tolerance for ambiguity, an appreciation for beauty, a distinctive way of seeing things, and a willingness to adopt what “works” wherever it comes from characterize the Art of the Future’s vision.
Art of the Future’s areas of expertise and domains of experience span a broad spectrum. Yet, everything here is integrated by the interpenetration of the imaginative and the practical in the service of thinking forward to invent a positive, life affirming future.
Artistic personality type
The following ten traits and characteristics are typical of the Artistic personality type.
- Expressive. Those of the Artistic temperament tend to experience a greater range of emotion than those of any other type. They are very emotionally active.
- Artistic inclinations. The Artistic type is the most inclined of all the types to be involved with the fine arts, music, or literature (Keirsey, 204). They take an artistic approach to all aspects of their lives.
- Independent work. Like “the majority of poets, novelists, composers, and to a lesser extent, of painters and sculptors,” those of the Artistic type “are bound to spend a great deal of their time alone (Storr, ix).”
- Relationships secondary. Those of the Artistic temperament “are quite likely to choose relationships which will further their work rather than relationships which are intrinsically rewarding, and their spouses may well find that marital relations take second place (Storr, 107).”
- Great productivity. Persons of the Artistic type are highly disciplined, gifted with superior powers of concentration, and capable of producing great quantities of high quality work; they also enjoy frequent periods of recreation and inactivity.
- Disinhibition. They are hedonistic and impulsive; “they live Epicurean lives in the here and now, and as gracefully as possible (Keirsey, 204).”
- Keen perceptions. The Artistic temperament is especially attuned to color, line, texture, shading – touch, motion, seeing, and hearing in harmony. The senses of Artistic individuals seem more keenly tuned than those of others (Keirsey, 205).
- Kindness (Keirsey, 205). Although those of the Artistic type may adopt an aggressive, tough exterior, they are remarkably gentle, kind, and generous.
- Extroversion and introversion. The interpersonal conduct of those of the Artistic type alternates between the greatest extremes of sociability and social reticence.
- Love of nature. In many individuals of the Artistic type there “may be found an instinctive longing for the natural, the pastoral, the bucolic. They are quite at home in the wilds, and nature seems to welcome them (Keirsey, 206).”
Sources
Keirsey, David, and Marilyn Bates. Please Understand Me: Character and Temperament Types. 3rd ed. Del Mar: Prometheus Nemesis, 1978.
Storr, Anthony. Solitude: a return to the self. New York: Ballantine, 1988.