Nobody can tell you what the future holds. However, there is a way to shine light into the darkness and extrapolate what we can see there so that you have ideas about the road ahead.

What’s the real value of this process? To identify uncertainties that lie in the shadows, the uncertainties that can cause low levels of anxiety — and often just plain ignorance — just below the surface.

Living with this uncertainty, unaware of what the possibilities might be, can have significant impact. If the unexpected — something not even on your radar — were to occur, the likely effects include:

• Disruption of your strategy.
• Throwing you and your team off course.
• Causing you to react instead of operating on the offense.
• Jeopardizing resources and stability.
• Risk to your competitive edge.
• Blindsiding your operation.
• Failure work and having to play catch up.
• Wasting time and precious resources.

If you’re concerned or in the dark about what’s ahead, learning how to peer into the future to better prepare strategically should be a top issue in 2017.