Non Obvious

What do Disney, Bollywood, and "The Batkid" teach us about how to create celebrity experiences for our audience? How can a vending machine inspire world peace? Can being "imperfect" make your business more marketable? Can a selfie improve one's confidence? When can addiction be a good thing? The answers to these questions may not be all that obvious. And that's exactly the point. For the past four years, marketing expert and Georgetown University Professor Rohit Bhargava has curated his best-selling list of "non-obvious" trends by asking the questions that most trend predictors miss. In this all-new fifth edition, discover what more than half a million other readers already have: how to use the power of non-obvious thinking to grow your business and make a bigger impact in the world. "Non-Obvious" also delves into the curation process the author has used for years to build his trend reports and takes readers behind the scenes of "trend curation" -- the art of adding meaning to isolated beautiful things. In the end "Non-Obvious" is a book that will show you how to think different, curate your ideas and get better at predicting what will be important tomorrow based on learning to observe patterns in the world today. -- From publisher's description.

All New 10th Edition of the WSJ bestseller! Featuring 10 Bold new Trend Predictions Winner of 9 International Book Awards Introducing the highly awaited tenth edition of The Wall Street Journal bestseller and trend report featuring ten bold new megatrend predictions that will shape our world in the coming decade. What if you could predict the trends that will change your business? For the past ten years, Rohit Bhargava's signature annual Non-Obvious Trend Report has helped over a million readers discover more than 100 trends changing our culture. Now for the first time, Rohit and his team of Non-Obvious trend curators reveal ten revolutionary new Megatrends that are transforming how we work, play and live. -- How might the evolution of gender fluid toys change our culture? -- What can the popularity of handmade umbrellas and board games teach us about the future of business? -- Why do robot therapists and holographic celebrities actually demonstrate the importance of humanity? The answers to these questions may not be all that obvious, and that's exactly the point. This completely revised 10th Anniversary edition of Non-Obvious also offers an unprecedented look behind the scenes at the author's signature Haystack Method for identifying trends, and how you can learn to curate and predict trends for yourself. You don't need to be a futurist or innovator to learn to think like one. The key to growing your business or propelling your career into the next decade lies in better understanding the present. The future belongs to non-obvious thinkers and this book is your guide to becoming one. Winner: Eric Hoffer Business Book of the Year Winner: Axiom Award Silver Medal (Business Theory) Winner: INDIE Gold Medal (Business Business Book) Finalist: Leonard L. Berry Marketing Book Award Winner: IPPY Silver Medal (Best Business Book) Finalist: International Book Award (Best Business Book) Official Selection: Gary's Book Club at CES Winner: Non-Fiction Book Award (Gold Medal) Winner: Pinnacle Best Business Book Award

Like having coffee with an expert, this book shares irreverent tips and secrets from Chief Boredom Buster and 25 year event planning expert Andrea Driessen on how to plan an event that will get people talking and participating. This book is like a high energy masterclass and brainstorming session all in one - with actionable tips to transform your event planning approach within hours.

Wall Street Journal Bestseller "A useful, forcefully written, and wide-ranging study of inequities--and how to fix them." --Kirkus Reviews What if we could go beyond the conversation about diversity and take real action? In early 2021, more than two hundred widely respected experts gathered virtually for the world's most ambitious conversation about diversity. Our aim was to do more than spotlight injustice. We challenged ourselves to imagine how to fix it. The dialogue brought together casting directors, bookstore owners, disabled leaders, healthcare professionals, students, VCs, standup comedians, chief diversity officers, pro gamers, archaeologists, government insiders, startup founders, and even a master puppeteer. Now for the first time, these solutions are compiled into one groundbreaking volume organized into twelve powerful themes including: storytelling, technology, identity, retail, education and more. Each chapter paints a revealing picture of the world, how it is, how it could be and what needs to happen for us to get there. For newcomers to the topic of diversity, and DEI experts alike, this book offers a much-needed actionable blueprint for creating a more inclusive world for us all.

"Like having coffee with an expert"--Cover.

This concise and lucid supplementary text guides students through discussions of reason, religion, power, crime, and love, demonstrating that sociology offers striking and "nonobvious" insights that deepen our understanding of society. By highlighting unusual and unexpected conclusions this lively book dramatizes the significance of sociological analysis for those new to its study.

The first edition of this book was written by Jeffrey Schox for his course "Patent Law and Strategy for Innovators and Entrepreneurs" at Stanford University. After an introduction to intellectual property, it explores the patent system, the requirements for a patent, infringement, and inventorship and ownership issues. The second edition included the America Invents Act ("AIA"), which transformed the U.S. patent system from a "first-to-invent" system to a "first-inventor-to-file" system. The third edition added a glossary and general edits. The fourth edition includes five additional cases: KSR (Supreme Court 2007), Stanford v. Roche (Supreme Court 2011), Prometheus (Supreme Court 2012), Nautilus (Supreme Court 2014), and Limelight (Fed. Cir. 2015).

In this short guide, an award-winning educator and innovation strategist will teach how to have better ideas, conquer the impostor syndrome, use one's strengths, and be the most creative person in any room.

This is the Small Business Marketing advice book you've been Googling for. Like having coffee with an expert, this book shares irreverent tips and secrets from WSJ bestselling author and marketing guru Rohit Bhargava on how to promote your business without a huge budget. This book is like a high energy masterclass and brainstorming session all in one - with actionable tips to transform your marketing approach within hours.

The Killer Questions Your Company Should Be Asking Generating and executing great ideas is the key to staying ahead in a rapidly changing world. It seems so basic. Why is it so hard to actually get right? According to innovation expert Phil McKinney, the real problem is that we're teaching people to ask the wrong questions about their businesses--or none at all. There has to be a better way. In Beyond the Obvious, McKinney will help you use his proven FIRE (Focus, Ideation, Rank, Execution) Method to dig deeper and get back to asking the right questions--the ones all companies must ask to survive. Full of real-world examples, this book will change the way you operate, innovate, and create, and it all begins with battle-tested questions Phil has gathered on note cards throughout his career. Shared for the first time here, these "Killer Questions" include: What are the rules and assumptions my industry operates under? What if the opposite were true? What will be the buying criteria used by my customer in 5 years? What are my unshakable beliefs about what my customers want? Who uses my product in ways I never anticipated? These questions will reframe the way you see your products, your customers, and the way the two interact. Whether you're a company of thousands or a lean startup, Beyond the Obvious will give you the skills and easy-to-follow plan you need to make both the revolutionary changes and nuanced tweaks required for success. Praise for Beyond the Obvious "Human beings are creatures of habit, so getting ourselves and our teams to think beyond the obvious is a challenge we face all the time. Phil McKinney is an innovation expert, and his killer questions and hit-the-spot anecdotes provide a great way to get out in front of opportunities we otherwise won't see." -- Geoffrey Moore, author of Crossing the Chasm and Escape Velocity "I've always believed that asking the right questions is the essence of design. Phil McKinney proves that point with this wonderful set of killer questions that will jumpstart-or greatly enhance- your innovation efforts." -- B. Joseph Pine II, co-author, The Experience Economy & Infinite Possibility. "Product Innovation is a prerequisite to building great brands. Phil's questions are a prerequisite to building innovative products." -- Satjiv S. Chahil, former global marketing chief, Apple"