020: Tameka Vasquez – Founder, The Future Quo

Tameka Vasquez is a social futurist, foresight strategist, professor, and speaker. She is the Founder and Principal of The Future Quo, an advisory that supports visionary companies with concepts and tools for future thinking. Tameka partners with startups to Fortune 500 enterprises that are driven by a heightened social responsibility and redefining their purpose to enact meaningful societal change. Tameka is also an Associate Faculty for the Future of Work course at Columbia University. Before launching The Future Quo, Tameka was a marketing strategist who led brand and growth programs for global technology startups and enterprises for over 12 years. In her last role, she served as the first head of marketing for Sidewalk Labs, an urban innovation and sustainability unit at Google.

This episode is not just a conversation; it's an exploration. Together with Tameka, we navigate the realm of future thinking and innovative research, stressing the need to break away from traditional product cycles and consider the macro changes driving our industry. Tameka and I hope to inspire you with new perspectives and viewpoints, showing you how you, too, can create meaningful contributions to the world. This is an episode that encourages questioning, reflection, and an eagerness to make a difference.

In this episode, you will hear:

• The challenge for startup founders to balance present survival with future foresight.
• Exploration of 'blind conformity' in the tech industry and its potential impact on human development and self-esteem. 
• The importance of understanding the true essence of technology and its potential societal implications.
• The concept of future thinking and the need to break away from traditional product cycles.
• Importance of questioning, reflection, and the desire to make a meaningful difference in the world.

Resources from this Episode

• http://www.thefuturequo.com 
• http://www.linkedin.com/in/tamekavasquez 
• Download the latest report from The Future Quo, "Incubation: Concepts for Futures Thinking:" https://www.thefuturequo.com/report

Follow and Review:

We’d love for you to follow us if you haven’t yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We’d love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast.

Episode Credits

If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.