What does it take to build a business that lasts generations? In this Business Brief, Jo reflects on long-term thinking, the resilience of family-run businesses, and why creating a compelling vision matters when aligning business heritage with future ambitions.

Business Brief is a (very brief) new solo series hosted by Looking Outside host, strategist and corporate futurist Jo Lepore.

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Learn more:

1. Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.com
2. Connect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.com
3. Watch this Business Brief on YouTube

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⭐ Follow & rate the show - it makes a difference!

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Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.

All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2026. Theme song by Adrian Walther.

On this episode of Looking Outside we peek into the metaphors, imagery and stories that unknowingly shape the limitations of our business strategy, and limit our ambitions. UNESCO chair of futures, Sohail Inayatullah has seen this many times before - from brands rethinking positioning, CEOs shifting cultural capability, to government leaders reshaping coalitions. In each case, when we dig deeper to the metaphor we hold for ourselves, we gain visibility of what limits our worldview, and the bars that guard us from transformational change. Sohail stresses that a strategy can easily change based on the story you tell others, but it’s uncovering the story you tell yourself as a leader that, while uncomfortable, is the true unlocker of new possibilities for the future.

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Learn more:

1. Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.com
2. Connect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.com
3. Metafuture.org & Meta Future School
4. Follow Sohail on LinkedIn & YouTube

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⭐ Follow & rate the show - it makes a difference!

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Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.

All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2026. Theme songs by Azteca X.

What a year! It’s time to wrap it up for 2025 and highlight the eclectic mix of diverse perspectives, divergent topics and expert thinking that appeared on the show this year. From the best performing episodes and most popular themes, to the most prominent guest go-to's for fresh perspectives, today we’re going back to the episodes that resonated most.

Top episodes of 2025:

1. Venture capitalist and futurist Roger Spitz: new playbooks for volatile business environments
2. Political demographer Jennifer Sciubba: the narrative around our population ‘crisis’
3. Fashion designer Justine Leconte: the manipulative systems that fuel fast fashion
4. Forecaster Paul Saffo: pressure testing assumptions about what we know to ‘certain’ in uncertain times
5. Experimental philosopher Jonathon Keats: asking better questions in existential times

Honorable mentions & favorites:

• CPG strategist Peter McDonald – the lost muscle of innovation in consumer markets
• Political scientist Verlan Lewis: flawed political ideologies and the need for less divisive conversations
• Neuroaesthetics expert Susan Magsamen: the psychology behind our physical senses

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More:

• Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.com
• Connect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.com

----------

⭐ Follow & rate the show - it makes a difference!

----------

Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.

All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2025. Theme songs by Azteca X.