Preparing for The Fourth Turning

Preparing Together

In part one of this entry, I spoke about the historical research done by William Strauss and Neil Howe in their book – The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy. In short, Howe and Strauss examined various generations and how they congregate during specific periods of history.  Based on this the authors indicated that there are four types of generations and highlighted how these generations interact to generate four repeating historic patterns or turnings.

Based on their research Strauss and Howe predicted that during the early 2000s – we would enter a fourth turning or a time of crisis the likes of World War II and The Civil War (again, this was reviewed in detail in Part I of this article).  While many have written about Strauss’s and Howe’s predictions – few have highlighted their suggestions for preparing for the “Fourth Turning.”  Preparing for the Fourth Turning is the focus of this entry.  Part III will focus on how we need to think about leadership during this time.

I wanted to write about this because it offers a well-grounded interpretation of current events.  Yet, the point is not to generate more fear and anxiety.  The point of these entries are to inspire the leadership in all of us that will be necessary.  Regardless of how long the downturn lasts – we face unprecedented challenges that require vision, courage, and determination to see us through.

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