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COMING HOME is never just coming back.

NEXTletter turns fears into energy: We ask a question, share perspectives and an experiment to help you and your organization move from anxiety to action – with a future-ready mindstate - every other week.

Author

Frederik Pferdt
August 01, 2025

Prefer to listen 📻 > click here.

It’s a mirror. A magnifying glass. A time machine. You walk the same cobblestone streets - or school hallways or alumni courtyards - and something’s different.
You. Them. Everything.

Home isn’t just a place. It’s a feeling, a memory, sometimes even a question: Do I still belong here? Or am I just visiting who I used to be?

Whether it’s a high school reunion, a university alumni gathering, or a hometown festival like Rutenfest in Ravensburg—these moments bring us face to face with who we were, and who we’ve become.

Rutenfest is more than tradition.

It’s five days of beautiful chaos - part reunion, part reflection, part collective group therapy. You run into people you haven’t seen in years. You hug old friends. You meet someone new over a bratwurst and wonder: “Have we known each other in a past life?”

Meanwhile, you’re always thinking: What am I missing right now? Because hundreds of parallel gatherings are happening in backyards across town. It’s FOMO in its purest form.

But maybe it’s not about where you should be. Maybe it’s about who you’re becoming.

ONE QUESTION

What happens when we return to a place we’ve never really left?

TWO PERSPECTIVES

1️⃣

How others have changed 

They look different. Speak more slowly. Or not at all. You hear what they’re doing now, where they live, who they’ve become. You notice what’s new. And what’s missing.

You compare the image in front of you to the version in your memory.

2️⃣

How you have changed

Suddenly you’re the one answering the questions. Telling your story. Trying to explain a life that once felt impossible.
You notice how you think differently. What you value now.

And that some conversations no longer fit.

We ask:
“What do you do?”
“Where do you live?”
“Still in touch with...?”

But we rarely ask:
“What have you let go of?”
“What has moved you this year?”
“What are you growing into?”

Coming home isn’t just about seeing what’s changed.
It’s a chance to reflect on what those changes actually mean.

ONE EXPERIMENT

Next time you return—to a hometown, a job, or an old version of yourself—try this:

Instead of asking: “What are you doing now?”
Ask: “How have you changed this year?”

Then pause.
Let the answer breathe.
And maybe share what’s changed in you, too.

GUEST ON JULE’S PODCAST

Want to hear how my journey began?
Still. Shy. Dreamy. Too quiet. Too sensitive. Too different. A kid from Lake Constance.

I wanted to be a chef. No one took me. No experience.

So I crossed the lake to study. For me, it felt like a world trip. That was me.

Today, I live in the forests of Santa Cruz with my family in two geodesic domes.
I was Google’s first Chief Innovation Evangelist. Taught at Stanford. Now NYU. Bestselling author in 7+ languages.

But none of that happened by waiting. It started with one choice: To stop waiting for the future - and start shaping it.

In the newest episode of GOOD WORK with Jule Jankowski, I share:

→ Radical optimism as a response to helplessness
→ Why some roles aren’t given—they’re invented
→ Empathy as a future operating system
→ And why the future begins in you

If you’ve ever received 86 rejections - and still wrote the 87th - this one’s for you. Listen here

A moment I’m proud of: We’re the cover story of managerSeminare

managerSeminare is Germany’s #1 magazine for leadership and learning. And yes: Zukunftsgeist made the front page.

Why? Because we need new words to create new realities. We know team spirit. Founder spirit. Pioneer spirit. But what about future spirit?

What if we stopped asking: “What will the future bring?” And started asking: “What future do I want to invent - and who do I want to be in it?”

In the article, I explore 6 powerful ways to activate your Zukunftsgeist. Because creativity isn’t just a skill - it’s our most powerful antidote to fear.

Ready to create your next chapter?

The next round of my 1:1 Future Being Coaching Program starts soon. If you're standing at a crossroads - or simply curious what’s next - I’d love to walk a few steps with you.

The future isn’t ahead of you. It’s already growing inside you.

Let’s keep creating what’s next - now.

Frederik