What dessert taught me about our future

1️⃣

The economy of the gift

In the “default world,” we are trained to measure value in money, productivity, or status. But in the desert, none of that exists. You cannot buy food. You cannot sell water. The only economy is gifting.

At first, this feels strange - even uncomfortable. My kids looked around and asked: “But what do we have to give?” The answer was simple: ourselves. A smile, a hug, a silly perfume called Eau de You. A teenager handing a stranger a handmade necklace. A child refilling your water bottle in the heat.

And something radical happens in that shift: the giver is changed as much as the receiver. The act of giving without expectation makes you feel abundant in ways no paycheck or purchase ever will.

I started to wonder: What would our families, our workplaces, our politics look like if value was defined not by transactions, but by relationships?

Maybe the future economy we need isn’t based on GDP - but on GCP: Gross Connection Product.

2️⃣

A city that disappears teaches presence.

On the last day, Black Rock City vanishes. Camps are packed, art is dismantled, and the desert is left as if nothing ever happened.

But here’s the paradox: the disappearance doesn’t erase the meaning. It sharpens it. Because you know it won’t last, you savor it more. A sunrise dance, a shared meal, even the dust storms become holy in their impermanence.

This is what I carried home: permanence is an illusion. What remains are the practices - the way you greeted strangers, the courage to build something bold, the willingness to sit with grief when it arrived.

So I began asking myself: What would I live differently if I knew it was all temporary?

• Would I spend less time protecting my comfort, and more time creating connection?

• Would I stop waiting for the “right moment,” and instead act in this one?

Maybe the future isn’t about building structures that last forever. Maybe it’s about building moments that matter - and then carrying those lessons forward when everything else disappears.

🎧 In the latest episode of The Future Is HOW, I sat down with Tyler Winnick to explore the power of music, emotion, and sound as a future-shaping force. Why does music move us so deeply? And how can we use it to design the way we want to feel tomorrow? Burning Man changed him forever, calling him into a deeper alignment with who he is and why he creates. Since then, his art, music and breathwork experiences have been guiding people back to presence, truth, and freedom.

Tyler believes music isn’t just entertainment - it’s a tool for transformation. I think you’ll find this conversation both surprising and deeply human.