Out of the Back Room: Why AI Wow! Is the Future at Work

There’s a particular smell to being left behind. A kind of intellectual smoke in the air. Maybe you’ve felt it – the thick, stale vibe of indecision, of panels and PDFs, of strategy decks filed and forgotten. The feeling of sitting around a metaphorical (or literal) table, waiting for permission. It’s the smell of the back room. And it’s time to walk out.

I’m thrilled to share something real, alive, and future-forward: AI Wow! is a new offering from the Content Evolution coLab.

I’ve been collaborating with this team of wild thinkers and grounded doers for years. We’ve been prototyping with AI in practice — not just theory — across enterprise, government, higher ed, and NGOs. Now we’ve turned that deep work into a structured, experiential journey for other teams to jump into and run with.

And let me be blunt: it’s time.

What Is AI Wow!?

It’s not a webinar. Not a lecture. Not another keynote about the power of AI, the risks of AI, or the myths of AI. We’ve heard it all. What we need now is applied capability.

AI Wow! is a facilitated cohort experience designed to:

Build real strategic clarity around AI – what fits, what doesn’t.
Unlock responsible, human-centered AI use inside your organization.
Prototype possibilities with tools and methods that stick.
Turn futures thinking into operational action.

It’s strategy you can feel.

Why Now?

We are standing at a threshold. On one side: status quo, jargon, and delay. On the other hand, the next phase of organizational capability. And the difference between the two is not just technology. It’s mindset.

The teams that will thrive in the age of AI aren’t the ones who master the tools first. They’re the ones who know themselves. Who understand their humanness in the process. Who build responsibly, ethically, creatively.

That’s what we’re doing in AI Wow!

It’s part of my personal mission to move futures knowledge out of elite rooms and into real communities, teams, and leaders who need it. No gatekeeping. Just deeply human work, delivered with clarity and imagination.

Who’s It For?

If you’re a leader asking:

“Where do we even start with AI?”
“How do we align AI use with our culture and values?”
“How do I help my team not be afraid of this shift?”

Then you are exactly who this is for.

We’ve designed it for organizations that want more than a slide deck; they want a path forward. And they want to walk it with smart humans who’ve been to the future, and come back with maps.

Let’s Get You Out of the Smoke

You don’t have to sit in that back room any longer. We built this for you – because we built it for ourselves for and know it works!

Let’s co-create your AI future. It’s time.

Email our CE leader, Kevin Clark, to book a conversation: ce@contentevolution.net
Learn more about CE at: https://contentevolution.net

Cyndi Coon, Applied Experiential Futurist
CoLab Member, Content Evolution
Founder, Applied Futures Lab

January 3, 2026labfive Leave a comment

The Abandoned Cart Myth: What Cyber Monday Reveals About Power, Pressure, and Real Resistance

Cyber Monday arrives each year with the same choreography: bold countdowns, a tidal wave of “last chance” messaging, and the familiar undertow of engineered urgency. It’s not subtle. It’s not supposed to be. These systems are built to keep attention narrowed, choices accelerated, and clicks flowing.

This year, a social media trend has been circulating the idea that if you load up your online cart and walk away, you can somehow “hurt” the corporations. It’s framed as a tiny act of rebellion, a wink at the machine. A digital version of folding your arms and saying, “Not today.”

It feels good. It’s clever.
And it’s not how the system works.

What an Abandoned Cart Really Is

Leaving items in an online cart doesn’t take money from any corporate pocket. Nothing is manufactured on your behalf. No worker is asked to re-shelve anything. No stockroom shifts. There is no wound.

Your hesitation becomes something else entirely: a data point.

Retailers expect high abandonment rates. They build their systems around it. They study it. They use it. Teams spend their days analyzing where you paused, what you clicked, and what might convert you next time.

An abandoned cart doesn’t make the machine flinch; instead, it fuels it.

What Happens Behind the Screens

Here’s the actual chain reaction when you walk away:

Your hesitation is logged as behavioral insight, not sabotage.
Automated marketing begins: reminders, follow-up emails, the ads that trail you online.
Nothing is held or reserved; inventory carries on untouched.
A few dashboards dip slightly, but the system keeps humming.

It’s ordinary, predictable, expected.

So if the abandoned cart isn’t a blow to corporate greed, why does the trend resonate so strongly right now?

The Symbolism Matters

People are feeling squeezed – by inflation, by relentless sales cycles, by a culture that treats buying as participation. Cyber Monday has become less about deals and more about a yearly behavioral ritual built to trigger speed over intention.

The impulse to push back, even symbolically, tells a story.

It says: I notice the tactics.
I feel the pressure.
And I’m not sure I want to play anymore.

That instinct is important. But the meaningful resistance doesn’t live in the cart. It lives in the pause.

Where Real Resistance Shows Up

If people want to shift the landscape, there are pressure points that actually matter:

Choosing to buy less – as a practice, not a holiday exception.
Supporting small and local businesses where your money has a visible impact.
Buying used, borrowing, repairing, and trading.
Curating experiences instead of accumulation.
Treating attention as a resource, not something to hand over every time a company rings the bell.

These choices move markets. They reshape incentives. They influence how future systems are built.

A Strange Mirror for the Season

Cyber Monday reveals a lot about modern systems: one massive, coordinated effort to shape behavior. But it also reveals the counterforce of millions of small moments where people hesitate, question, or step back.

The abandoned cart trend won’t topple corporate greed. It was never going to. But it points toward something more compelling: the quiet rise of awareness.

People are beginning to see the machinery.
They’re noticing the pressure.
And they’re reclaiming the right to choose their own pace.

Corporations don’t fear abandoned carts. They fear consumers who stop playing by their script.

That’s where the shift begins.

Read more in my Medium article titled Leaving Items Abandoned in Your Cart Won’t Hurt Corporations — But Something Else Might

Cyndi Coon is a time traveler and rule-bender, nerding out for good using data, science and curious questions as an Applied Futurist, author, creative, ecosystem builder, facilitator, producer, researcher, storyteller and publisher for: governments, the military, higher education, private partnerships, enterprise, and industry. Cyndi is the Founder and Principal Futurist at Applied Futures Lab, Founder of Laboratory5, and Co-founder of Arizona State University’s Threatcasting Lab and Press, and is the co-founder at Threatcasting.ai. Cyndi is the co-author of Threatcasting (2021), Futurecasting (2026) and the author of numerous reports, articles and book chapters. Founder and Publisher at Turkey Hill Press.She is an Affiliate at the Center for Emergency Management & Homeland Security. Chief Media Officer for Content Evolution. She leads the i4j (global innovation for jobs workforce) and Coolabilities communities, promoting inclusive and forward-thinking solutions. She is a Web 3 advisor and a Future AI Mindset expert. Connect with Cyndi at Applied Futures Lab Linktree or LinkedIn.

December 1, 2025labfive Leave a comment

Why We Choose the Bear: An Exploration of Strength, Safety, and Symbolism

When danger can appear in the most unexpected places, the question of where and how we find safety becomes deeply personal, touching on our fears, strengths, and shared experiences. We Choose The Bear, a new anthology I have co-written with Kim Larkin, invites readers to explore these themes through a powerful collection of stories, essays, poems, and artworks that challenge traditional ideas about power and protection.

BUY We Choose The Bear

At first glance, the title may evoke images of wild, untamed nature—perhaps a fierce bear stalking through the forest. But this anthology flips the script, using the bear as a symbol of safety rather than fear. The inspiration behind the book is rooted in a provocative and poignant question: Why do many women and marginalized individuals feel safer encountering a bear in the woods than a man? This question isn’t just rhetorical; it’s a lens through which the authors examine the complex dynamics of violence, trust, and survival.

Byte-Sized Book Banter Curious Questions Considered Podcast with Iris and Axil. Episode on “We Choose The Bear” book.

We Choose The Bear was created during significant celestial events in 2024, a year marked by both cosmic and cultural shifts. The anthology captures this moment in time, weaving together personal narratives, mythological themes, and cultural insights to form a rich tapestry of experiences. Each piece in the collection adds a unique thread, offering readers a diverse array of perspectives on what it means to find strength in vulnerability, to reclaim power in the face of oppression, and to redefine safety on one’s own terms.

The bear, traditionally seen as a symbol of raw, untamed power, becomes in this anthology a protector. The contributors explore this symbolism through various lenses—some stories draw from ancient myths, where bears were revered as sacred protectors; others offer contemporary narratives that reflect the lived experiences of women today, navigating a world that can often feel hostile and unpredictable.

But We Choose The Bear is more than just a collection of stories; it’s a call to action. The anthology doesn’t shy away from the harsh realities of violence and fear, but it also doesn’t leave the reader in despair. Instead, it offers a path forward, one that is rooted in solidarity, resilience, and the power of reclaiming one’s own narrative. It’s a book that speaks to the heart of what it means to be human—vulnerable yet strong, fearful yet courageous.

As you turn the pages of We Choose The Bear, you’ll find yourself drawn into a world where the boundaries between myth and reality blur, where the woods offers not just danger, but also refuge. The stories and essays will challenge you to think differently about power and protection, while the poems and artworks will leave a lasting impression, inviting you to reflect on your own experiences and beliefs.

Whether you are a seasoned reader of feminist literature, someone seeking to understand the complexities of violence and safety, a fan of art or simply a lover of thought-provoking stories, We Choose The Bear has something to offer. It’s a book that stays with you, sparking conversations and inspiring action long after you’ve finished reading.

In the end, We Choose The Bear asks us all to consider where we find our strength and how we can create a safer, more equitable world. It’s a question that resonates deeply in today’s society, and one that this anthology answers with both honesty and hope.

We Choose The Bear is available now online. Don’t miss your chance to experience this powerful and timely collection. Read it, share it, and join the conversation.

BUY We Choose The Bear