What if the most Maverick move isn’t predicting what’s next—but imagining what could be and daring to make it real? In this episode, Gina talks with Katie Rucker of MacKenzie Corporation about leading like a futurist: flipping scarcity into possibility, loosening rigidity, and giving your team agency to co-create the future. From the “cone of possibility” to curiosity challenges and implication wheels, Katie shows how to slow down, widen your options, and move from reactive to proactive leadership.

• Futures, not forecasts: Why there’s no crystal ball—and why “futures” is plural

• From reactive to responsive: The leadership power of the pause

• Cone of possibility: Hold a preferred future while staying adaptive to change

• Co-creation & culture: Building resilient, connected teams with agency

• Curiosity as fuel: Practical prompts to challenge assumptions and expand options

• Legacy & joy: Choosing your ladder, crafting your story, and finding presence

• Slow is bold: Why slowness might be the bravest move in a speed-obsessed world

• Everest Base Camp lesson: Simplicity, nature, and reconnecting to what matters

1. 30-Second Pause: Before you respond, breathe. Ask, “What else could be true?”

2. Curiosity Challenge (1 week): Talk to one person outside your bubble each day. Ask how they got where they are—and listen for dots to collect.

3. Flip the Script: When an idea resonates, ask: “What if the opposite were true? What would that change?”

4. Cone of Possibility Exercise: Sketch your preferred future and two alternative scenarios you don’t want. Note how you’d adapt in each.

5. Implication Wheel (5 min): If we do X, what are the 1st/2nd-order positive and negative effects in 6–24 months?

• “The future isn’t predicted—it’s co-created.”

• “You can’t connect the dots until you collect the dots.”

• “The arrow has to go back before it can move forward.”

• “Slow might be the boldest move we can make right now.”

Leaders, founders, and changemakers who feel stuck in status quo cycles—and anyone ready to trade reactivity for imagination, agency, and momentum.

• Guest: Katie Rucker, Mackenzie Corp

• Host: Gina L. Osborn — Army veteran, retired FBI ASAC, former Chief Safety & Security Officer at LA Metro

Making Maverick Moves is hosted by Gina L. Osborn and produced by Sunny Side Up Marketing. Theme music: Epic Trailer and Violin Life (Descript Stock Media). © 2025 Gina L. Osborn & Associates.

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