The world is too much with us. It was 1802 when English Romantic poet William Wordsworth remarked that humanity was wasting its energy on the quest for material acquisition. Centuries later, we may wonder if we are better or worse off – with growing numbers suffering from maladies ranging from affluenza to social media addiction, narcissism, and worse. As respected futurist Thomas Lombardo puts it, “We are becoming lost and forlorn, drowning in an overpowering present.” In this short and insightful book, he calls us to instead create new forms of inspiration that will guide us to wisdom.

In an erudite yet accessible style, Thomas Lombardo outlines the impact today’s culture is having on us. Individually and collectively, we are compulsively focused on the present, seeking external validation. Instead, he emboldens us to choose a path to what he calls a Good Future, by acknowledging and developing our internal resources for wisdom. This Good Future enriches and transcends our reliance on the present for validation, and infuses our lives with a heightened sense of inner value through such numinous qualities as self-evolution, courage, critical thinking, and transcendence. These qualities and more, Lombardo argues, lead us out of the shadow and into the light. Lombardo maps out the journey toward virtue and wisdom using key visionaries as navigators and outlines the personal steps necessary to aid us in discovering our individual wisdom narrative. This tool is one that propels us forward, inspiring us to live the truly engaged life, rather than be in the backseat of our own existence. In this way, we can actively create the future we all dream of. 

The Pursuit of Virtue is part of the new Manifest Series

Manifest is a series of small books that address the important topics and issues of our time, written by activists, philosophers, seers, and poets. Intended as insight guides for those on journeys of discovery, hope, faith, resilience, and regeneration, they speak truth.