Imaginology is a future-oriented methodology and mindset that uses imagination as a strategic tool for meaningful innovation.
Rather than starting with problems or constraints, Imaginology begins with dreams — idealized visions of the future — and works backwards to shape concepts, products, or services that are not only relevant today, but resilient across multiple future scenarios.
Imaginology invites individuals, teams, and organizations to:
- Imagine new realities
- Explore alternative futures
- Shape a guiding imaginary goal
- Translate that vision into adaptive, scalable action
It is especially powerful in contexts where systems are stuck, visions are missing, or where purpose needs to be redefined for long-term relevance.
The Imaginology Process
A dynamic, iterative process that combines imagination, systems thinking, scenario planning, and creative prototyping:
1. Imagine
“Start with the dream.”
Visualize an ideal world in the year 2030 or beyond, where your product, service, or organization is thriving. Don’t hold back. What does that future look like? What role do you play?
🛠️ Tools:
- Storytelling prompts (“In a world where…”)
- Guided imagination journeys
- Collective dream sessions
- Metaphorical thinking & analogies
- Role-playing (as fictional or iconic personas)
2. Disorient
“Blur the lines between fact and fiction.”
Challenge current assumptions. Disrupt your own logic. Distinguish what’s real, what’s imagined, and what might be possible if we stopped assuming it wasn’t.
🛠️ Tools:
- Fact vs. fiction exercises
- Dream-mapping with current limitations
- Edge-case thinking
- Oblique scenarios
3. Translate
“Bring the dream into focus.”
Identify which parts of the imagined world are already possible, which are not yet feasible, and which actions could bring them closer. Start shaping the contours of potential futures.
🛠️ Tools:
- Dual-track mapping: feasible vs. non-feasible
- System scans
- Technology readiness mapping
- “Best current equivalent” models
4. Design Futures
“Create multiple strategic pathways.”
Map out several possible futures and define which decisions or actions hold value across different paths. Work with switching points, dependencies, and co-evolving systems.
🛠️ Tools:
- Scenario planning
- Strategic switchboards (like train junctions)
- Timeline simulations
- Backcasting
5. Amplify
“Boost momentum where it emerges.”
Identify and strengthen what contributes positively to progress. Work with energy, flow, and alignment — not against it. Like martial arts, use the system’s own movement to gain advantage.
🛠️ Tools:
- Amplifier visualizations (sloped lines showing energy gain)
- Aikido with ideas
- Momentum mapping
- Layered pilot strategies
- Celebration and feedback rituals
6. Ground
“Make it tangible and start building.”
Translate your insights and scenarios into modular, flexible prototypes and implementation strategies. Focus on living systems, adaptability, and long-term alignment with your imaginary goal.
🛠️ Tools:
- Prototyping and testing
- Progressive implementation roadmaps
- Modularity-based innovation
- Scenario validation loops
Unique Features of Imaginology
- Future-Proof Purpose: Defines a durable sense of purpose that holds across multiple future scenarios.
- Playground over Canvas: Prefers interactive, dynamic environments (playgrounds) over static templates.
- Imaginative Intelligence: Taps into the highest cognitive ability—imagination—as a design and decision tool.
- Multiple Deliverables: Results can be stories, prototypes, future maps, rituals, sounds, or business strategies.
- Imaginary Goals: Introduces a new class of guiding principles—aspirational but strategically grounded.
Maarten Meijer — an Imaginologist. A conceptual thinker who moves between creativity, systems and strategy. I design visions, frameworks and futures that challenge the expected and open new possibilities.
My mission is simple: To initiate creation.
By disrupting fixed patterns, I help people think differently — to imagine what could be, and make it real.