Why is it that visionaries such as Steve Jobs, Richard Branson, and Walt Disney seem to have extraordinary powers of ESP? Are they just born that way, or can vision be learned?

In Ten Steps Ahead: What Separates Successful Business Visionaries from the Rest of Us, Erik Calonius argues that vision is anything but an inborn talent. Instead, it’s the result of carefully training one’s brain to work with inspiration and perspective. This book is a very fun read, filled with all kinds of good stuff from neuroscience, psychology, and interviews with entrepreneurs.

One of my favorite examples is Richard Wiseman’s luck experiment. Using questionnaires and interviews, he determined whether his subjects considered themselves lucky or unlucky. He then gave them all a newspaper, and asked them to count the photographs. The “unlucky” people took two minutes to count them, while the “lucky” people took only a few seconds. Why?

Because the “unlucky” people missed the huge message on page 2 that said, “Stop counting. There are 43 photographs in this newspaper.” They didn’t see the half-page message in 2-inch high type because they were too busy counting.

His explanation: “Unlucky people miss chance opportunities because they are too focused on looking for something else. They go to parties intent on finding their perfect partner, and so miss opportunities to make good friends. They look through newspapers determined to find certain types of job advertisements and as a result miss other types of jobs. Lucky people are more relaxed and open, and therefore see what is there rather than just what they are looking for.”

Anyway, if you want to learn why visionaries have an uncanny ability to see and shape where the world is heading, read this book.