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This critical discussion considers the relevance of twenty-first-century skills, commonly referred to as the 4C’s: creativity, communication, critical thinking and collaboration, in the current Australian educational landscape. This suite of skills has been identified by future-focused think tanks and academics as essential for life and work. Australian and international reports demonstrate that creativity, communication, critical thinking and collaboration are essential in the workforce and for solving increasingly complex problems such as climate challenges and the rise of disinformation and misinformation. Industry reports underscore that creative skills and social intelligence will be vital in an era of automation, and essential for developing entrepreneurship and critical thinking. In the swirl of literature about the future capacities for life and work it is important to ask whether the 4C’s, as currently defined, support future-focused and hopeful thinking for and by young people. This chapter audaciously reframes the 4C’s into S plus 3C’s (story, curiosity, curation, compassion) to push forward a change agenda for teaching, learning and work to equip young people to thrive in a dynamic and competitive global economy.