If there is one thing that has been repeated obsessively since One Minute Economics has been launched many moons ago, it's this: economists cannot predict the future.
With those who believe otherwise either lying to you or lying to themselves about this mystical ability that nobody has.
Now there is bad and good news associated with the reality that economists cannot predict the future and that economic predictions should be taken with a huge, huge grain of salt. The bad news is that you have to tone down your expectations a notch or two with respect to what an economist can and cannot do... c'est la vie. The good news, however, is that we economists can provide more than enough value to make up for our "sin" of not being able to predict the future.
But to take advantage of said value, starting with a solid foundation is the way to go, one that revolves around sometimes-painful truths such as the one explained through this video, with there being more than enough in the way of research to make it crystal-clear that what I am publishing here is more than just an opinion :)