Welcome to the Multipotentialite World
Mazen sukkarieh
An "A" Team with a "B" plan is better than an "A" plan with a "B" team. Objective: "A" teams & "A" plans.
The Definition, and I quote Emilie who I think is the very first person to come up with this term – www.puttylike.com, is “a person who has many different interests and creative pursuits in life. Multipotentialites have no “one true calling” the way specialists do.”
First and foremost, hats off to Emilie who I hope finds a way to reading this article. Adding “potential” to a person with many skills and abilities creates a positive perspective to employment and most certainly, leadership, as “leading by example” becomes a definite added value to such individuals.
In my opinion, Multipotentialite is not far from the American’s take on “well rounded” or the Brit’s take on “all rounded”. According to Cambridge English Dictionary for example, an “all rounded” individual is a person who has many different types of skills and abilities. Positive as well but in a neutral sense.
What about “jack of all trades” and “master of none” then? Obviously a “negative” connotation to some extent as the definition goes to mean “a person who can do many different types of work but who is not necessarily very competent at any of them”. I say it’s a negative connotation because, as an employer, I would traditionally “avoid” a jack of all trades for not possessing the required “focus” when in reality, the “potential” of a jack of all trades is really exceptional and just requires cultivation.
Now I’m not instigating or taking away anything from specialization and focus. I’m simply putting it out there that “potential” by definition means “having or showing the capacity to become or develop into something in the future”, so imagine someone with many potentials! A real catch if you ask me.
And that leads me to one thing I would twist or add to Emilie’s definition, as a person who actually feels he himself is a Multipotentialite. Instead of no “one true calling” I would see a Multipotentialite as a person with “many true callings”.
The subject is incredibly young and has an amazing capability to grow. In our modern world, is Arnold Schwarzenegger a Multipotentialite? From bodybuilder to actor to governor to businessman?
My two cents really on the brilliant work Emilie has done with a bit of a brain scratching question to make you think whether or not you’re a Multipotentialite too and, here’s the climax, build a society of Multipotentialites that combine social consciousness and potential; thus cultivating individuals with many true callings, skills and abilities.
Cheers,
Mazen