Are You a Multipotentialite?

Because I know I am! Finally now I have a name for it – for someone who has multiple interests and careers - a multi-potentialite or multi-passionate.

It’s a term I hadn’t heard before – not sure who originally coined it – but I first came across this notion on a podcast on “Creative Warriors” by Jeffrey Shaw which features interviews with creative entrepreneurs. Fascinating stuff – Emilie Wapnick has researched people who have multiple interests and multiple careers often at the same time and is writing a book about it. Then I saw her on a TED talk. She says that she trained as a lawyer but decided not to pursue that career – she’s felt free to pursue other avenues, such as music.

I realised when I heard that podcast and listened to her Ted talk that that is what I am – and have always been. A multipotentialite – quite a mouthful, but accurately describing those of us who can’t concentrate on just one thing – ever! We’re mega-curious and interested in always stretching ourselves and finding out more.

I’ve spent a lifetime trying to focus on one thing and feeling bad about not doing that – suddenly here I have permission! I’ve done many things and came to a career in teaching fairly late – that is my passion, but not the only one. I love painting and writing and languages and pursue those equally passionately.

I don’t have a one track mind – I have a multi-track mind, and that’s OK!

That doesn’t mean that we’re Jacks of all Trades and Masters of None – not by a long shot! It simply means, I think, that our brains are wired differently and that we should work with what we have, maximising our potential rather than railing against and denying our natural tendencies.

The trick, I think, is to remember that you need to spend around 10,000 hours to actually perfect a skill (or so they say) and while staying on several tracks at once, building momentum and refining those skills is a skill in itself.

What works for some is setting small blocks of time - 30 minutes to an hour on one task and then moving to the next.

Rewarding yourself (not necessarily with chocolate cake, although that’s nice!) when small tasks have been successfully completed is another way to go.

I wonder if our school system recognised these traits in some children, and instead of labelling them ADHD, which they may or may not be, and if they tailored lessons to accommodate just these sort of differences, what outcomes might we have?

Kids are often asked “What do you want to be when you grow up?” and the pressure is already on at a very young age to choose one thing. What if we took the pressure off and said “What things do you want to DO when you grow up?”

Just a thought…

In the world of the future where most people will have more than one career, where job security will not be what it once was and where short term working contracts will be the norm, those who have multiple interests and many skills will most certainly be in demand. And that has to be a good thing, right?