When you have more metaphorical miles behind you than ahead of you, it can seem a bit silly to spend time exploring your own untapped potential.
But Adam Grant just hits me different — he is to my 40s and 50s what Oprah was to my 30s — someone who can steer me through the mental clutter to better see the paths that lie ahead. It’s a bit like doing a closet deep clean to find a power suit I forgot I had. (Albeit, these days much closer to a very well put together Vuori ensemble and less the Kasper suit I wore in the early 90s.)
“Hidden Potential” is Grant’s followup to “Think Again,” one of my favorite nonfiction reads in recent years. It would be super convenient to suggest I should have read Hidden Potential about 20 years ago, when I had a longer career path still ahead, but honestly, I don’t know if the message would have had the same resonance it has today, now that I am over 50 and officially out of f*cks to give about all sorts of things. (It’s liberating!)
In three parts, Grant breaks down the myth behind potential and delivers a well-served kick in the butt to the societal “norms” that have placed roadblocks in the way of some pretty phenomenal go-getters. Like world-class chess teams from Harlem. Or an astronaut wannabe that are up a migrant picking fruit up and down the coast of California. Or a deaf drummer. Or a knuckleball pitcher.
Using real-life examples, Grant is able to break down the systematic devices in place that not so much set people to fail as they do set them up to go unnoticed. By getting comfortable with being uncomfortable, by turning back to find a different path, or even by just re-imagining what perfection should look like (“Good enough!” should be a much more widely embraced mantra), one may find the skillsets and strengths they had all along, lying dormant and waiting.
This will also be the read that introduced me to the concept of wabi sabi — the art of honoring beauty in imperfection. I am going to be wabi sabi-ing the shit out of everything from work projects to cookie baking to cleaning my closet. Now I know this is indeed a THING, I am going to own it. All in, baby! (It’s probably important to point out wabi wabi is not an off-ramp to mediocrity. It’s more like an off-ramp from perfectionism. Maybe an escape pod from self-imposed anxiety.)
It’s my guess everyone walks away from organization psychology reads with a different message to take to heart and/or breathe new life into the day-to-day. I wholly recommend Hidden Potential as your next stop toward getting unstuck. Well worth the read.
LitzyDitz 
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