Hidden Potential

In Hidden Potential, organizational psychologist Adam Grant challenges one of society’s most entrenched myths—that greatness belongs to the naturally gifted. He argues that the most accomplished people aren’t born exceptional; they become exceptional through sustained learning, character development, and supportive environments. Hidden potential, he writes, is not a spark that few possess but a fire that anyone can kindle with persistence and structure.

Grant points to research showing that people routinely misjudge potential, overestimating innate intelligence and underestimating the power of practice and opportunity. He illustrates this through compelling stories:

• The Raging Rooks, a Harlem-based chess team composed of middle schoolers from one of New York’s poorest neighborhoods, defied expectations by becoming national champions. Their coach, Maurice Ashley, didn’t focus on raw talent but on building their resilience, focus, and teamwork.

• José Hernández, the son of migrant farmworkers, applied to NASA eleven times before being accepted. He systematically improved every weakness—earning his pilot’s license, mastering Russian, and pursuing advanced degrees. His ascent from picking crops to space exemplifies the book’s message: potential is not where you start, but how far you climb.

• Evelyn Glennie, a deaf percussionist, learned to “hear” music through vibrations, becoming one of the world’s most celebrated musicians. Her story reinforces Grant’s belief that limits are often self-imposed or environmental—not inherent.

Grant argues that our fixation on early talent blinds us to late bloomers. Many “geniuses” were initially overlooked: Einstein worked as a patent clerk, Darwin was considered unremarkable, and Tolstoy dropped out of university. What set them apart was not early brilliance but sustained curiosity and relentless learning.

Building Character Skills

Grant asserts that what truly predicts success are character skills—the inner capacities that drive perseverance, adaptability, and collaboration. He defines these as learned traits like grit, discipline, proactivity, curiosity, empathy, and humility. Unlike IQ, character skills are trainable and, crucially, contagious—they grow in communities that model them.

He references longitudinal studies such as the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study, which followed children for decades. The findings revealed that self-control and conscientiousness in childhood predicted higher income, better health, and stronger relationships than IQ did.

Grant gives examples across professions:

• Elite athletes like Serena Williams succeed not solely due to physical talent but due to the ability to withstand monotony, train under pressure, and rebound from defeat.

• Entrepreneurs such as Sara Blakely, founder of Spanx, demonstrate character-driven resilience. Blakely reframed “failure” as feedback—her father encouraged her to share daily mistakes at dinner, teaching her to celebrate learning over perfection.

• Educators and leaders who model vulnerability, like Satya Nadella at Microsoft, create environments where empathy and psychological safety fuel innovation.

Character skills, Grant emphasizes, act as multipliers: they amplify the impact of cognitive and technical abilities. A person of average intelligence with high determination and cooperation can outperform a lone genius without discipline or emotional awareness.

Learning Through Discomfort

Grant’s mantra could be summarized as: “If it doesn’t challenge you, it doesn’t change you.” Growth requires embracing discomfort—the friction that stretches capability. He builds on the neuroscience of learning, showing that struggle activates neural rewiring in the prefrontal cortex, ...