Is there any point in looking at potential?

I am a career consultant who, in the process of working with over 10,000 people struggling with their careers, has acquired the
skills for understanding people necessary for career support and now teaches them to other career supporters.

This might not make much sense, but I am a career consultant who has a bit of confidence in the technique of drawing out things like
“I don’t know what I want to do”
or “I don’t have any strengths”
from people who are struggling, leading them to say things like
“Maybe I want to do this!”
“Actually, maybe something other than just what I want to do is more important for work!”
“So this is a strength! I didn’t realize it because I do it unconsciously!”
and so on.

I have published a book that details how to draw these things out!
Book: All the Techniques of “Assessment” to Gain Confidence in Career Support
You can purchase it on Amazon!

Thankfully, while many people are impressed, saying things like “I see, so that’s how you draw out latent potential,” or “You look that far ahead when choosing a job?” I have also received questions like
“Is potential even necessary in the first place?”
“Isn’t it enough to judge a person solely on whether they have manifest abilities or whether they have clearly and easily produced results?”

Please think about this yourselves.

■ What is “potential” in the first place?

In a word, it can be defined as “the possibility of being active in the future.” It is often used in corporate recruitment activities, but it is a way of thinking that looks not at “current skills and experience,” but at “future growth potential and room for activity.”

This is slightly different from “abilities that are already being used but are hard to see.” Skills that are already being used but are
hard to see are strengths called “qualifications” that you can immediately produce when asked to “prove you can do this,” or “techniques” and “abilities” that can produce results (fixing or making things). Because you have been doing them, you can do them efficiently and quickly, the level difference is clear in workplace performance rankings or grades, and if you ask about the success factors, you can judge the abilities and techniques the person is currently using (though it is hard to see).
Many of these are polished through practical work and acquired a posteriori,

such as high logical thinking ability or high-sense design ability. Although it is quite hard to see, if you listen deeply to the “process of succeeding at X,” you can immediately tell that they are using various abilities and techniques. On the other hand,


“abilities that have not yet been used or blossomed” are
potential

that they possess but is still dormant because there was no scene to use it, and it will blossom depending on training and environment.

Imagine students with little business experience, or mid-career hires or people transferring departments who were in completely different work environments. For example, someone who has always been treated as a newcomer in an environment filled with veterans has not had a place to demonstrate leadership in the workplace for many years. Even if you ask, they haven’t had any particularly notable team activities, but if they have a high orientation toward reaching out to people in trouble, ideas for boosting team morale, or improving the work environment, there is a high possibility that they will demonstrate very good leadership depending on the environment and training. However, because they haven’t done it yet, those around them might be anxious and not entrust it to them suddenly, and the person themselves may not be aware of that potential, so if asked “What are your strengths?”, they will almost never answer “leadership.” I will say it again and again: it is the difference between a person who can be active if entrusted and trained, and a person who cannot do it even if entrusted and trained.

Therefore, in an interview, not only “What steps did you take to achieve it? (the history of what you have done),” but also
“When you encounter a difficult problem you haven’t done before (you can present a concrete scene), what do you think and how?”
“If you were to devise your own way to do X, which you haven’t been entrusted with yet, what would you want to do?”
“Is there anything you haven’t done yet that you want to challenge yourself with?”

and so on, you can grasp it by drawing it out from abstract will and thoughts, and having them verbalize their way of thinking more concretely, for a subject that has no concrete episodes or achievements and is still intuitive and groping.

Now, returning to the question “Is potential necessary?” As mentioned above, manifest abilities and qualifications are certainly indicators that show current performance. Relative comparisons and achievements/results are also easy to understand and evaluate. However, relying solely on them carries the risk of lacking the ability to respond to a company’s long-term growth and transformation. In corporate recruitment and training, it is important to



judge not only current abilities and qualifications, but also whether they can respond to future growth and change.

■ Adaptability to a rapidly changing environment

The modern business environment is changing rapidly. Talent that can respond to technological innovation and changes in market trends is required not only to rely on current skills and qualifications, but also to have the motivation to continue learning, flexibility, and the ability to adapt to change. By judging potential, not just the power and results currently being demonstrated, the possibility of hiring talent that can respond to future changes increases. Conversely, if you don’t judge whether they can withstand future environmental changes, they might become a burden, leading to unhappiness for both sides.

■ Can contribute to organizational growth

For a company to continue to grow, it needs to constantly incorporate new ideas and perspectives without being satisfied with the status quo. Talent with that potential can go beyond limited abilities, accept new challenges, and evolve their roles within the organization. Relying only on manifest abilities may make it difficult to support the growth the organization seeks. You can see that it is good to be able to judge whether a person can evolve with the organization.

■ Flexibility to handle diverse tasks

In recent years, job-based employment has increased, but in companies, unforeseen situations and new projects always occur. Talent with the ability to adapt to new tasks and different roles in addition to their current work can meet the diverse needs of the company. It is certainly difficult to define what kind of skills that refers to because it differs for each area, but if you are just obsessed with manifest abilities, the point of how many diverse jobs that person can handle in the future can become uncertain.

■ Elements that support potential

The following elements are often treated as indicators of “potential” in general recruitment settings, so please use them as a reference.

1. Learning motivation and absorption capacity - The ability to quickly understand and put new things into practice
   (e.g., an attitude of studying and finding one's own ways to improve even without experience)

2. Flexibility - Adaptability to respond to changes in environment and circumstances
   (e.g., whether one can work with people who have different values)

3. Problem-finding and solution-oriented mindset - Whether one can notice issues and take action on their own, rather than just doing what they are told

4. Persistence and tenacity - Whether one has the ability to see things through even in difficult situations

5. Self-understanding and self-reflection - The ability to recognize one's own strengths and weaknesses and work on improvements

6. Personal charm (future potential) - Whether one possesses the sincerity and cooperativeness that earn the trust of those around them

It is similar to "less visible skills already in use", but the difference lies in whether you can judge them
without including the presence or absence of experience and results using these skills in your evaluation. It is quite difficult, but please try using it as a reference.

Conclusion: A balance between potential and manifest ability is important

Manifest abilities and qualifications are important for achieving certain results in the short term, but from a long-term perspective, it can be said that talent who also possess latent potential are more likely to contribute sustainably.
Although potential may seem unclear at first glance, it is possible to foresee and identify future performance through interviews and evaluation systems.

Young people, in particular, do not yet have enough experience to produce business results.
Rather than checking based on work experience, you can use it as an indicator to judge whether there is room for growth, such as the background of how they achieved results, the effort process, and the thinking ability, communication skills, and learning attitude backed by their sense, even in their student days or outside of work.

I believe that assessing potential is also an essential element of human resource strategy that looks toward the future of a company.