By Myka Kennedy Stephens June 10, 2025
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This was originally supposed to be an article about potential. Specifically exploring potential as a way of getting out of siloed thinking. I was going to tie it into some of the principles I talked about in my book, Integrated Library Planning, which presents a framework for blending strategic planning with operational planning and evaluation. Exploring potential can help break down the barriers between one mode of thinking and another, building bridges between those compartmentalized spaces our brains construct to help us manage and understand the information we hold.
However, my own brain had different ideas about writing that article.
Every time I set my mind to thinking about the topic of potential, my brain was hijacked by another train of thought that’s been running a constant circuit within me over the past few weeks: What’s the connection between potential and possibility, and what might it mean to open possibilities?
What I came to realize is that potential and possibility must be grounded in purpose to lead to meaningful transformation and change. Any conversation about potential or possibility will lack significance if it does not also draw on a sense of purpose. Let me explain.
Connection Between Potential and Possibility
Potential and possibility are related words that are often used synonymously. Oxford Languages defines potential as an adjective that means, “having or showing the capacity to become or develop into something in the future,” and the plural of possibility as meaning, “unspecified qualities of a promising nature; potential.”
However, I understand these two terms and their relationship to each other in a more nuanced way. I see possibility as something that flows out of potential, while potential is something present and extant, surviving and being shaped by the conditions or circumstances surrounding it. One requires action and imagination to be brought into being. The other is persistent yet changing and adapting.
As someone who naturally defaults to doing and action-oriented tasks when under stress, I think this is part of the reason why I found it uncomfortable to sit with the concept of potential as I contemplated this article. My brain was also more than willing to follow the distraction toward ruminating on possibility, especially after conversations I’ve had over the past several weeks about Fosgail’s tag line: Open Possibilities.
What Do I Mean by Open Possibilities?
I’m in the midst of preparing to exhibit at two library conferences this summer. This feels like a huge step and rite of passage for me as a small business owner. It’s one thing to put yourself out there on social media, where people can either react or not to the content you put out there. You don’t have to see them scroll past your content to move on to something more interesting. You don’t watch them avoid eye contact, or whisper to a colleague before walking past. Exhibiting at a conference offers me an opportunity to talk with people, make connections, and hear about their hopes and challenges in a way that’s nearly impossible to recreate in a digital landscape. Thinking about it is both exciting and terrifying.
The amount of preparation for exhibiting has been a heavier lift psychologically and creatively than I expected it to be. It is first and foremost a marketing opportunity and I have spent the past 15-plus months in a very reflective and intentional space with marketing, thanks to the support of the Better Bolder Braver community. As I contemplated booth design, giveaways, and lead capturing methods, I found myself returning to questions I’ve been trying to answer for months: Who is my audience? What are they looking for? What will this mean to them?
Fosgail’s tagline, Open Possibilities, has become the lightning rod for a lot of these thoughts and questions. I chose this tagline early in my business development and it’s been on the Fosgail website since the very beginning. I really like it and I’ve become rather attached to it. But what does it really mean? And am I successfully communicating what I mean by it?
Returning to Purpose
In order to fully understand what “open possibilities” means to me, generally and within the specific context of Fosgail, I have to circle back to purpose. I founded Fosgail because I believe that professionals who desire to infuse their work with values and purpose, who want to inspire positive change in their communities, and seek to support the development of a compassionate and well-informed human society deserve to have someone in their corner cheering them on and empowering them to learn, integrate new knowledge, problem-solve, and reflect. I gave this coaching and consulting firm the name Fosgail because I believe openness is a key component to fulfilling this purpose. What was initially one of several core values that I used to articulate what inspires and supports Fosgail’s mission has become a guiding principle.
Finding the roots of openness in Fosgail’s purpose, now allows me to better understand potential. In clarifying Fosgail’s purpose, I have made several decisions that shape our potential as a coaching and consulting firm. Clarity of purpose carries over into clarity of potential. This clarity helped me to solidify the aspects of awareness, attitudes, and practices that comprise the Fosgail Mindset. It also recently helped me to re-articulate the methodology that I bring to my coaching and consulting approach, which I’m now calling the FLIP-R approach. The Fosgail Mindset and our trademarked FLIP-R approach to coaching and consulting is not going to resonate with everyone. And that’s okay. Both of these developments, brought forth by clarifying purpose, are evidence of Fosgail’s potential to support future clients in their meaningful work.
Seeing clearer potential makes it easier to set a strategic direction and open possibilities. Which brings me full circle to the question that’s been my preoccupation for the last several weeks. If potential is always present, shaped by context and circumstance, then possibility becomes the various paths that might be taken and realized. Possibility flows from potential. It is a thread that may be followed to the next point in time and space; a point in time and space where context and circumstance may be different. Opening possibilities means connecting to a sense of purpose, exploring the potential of the current situation, and imagining all the threads that extend from that potential. Each of these threads leads to a unique possibility, some may be pursued and reached simultaneously or in tandem, while others may be mutually exclusive. Choosing which threads to follow and acting on that decision is what opens possibilities. That’s where I see Fosgail being most effective as a provider of coaching and consulting services. We help you discover purpose, explore potential, and open possibilities.
Empowerment Through Exploring Potential
“They had such potential.” I’ve heard this phrase too often throughout my life in reference to myself, my friends, my children, or my children’s friends. The usage of the past tense—had potential—is indicative of the speaker’s opinion on choices made by the subject of the phrase, usually a negative opinion. It implies that potential has been squandered or lost as a result of those choices. When caught on the receiving end of such a statement, the effect on self-esteem and confidence can be damaging.
Life is made up of choices. Each decision we make leads to more choices. Potential is not generated by some choices or decisions and not others. Potential is, full stop. And potential will always be there no matter which choices we’re presented with and which decision we ultimately make. Potential, that extant capacity to become something in the future, persists and changes shape as our future changes shape through our choices and decisions. For example, a person with artistic abilities does not lose their potential by pursuing a career outside of art. They have just as much potential as before. What has changed, however, is that their potential is now shaped by the context and circumstance of a decision to pursue a career outside of art instead of being shaped solely by artistic ability.
The same holds true for our work situations, our institutions and organizations. Being in a resource-deprived environment, like an underfunded library or a college with declining enrollment, can be seen as a situation bereft of potential. In actuality, there is just as much potential in these situations as there is in a resource-rich environment. What is different is the context and circumstance that is shaping the potential. Getting caught up in the negative, like focusing on poor choices that were made in the past or fixating on all the things that are lacking, only amplify the perception that potential is diminished. If we choose instead to fully explore potential, and reference that exploration with how we define our purpose, we’re empowered to imagine and open possibilities that are within our reach.
Feeling Stuck? Prompts to Reflect and Recalibrate
It’s not always easy or straightforward to flip your thinking from one of limited potential to open possibility. As illustrated by my own thought journey, we have to be willing to reflect on purpose, potential, and possibility to uncover the connections and imagine the full spectrum of what the future may hold. Here are a few questions that may help with this.
Where is the unexplored potential in this situation? You may believe you’ve fully mapped out the situation and are aware of all the avenues available to you, but it’s always helpful to go back and re-examine. Try looking at the situation from a fresh perspective. Hidden potential might be lying in a place that’s not visible to you from your usual vantage point.
What possibilities can you imagine? This question encourages you to dream a little. While staying grounded in present realities, visualize possible futures. Use all your senses and think of what you can see, touch, feel, taste, and hear.
What would it take to open new possibilities? Once you’ve imagined some possibilities, think through what skills, resources, and tools might help you open possibilities. Try to avoid eliminating possibilities because you don’t have the right skills, resources, and tools. This is about identifying what would support you.
How does your purpose align with the situation? Where are the points of friction? This is an important reflective question that takes you deeper into what lies underneath potential and possibility. The points of alignment between our purpose and a situation positively affect our perception of potential. The points of friction between our purpose and a situation have a negative effect. If there is more friction than alignment, this may be a signal to focus on potential and possibilities that help realign you or your organization with a sense of purpose.
With greater awareness of your sense of purpose and the possibilities you imagine, how might you connect with potential to open those possibilities? Harnessing all the potential in a situation can empower you to open amazing possibilities. Especially when it is tethered in one direction to a deep sense of purpose and in the other direction to a positively grounded future vision. This is the place to proclaim, “There’s just as much potential here as there was before,” and silence the dissenting voices who would say that potential has been lost.
Invitation to Further Conversation
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