Multipotenitalites have no one true calling but seek to pursue their numerous creative and other interests. Multipotentialites are not specialists in one particular area of expertise but might be a Jack-of-All-Trades or masters of none. 

Multipotenialites explore their many interests, as innovators with divergent thinking, and they may feel that is their true destiny. They can pursue their interests one after the other or simultaneously.

With many gifts, talents, and passions, multipotentialites appear to be continuous learners who seek to acquire new knowledge about things that interest them. 

As they engage in creative thinking and problem solving and enjoy mastering new skills, multipotentialites can be autodidactic while learning and synthesizing at a rapid pace. 

They can also get bored without variety, novelty, and new challenges. These individuals may be the job jumpers who contribute their talents to a company and then need to move on because they seek new career challenges.

Having a broad range of skills to “connect the dots” can lead multipotenialites into leadership roles with the ability to see the big picture from a 30,000-foot view. 

If not working for a company, they might be entrepreneurs solving problems in their communities or the world and then might sell the masterpiece they built to move on to the next. 

Below is a personal story and why this term is of interest 

In Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, the borough of Pottstown recently made the national news with a house that exploded, sadly resulting in deaths and injuries. I feel the pain of this community, as it has a special meaning to me. 

The Pottstown School District was the first place I taught in a public school, starting with teaching eighth grade French the first year and then gifted and talented for the next few years. 

I also taught for the Carnegie Mellon C-Mites program of gifted and talented children for over seven years before the program ended. The program ran on weekends at Lower Merion High School, where Kobe Bryant played as number 33.

As a former gifted and talented teacher, I also had students who were dual-exceptionality, or 2e (twice exceptional), meaning they also had a disability and an IQ of over 130. Other diagnoses included Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, other neurodivergent labels, or perhaps other disabilities. 

As a K-12 teacher,

I wrote IEPs (individualized educational plans), GIEPs (gifted individualized educational plans), and revaluations for students. Writing resumes and LinkedIn profiles for individuals are like writing GIEPs for adults! That might be another story for another time. 

I have had first-hand experience with the brilliant minds of K-12 students, who are now adults and may be multipotentialites. 

In addition to working in public education, I have also had experience working in corporate, nonprofit, and entrepreneurial environments. Does this make me a multipotentialite? Good question and a definite maybe!

When I was a job seeker in 2013,  I was told I needed to hyperfocus and have tunnel vision on a specific job specialty to land a job. Folks at networking meetings told me I was all over the map with my interests, and after I landed the job, I could let out my eclectic self.

I felt I had garnered some pretty good business acumen with all of the experiences I had in my life. When my husband was alive, we took a start-up from zero to $5-$7 million a year and hired 24 employees for a general contracting and construction management company. Construction was one of seven industries where I reinvented or did career pivots. 

Change is constant, right?

So how might being a multipotentialite or a career pivoter deal with their LinkedIn profile? The answer is … it depends. There really is no clear cut answer! Just be your authentic self! Use the keywords that reflect your skills, especially for your next position. 

LinkedIn is a database, and key titles and keywords are in that database. If you are a job seeker, you want to position yourself in your future forward, whatever that might be. It could be the same industry or role you have always been in, or it could be completely different. 

Recruiters and hiring managers search for key titles and keywords.  If you properly position yourself and use the right words, you can be found. By focusing on your headline, positioning statement, story, and keywords, you can more clearly share your personal brand.

If you don’t know what you want to be when you grow up as an adult, career coaches who do assessments might be what you need to help you sort out your career path options. 

If you are in your teens, a career assessment might also be appropriate, not to mention exploring the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook and O*Net. 

If you as an adult or recent graduate and are scratching your head about your next career move, we have extraordinary speakers on so many relevant topics at the Great Careers Network. Look at the very bottom of the events page on the website for a list of upcoming events. It might be your week to attend!

There is something for everyone who is a working adult interested in career management. 

It is your time to take charge of your career, whether or not you are a mutipotentialite, so keep learning about current career trends and keep networking!

NEXT STEPS

• Subscribe to my newsletter on LinkedIn for bright ideas to manage your career.
• Join as a member at https://greatcareers.org/membership of the #1 business networking association on the Philadelphia Business Journal’s Book of Lists two years in a row! 
• Register on the events page for these upcoming online events noted below.
• If you need a resume or LinkedIn profile to get you to your next step, book a call to chat!
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