Hidden Potential in Education

What Hidden Potential, the Science of Achieving Greater Things­ by Adam Grant Taught Me About the Role of Character in Student Success.

What if student success in the classroom depended not only on personality or performance, but also, and perhaps more importantly, on character?

Reading Adam Grant’s Hidden Potential: The Science of Achieving Greater Things highlighted several key ideas for me: growth begins in discomfort, the best teams rely on collaboration, and the right type of coaching can transform capacity. These insights prompted me to reconsider not only how students learn, but also how educators can support them in their journey.

Daniel Pink reminds us, in this podcast, (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhZ6QAYlA_g) that true learning requires active engagement. One way to stay engaged while reading is to pause at the end of each chapter and capture the “big idea” in one or two sentences. This approach helped me internalize Grant’s concepts and translate them into strategies for education. Here are the key takeaways I believe are especially relevant for teachers and coaches.

Character Before Comfort: The Driving Force of Success

Grant’s work made me realize that we often judge students by their starting point, i.e. test scores, early performance, or personality traits. Yet, the book convinced me that potential is not about where students begin, but how far they can go. What truly matters is not personality such as introversion, optimism, perfectionism, but character, the ability to act according to one’s values despite natural tendencies, even when it is difficult.

For teachers and coaches: Growth happens when students step outside their comfort zones. A shy student finding the courage to speak up, or a procrastinator learning to push through discomfort, are victories of character, not personality. Our role is to create conditions where students practice courage, persistence, and restraint, especially in moments of difficulty.

Coaching That Unlocks Potential: Building Capacity, Not Just Confidence

Grant challenged my understanding of simply “praising effort.” What is important is the type of guidance provided. Feedback looks backward; advice looks forward. Telling a student “well done” does not promote growth. Asking, “What could you do differently next time?” creates a path for progress.

I learned that effective coaching is like scaffolding: providing targeted support at the start, then gradually stepping back to foster student ownership.

This shift is crucial: feedback corrects, but advice builds. And building capacity is what truly unlocks potential.

For teachers and coaches: Specific, forward-looking guidance is more effective than vague praise. Students need strategies to advance, not just confidence.

Turning Discomfort into a Learning Ally

Discomfort and struggle are not signs of failure; they are signals of learning in progress.

Grant reframes procrastination as a potential emotional issue: not laziness but avoidance or feelings such as frustration or inadequacy. Supporting students to recognize and face these emotions builds resilience.

For teachers and coaches: Normalize discomfort. Tell students, “If this feels hard, it may mean it’s working.” Remind them that readiness comes through action, not before it.

Focusing on the Task, Not Learning Styles

Grant’s critique of fixed “learning styles” was particularly striking. Preferences exist, but they do not determine where real learning occurs. Often, students learn most when pushed outside their comfort zones.

• ​ Reading and writing sharpen critical thinking.
• Listening deepens empathy and emotional understanding.
• Hands-on practice strengthens memory.

The best learning happens when the method matches the task, not when it matches the learner’s comfort. A student who insists they “learn best by listening” may need to write to truly analyze ideas. Another who prefers writing might deepen their learning by joining a dialogue.

For teachers and coaches: Ask “What does this task require?” not “What’s your preferred style for learning?” Encouraging students to engage with multiple modalities often leads to deeper learning.

Prosocial Skills: The Glue of High-Performing Teams

The smartest teams are not filled with the highest achievers—they’re filled with collaborators who bring out the best in one another. Icebreakers and ropes courses may build camaraderie, but they do not necessarily build performance. What matters most is a shared mission and mutual reliance.

Grant warns of the “babble effect”, mistaking the loudest voice for the wisest. Teams thrive not because one person dominates, but because members listen deeply, include others, and elevate the conversation. The best leaders are not the loudest, but the best listeners.

For teachers and coaches: Selecting student leaders who include and listen to others is key. Teamwork flourishes when every voice has value, and when each member of a team plays a meaningful role.

Teaching To Develop Student Character

Character is not loud and it does not appear on a transcript, yet is is central to lasting learning. Discipline, determination, resiliency, grit, and the willingness to embrace discomfort are skills that can be nurtured.

Scaffolding remains critical: guide at first, then gradually withdraw support to build independence. Group work also benefits from structure. Instead of traditional brainstorming, where the loudest voices dominate, Grant suggests “brainwriting”: students generate ideas individually, share anonymously, then evaluate collectively. This balances personal creativity with group collaboration.

For teachers and coaches: Teaching for character means designing classrooms where students not only learn content but also practice persistence, courage, and cooperation. Scaffold early, then step back to let them own their progress.

Towards Transformative Education: Impact and Action

We live in a system that often measures performance such as test scores and rankings. But if we only measure what students can do today, we miss what they could become tomorrow. What transforms a life is not information but character: persistence, courage, humility, and the willingness to lean into discomfort. Character is not who students are; it is what they choose to do with who they are.

Concrete Strategies to Unlock Hidden Potential

• Replace vague feedback (“good job”) with forward-looking advice (“next time, try adding an example”).
• Scaffold learning early, then gradually step back to build independence.
• Reframe procrastination as avoidance of feelings, and teach students to face those feelings.
• Normalize discomfort: “This is hard” means “this is working.”
• Match the method to the task: writing for analysis, listening for empathy, doing for memory.
• Structure group work around shared goals and unique roles; avoid domination by the loudest voice.
• Use “brainwriting” instead of brainstorming to ensure all students contribute ideas.

Contributor: Marcia Banks