Use More To Have More

Use More To Have More

The more you use your abilities, the more you will be able to benefit from them.

We often wonder why people who are already capable are blessed with more, while most others live average lives. How can a Jack Welch also be a successful speaker, author and columnist? And how could Vikram Sarabhai, the father of India’s space programme, simultaneously be a successful physicist, businessman, educationist and statistician? How could he possibly create institutions as diverse as the Indian space research organisation (ISRO) and the Indian institutes of management (IIM)? Are people like Welch and Sarabhai blessed with extraordinary talents, or does something else tip things in their favour?

Human capabilities can be divided into two broad sorts: Obvious capabilities are those that we are conscious about. We exhibit and utilise these every day. Our obvious capabilities are pretty much on display all the time. Or they could be discovered with very little effort. They are embedded in our basic tendencies. For example, from an early age, Bill Gates had always showed a deep interest in computing. When he set up Microsoft with co-founder Paul Allen, Gates knew that his strengths were in computing and that was where he invested his time and money. How a college drop-out used his passion to become the richest man in the world is plainly visible to everyone.

Hidden capabilities are different from obvious capabilities. They can be developed only by wilful determination, requiring some amount of effort before their discovery. To discover your hidden capabilities, you would have to boldly embrace opportunities, even when you are not sure. This requires you to be aware of the new opportunities you are exposed to. By being at the helm of the world’s largest software corporation, Bill Gates was constantly thinking about the future of technology to give his company a competitive edge. That led him to the broader realm of how technology could change the world. His thoughts were no longer limited to emerging technology, but he was now imagining the future. He was constantly building and improving it. He was no longer just a computer geek, but a management guru —evangelising the latest management techniques. A futurist — defining the way things would be. An author — writing about how things are changing and even a world reformer — driving projects that were changing lives for the better.

How can you improve your obvious capabilities and discover hidden capabilities? The basic law regarding your hidden and obvious capabilities is the Law of Use and Possess. According to this law, if you use more, you have more; if you use less, you have less.

Use more to have more: Very simply, the more you exploit opportunities around you, the more you will come across them. If you utilise the immediate, short-term opportunities that you come across rather than wait for that perfect situation, you will receive more long-term opportunities. If you did not start out on the first conquest, you would never have had the opportunity for more. That one initiative told you about your warring capabilities and your leadership qualities; and legions fell before you. If you had instead chosen to stay put and deal with your kingdom, you would never have gone out and made the whole world your kingdom. The more you use your capabilities, the more you reveal about yourself, to yourself.
Use less to have less: You could also choose to destroy your capabilities by running away from situations; by never learning or by never making an effort. You squander away your capabilities — and they are never again able to regain their original shape. The less you use your capabilities, the less you will benefit. Slowly, you will lose all that you had once owned.

As a leader, choose more. When situations demand, face them by investing your capabilities wisely. As you develop them, more doors will open up for you. Only in this way would you improve your existing capabilities and discover more hidden ones.


ON LEADERSHIP: SANGEETH VARGHESE for BUSINESS WORLD

The author is a leadership scholar from the LSE and founder of LeadCap. His book, Decide to Lead: Eight Decisions That Can Make You A Leader, will soon be published by Businessworld. He can be contacted at sangeethv@leadcap.org