The Capability Gap: How to actually reach your potential

For a bit of context, Coach Saban is widely considered one of the greatest college football coaches of all time and has led his teams to a record-setting seven National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) top-division football national championships. The majority of them while he has been Head Coach, since 2007.

In a 2021 interview with ESPN reporter Holly Rowe, Coach Saban was asked to explain in greater detail something he called the “capability gap”. The response he gave was so impactful to Rowe that she later went on to say in an article published by the Tuscaloosa News that, "He said something … that I think has changed my life forever moving forward… It's called the capability gap. He talked about the gap in capability….What am I capable of achieving or doing every day, and what is the gap in what I actually do every day. ”  

Here is the capability gap explained in Coach Saban’s own words.

“We often times talk about what someone’s potential is. But I think to put it in better terms that is understandable [it’s] the capability gap. [The capability gap] is what you are capable of, relative to what you are doing.” - Nick Saban

Essentially the “capability gap”, is the difference between what you are capable of doing/ achieving everyday compared to what you are actually doing everyday. It is the antidote to unfulfilled potential.

The problem with potential.

In order to talk about capability we have to talk about potential, but first lets define both.

Capability is the the quality or state of being capable. It is the power or ability to do something. It is also the extent of someone's or something's ability.

Potential is having or showing the capacity to become or develop into something in the future. It is capable of being, but not yet in existence; latent or undeveloped.

Great.

Here’s the problem with potential.

Potential is like an egg that never hatches. Or like ordering a mouthwatering burger on a warm summer day when you are extremely hungry… and it never comes.

That’s potential.

Potential is unrealized attainment – nothing more and nothing less. On its own it’s not valuable and doesn’t mean anything. We all know that just because someone has the potential to do something, it doesn’t mean that they will actually do it or that it will happen. Potential does not equal actualization. It offers no guarantee of its outcome; it only offers hope, and while hope can be a source of inspiration, it can also quickly turn into delusion. This is why potential is so easy to recognize, but not so easy to realize. This can be frustrating. Perhaps even more frustrating is that many of us can intrinsically recognize potential whether in ourselves or others, but sadly only a rare few will maximize their potential while the majority will simply choose to do nothing about it.

Potential is only a gift if it is understood and utilized. No one is special because of the potential they have. Someone can have great potential, but if its is not acted upon it will remain just that - potential. You can have a great dream for your future and what you want to accomplish, but if you don’t do anything about it, it will stay as a dream. In its dream form (an idea stuck in your head) it’s useless and ineffective. However, when planned out and acted upon, it could change the world.

So how do we turn our potential into reality?

As Shahil Bloom put it, “most people underestimate their full capability and overestimate their current delivery”. In other words, many people think their capability gap is very small, when in reality it's much larger than they realize - they just don’t know it yet.

This is what the capability gap is for.

It helps us to see the gaps and what we need to do to begin closing them. The great thing about the capability gap is how simple, powerful and clear it is to understand and implement. The hard part comes in committing to new habits, actions, and ways of being to achieve it. That being said, here’s the simple five step process to turn our potential into reality.

• Step 1: Identify what your current capabilities are.

  • What am I capable of achieving or doing every day?

• Step 2: Identify what your current output/ actions are.

  • What am I actually doing every day?

• Step 3: Analyze the gap between our capability and our actions

  • What is the difference between my actions and my capability?

• Step 4: Determine what needs to occur in order to close the gap.

  • What actions do I need to implement to close my capability gap and do what I’m capable of doing?

• Step 5: Commit to taking new or increased action to close the gap.

  • How can I commit to doing these actions on a consistent basis?

Final thoughts

We all have potential. Everyone single one of us. We all have the potential to do great things, become great people, change the world, etc., etc. However, in reality, this doesn’t really mean anything unless we actually DO something about it. This is the driving point behind the capability gap - taking action. More accurately, taking intentional, committed action, towards a clearly defined goal, consistently.

Just a thought. Hope it helps.