The difference between a multipotentialite, polymath, and scanner personality
Have you found yourself going through TED Talks, YouTube videos, books, reddit communities, and somehow ended up here?
Congrats. I did the same.
There’s a rabbit hole you can go down once you discover one of the terms:
- “multipotentialite”
- “polymath”
- “scanner personality”
Now, I went down that hole myself. Only to end up more confused than I was before discovering any of the terms. I had a big question mark:“What am I?” “Which category do I belong to?”
Years later, I know there’s little value in over-categorizing. Someone once told me
”The advantage of people with multiple interests is that they don’t have to put themselves in a box. So why would you?”
Still, people spend a lot of time trying to figure out the actual difference. And I’d like to help!
What’s the difference?
Clearly, it’s not easy to separate these terms because there barely is a scientific approach behind them. Also, they don’t stem from a single framework. They have evolved more or less independently from one another.
Going through the sources of people who created these terms, it sometimes feels as if each creator wanted to have “their own special definition” they can say they own. It’s probably a bit harsh from me to say that, because there actually are differences; they’re just vague.
Here’s what I figured out and put in an infographic:
To be a scanner, you need an above-average number of interests, usually stemming from natural curiosity and a willingness to learn new things. The definition is not necessarily tied to any specific outcome.
Regarding the term “multipotentialite”, Wapnick and others seem to picture people who fulfill the definition of a scanner, but they also possess unique levels of talent, indicating a higher potential for success in various areas.
Finally, you tend to get defined as a polymath if you actually made use of your talent and become an expert in various different areas. You have developed your skills.
According to my findings, polymaths are also scanners. Multipotentialites are also scanners. But not all scanners are multipotentialites. And not all multipotentialites are polymaths. It appears as if it’s a funnel.
Returning back to what I said in the beginning: Don’t over-categorize yourself. There’s little value in it. Contextual factors are much more important.
I also discuss this here:
Why it doesn’t matter whether you’re a polymath, scanner personality or multipotentialite
You’re a scanner personality or multipotentialite trying to build a career?
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