What is Possible Selves?

Grasping the theory underpinning Possible Selves is a lightbulb moment for many, including Villiers Park. Possible selves sits at the heart of our flagship Future Leaders’ programme. It’s something that both Alex Grant and Julie Kiddier, having been with Villiers Park for over 10 years, are very familiar with in their roles as Assistant Directors and have worked closely with our team of Programme Coordinators and Progression Coaches to embed across our work. 

We are thrilled to share a more detailed look at the foundations of our Future Leaders programme and the theories behind it, which enable us to provide dedicated support to over 500 Future Leaders every year. 

What is Possible Selves? - Academic Explainer 

Possible Selves is a theory that describes the relationship between self-concept, imagined future selves, motivation and behaviour. It was formulated by Hazel Markus and Paula Nurius in 1986. The idea is that people can construct possible future selves: either positive ones, which might motivate us to take the action we need to achieve them, or negative ones, which we might want to avoid becoming. 

However, the true transformational power of the Possible Selves theory shines brightest when we empower the young people we work with to make that theory a reality. The answer to that can be found in how Possible Selves underpins the delivery of our programmes. 

While there is a lively debate and now accepted criticism of the ideas around raising aspiration, including Neil Harrison and Richard Waller, discussing their research into Possible Selves as a tool for university access, it has become increasingly clear that aspirations, or the lack of them, are not the barrier to a success for our Future Leaders; nor are they the solution on their own. Our work supports the creation of full-colour, tangible, individualised future possible selves, triangulating what young people want from their future, what they expect from their future and what they can see for their future. 

Through the ability to understand, visualise and articulate (not necessarily verbally) that preferred future, young people are empowered to bring themselves closer to that reality and develop the motivation and resilience to succeed in achieving their goals. 

Knowing and seeing your future: 

Possible Selves are strongly linked to a depth of social capital and the opportunities this brings to engage with not only individuals from many walks of life, but also access to experiences and knowledge. At Villiers Park we don’t tell young people what is right for them, but it can be problematic that they cannot create a preferred future that they have no experience of. The Future Leaders Programme, made possible by the generous support of philanthropic, university and corporate partners, enables us to offer multiple opportunities for young people to engage with experts in various fields and gather experiences of real-world business as well as future academic study. 

Articulating your future and finding meaning: 

Coaching is the bedrock of the Future Leaders programme. This one-to-one or small group time with Progression Coaches provides young people with the scaffolded approaches to understand the experiences they have, both through the programme and beyond, acting as a golden thread that brings together experiences, both new and old, and shapes them in the image of their future. 

Guided to explore what these experiences mean for them as individuals, Future Leaders are encouraged to articulate what it is they most want from their future. What it is about who they are and want to become that pulls them towards that future. What could prevent that future from belonging to them, and finally the steps and skills they will need to navigate and build to ensure that preferred future becomes their real present. 

Building for your future: 

If coaching supports Future leaders to identify their Possible Selves, potential barriers and pathways forward, then Leadership Challenge is the vehicle to support change and growth. A social action project at its heart, Leadership Challenge is a project devised by Future Leaders based on their own personal interests, developed by Future Leaders based on the skills they would like to see growth in, and delivered by Future Leaders to empower and develop advocacy in all that they do. 

Leadership Challenge, as well as other workshops, events and residentials that we offer, build the Skills for Success that Future Leaders need to realise their best possible futures. 

The Future Leaders programme: 

Possible Selves is not the quick win that aspiration activities appear to be. Often we hear “you have to see it to be it!” but Possible Selves embraces the greater complexities of how a young person’s social and cultural capital develops and supports a young person to understand what these experiences mean in their own personal context. 

Our multi-intervention, multi-year programme, gives our Future Leaders the time and opportunities for future possible selves, both new and old, to develop both detail and clarity. As these possible future selves emerge, our dedicated teams, based in hubs across the country, support young people to identify and develop relevant skill sets that will allow progress toward their goals. 



The more real the possibility becomes, the greater the increase in motivation and resilience to achieve it.