THE 96 CAPACITIES
The Human Spirit becomes visible through what human beings are capable of developing, practicing, and bringing into the world.
These 96 Capacities offer a map of the abilities through which we understand ourselves, connect with others, create meaning, meet difficulty, and shape the life we share.
THE HUMAN SPIRIT BECOMES VISIBLE THROUGH WHAT WE ARE CAPABLE OF
We often speak of the Human Spirit through capacities such as compassion, courage, creativity, resilience, curiosity, and love. Civilism takes that idea further.
The 96 Capacities identify a broader range of human abilities through which the Human Spirit develops and finds expression.
They include ways of paying attention and understanding, imagining and creating, choosing and acting, caring and connecting, working with others, and navigating the responsibilities of shared human life.
No single capacity defines the Human Spirit. It is through their interaction that much of our humanity becomes possible.
ONE HUMAN SPIRIT. MANY WAYS OF EXPRESSION.
INNER SPIRIT
How capacities develop and operate within the individual.
SOCIAL SPIRIT
How capacities emerge through relationships and encounters with others.
Collective SPIRIT
How capacities contribute to groups, communities, institutions, cultures, and the human world we share.
IT OPERATES THROUGH DIMENSIONS.
A capacity may emerge most clearly through one dimension of the Human Spirit while also finding expression through the others.
96 WAYS THE HUMAN SPIRIT CAN DEVELOP AND FIND EXPRESSION
The capacities are organized into nine families to make them easier to explore. These families describe related forms of human capacity—not separate or rigid categories.
How we notice ourselves, others, and the world.
Attention · Concentration · Self-Awareness · Emotional Awareness · Social Awareness · Reflection · Insight · Pattern Recognition
How we question, learn, reason, and make sense of experience.
Curiosity · Learning · Open-Mindedness · Skepticism · Critical Thinking · Reasoning · Conceptual Thinking · Systems Thinking · Discernment · Intellectual Humility · Intellectual Honesty · Wisdom
How we envision possibilities and bring something new into expression.
Imagination · Creativity · Self-Expression · Wonder · Awe · Play · Meaning-Making · Moral Imagination
How we direct ourselves, act, develop, and continue becoming.
Agency · Self-Authorship · Decision-Making · Initiative · Self-Discipline · Persistence · Adaptability · Resilience · Fortitude · Patience · Foresight · Problem Solving
How we relate to ourselves and maintain an internally grounded life.
Self-Respect · Self-Compassion · Self-Trust · Authenticity · Emotional Regulation · Emotional Courage · Acceptance · Equanimity · Hope · Temperance · Humility · Gratitude
How we encounter, understand, and care for other human beings.
Empathy · Perspective-Taking · Listening · Communication · Care · Compassion · Kindness · Respect · Trust · Vulnerability · Boundary-Setting · Forgiveness
How we sustain relationships through giving, receiving, commitment, and responsibility.
Reciprocity · Generosity · Hospitality · Encouragement · Mentorship · Loyalty · Commitment · Reliability · Responsibility · Accountability · Service · Love
How we work with others and participate in things larger than ourselves.
Cooperation · Collaboration · Coordination · Negotiation · Conflict Resolution · Mediation · Diplomacy · Bridge-Building · Leadership · Constructive Followership · Solidarity · Stewardship
How we examine and navigate the responsibilities created by living with other human beings.
Integrity · Honesty · Fairness · Ethical Reasoning · Conscience · Moral Courage · Prudence · Reverence
CAPACITIES ARE POSSIBILITIES, NOT GUARANTEES
The capacities of the Human Spirit are human possibilities. Their presence does not mean they will automatically become strong, balanced, or constructive.
Through experience, relationships, learning, practice, circumstance, and choice, capacities can develop in different ways throughout our lives.
CAPACITIES MAY ALSO BECOME
Human capacities do not follow a single path. A capacity may strengthen through practice, remain underdeveloped through neglect, become constrained by circumstances, or become distorted in how it is expressed. Development is neither automatic nor irreversible.
WHAT WE CAN DO IS NOT THE SAME AS WHAT WE SHOULD DO
Human capacities are not automatically virtues.
Creativity can inspire or manipulate. Leadership can serve or dominate. Loyalty can strengthen relationships or protect harmful behavior. Persistence can sustain a worthy purpose or prolong a destructive one.
The existence of a capacity tells us something about what human beings can do—not whether every use of that capacity is constructive or ethical.
Civilism therefore asks not only which capacities we can develop, but how we cultivate and exercise them in ways that strengthen the Human Spirit within ourselves, between one another, and throughout the world we share.
NO CAPACITY STANDS ALONE
Human life rarely calls upon a single capacity at a time. We combine capacities continuously. Different situations draw upon different combinations of what we are capable of bringing to the moment.
A DIFFICULT CONVERSATION
Listening · Emotional Regulation · Empathy · Perspective-Taking · Communication · Respect
SOLVING A SHARED PROBLEM
Attention · Critical Thinking · Creativity · Collaboration · Systems Thinking · Problem Solving · Decision-Making
RECOVERING FROM A SETBACK
Acceptance · Self-Compassion · Adaptability · Hope · Resilience · Self-Trust · Emotional Courage
CAPACITIES GROW THROUGH USE
We develop our capacities through living.
RELATIONSHIPS
Failure
LEARNING
RESPONSIBILITY
EXPERIMENTATION
Difficulty
REFLECTION
PRACTICE
Civilism invites us to become more aware of the capacities already present within our lives—and more intentional about the capacities we want to strengthen.
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DISCOVER THE CAPACITIES
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PRACTICE LIVING CIVILISM
THE HUMAN SPIRIT IS NOT A FINISHED STATE.
It develops through what we notice, understand, imagine, practice, create, share, and bring into the world.