Orienting Potential: Readiness, Inclination, and Ability in a Relational Ecology II

In our relational ontology, systems are never isolated “things.” They are horizons of possibility, metabolic networks of constraint and facilitation, and ecological fields that enable or limit what can emerge. But how does potential fit into this picture?

Potential, in this view, is not some hidden capacity waiting to be unlocked. It is a dynamic, relational phenomenon, expressed through three intertwined dimensions: readiness, inclination, and ability. Let’s explore each through a more grounded lens.

Readiness: Poised at the Horizon

Imagine a sapling in a clearing. The sunlight filters just so, the soil is moist, the wind gentle. The tree is ready to grow in this moment—not because it “has” potential inside it as a static thing, but because the horizon of its environment aligns with its capacity to act. Readiness is about the system’s alignment with what is possible now, given its surroundings. It’s the relational edge of action: the space where potential could tip into actualisation.

Inclination: The Metabolic Pull

Now consider the sapling’s internal tendencies—its genetic rhythms, its energetic flows, its history of growth under previous conditions. These shape its inclinations: the directions it is more likely to take as it grows. Inclination is less about the immediate environment and more about the system’s internal character, its metabolic biases. It tells us which trajectories of potential are “preferred,” not guaranteed, within the unfolding of the system.

Ability: What Can Be Done

Finally, think of the sapling’s structure—its roots, stem, and leaves. These define its ability to reach the sunlight, resist wind, or store water. Ability is the concrete set of feasible actions given the ecological and structural context. Even if the horizon is perfect and the sapling is inclined toward growth, without the necessary ability, certain potentialities cannot be actualised.

Potential as a Relational Profile

When we consider readiness, inclination, and ability together, we see potential not as a singular “force” but as a triadic profile:

• Horizon → Readiness: What is poised to emerge?

• Metabolic → Inclination: Where does the system lean?

• Ecological → Ability: What can feasibly emerge?

Different combinations of these dimensions create unique landscapes of possibility. A system may be ready but lack ability; inclined but unready; able but without inclination. Each profile shapes the unfolding of reality in its own way.

In this way, potential becomes not a hidden property but a living interplay—always perspectival, always relational, always actualisable only in context. Understanding potential like this allows us to map possibility without ever assuming that it “resides” inside a system. Instead, we see it as a dance between horizon, metabolism, and ecology—a triadic choreography of emergence itself.