Sahil Bloom is an inspirational writer and content creator, captivating millions of people every week through his social insights and bi-weekly newsletter, The Curiosity Chronicle.
Guest Author: Sahil Bloom
I can’t stop thinking about this idea…
The 4 Stages of Competence:
The model was created by Matthew Broadwell in 1969.
It says we progress through stages when leveling up from novice to expert at a craft.
The stages are as follows:
Stage 1: Unconscious Incompetence
You’re a novice and don’t know what you don’t know. You lack competence and don’t have an understanding of your own incompetence.
Stage 2: Conscious Incompetence
You’ve become aware of your own incompetence, but you haven’t addressed it yet. You know there’s a gap in your skills that needs to be filled.
Stage 3: Conscious Competence
You’ve developed a level of competence at your craft, but it requires conscious effort and focus. You can do it, but it takes work.
Stage 4: Unconscious Competence
The pinnacle of expertise, where you have extreme competence and can execute without conscious effort. Few people ever reach this stage.
I visualize it as a hierarchy, with progress marked by a graduation up the pyramid from one stage to the next.
This model is a useful tool for providing clarity about where we sit on a given skill or craft.
We tend to overestimate our own competency levels, so having a clear framework is helpful for cutting through the noise and delivering an honest assessment.
To determine whether you’ve graduated from one stage to the next, some simple questions to ask:
Stage 1 to Stage 2:
• Am I aware of how bad I am at [X]?
• Am I aware of what is required to learn and develop at [X]?
Stage 2 to Stage 3:
• Can I do [X] at an above average level?
• Have I avoided “rookie mistakes” the last 10 times I’ve done [X]?
Stage 3 to Stage 4:
• Can I do [X] at a top-1% level with my eyes closed?
• Do people tell me that I look effortless when doing [X]?
Most of us will spend our lives in Stage 3, where we create results with effort.
To reach Stage 4, we need to engage in deep, deliberate, focused practice.
It’s a state we can aspire to, but few will achieve across more than 1-2 areas in our lives (at best).
As you progress in any new endeavor or craft, use the 4 Stages of Competence to reflect on your growth.
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