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The Consciously Competent model.
The process of obtaining a new skill incorporates several levels of learning and awareness. To successfully help
people further their abilities, you need to train them with those levels in mind.
The Consciously Competent Model* outlines four different levels a person goes through when
learning a new skill. They are:
- Unconsciously Incompetent
- Consciously Incompetent
- Consciously Competent
- Unconsciously Competent
The general concept of the model is...
Assume you have never seen a bike. At this point you are unconsciously incompetent. You don’t know
that you don’t know what a bike is or how to ride a bike. Then, one day you see a kid on a bike ride by and you
think, “Wow, I want to learn how to do that!” Now, you are consciously incompetent. For the next several days you
endure scraped knees and elbows until you can satisfactorily ride the bike, as long as you are concentrating on
peddling, keeping your balance, etc. You are consciously competent. Eventually, the more you ride the bike, you
get to a point where you don’t even have to think about it. You are unconsciously competent.
Now, let’s discuss each level more in-depth.
Level 1 - Unconsciously Incompetent - At this level, the person is unaware of
his/her lack of knowledge or skill in a given subject or task.
A person who is unconsciously incompetent is either not aware of the
existence/relevance of the skill or they do not realize they are deficient in that skill.
A person must become conscious of their incompetence before the development of the new skill can begin.
Therefore, supervisors or trainers must first help individuals recognize their skill deficit in order for them to
successfully progress through the subsequent levels.
Level 2 - Consciously Incompetent - At this level, the person recognizes there are skills
he/she needs to learn, but has not yet addressed the skill deficit. The
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transition from unconsciously incompetent
to this level can be discouraging as people begin to realize they are not the experts they thought they were. The amount of time people remain at this
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level depends on a number of factors including their willingness to learn and
the extent to which they accept their incompetence.
During this level, supervisors or trainers need to provide encouragement and motivation. They should
explain how obtaining the new skill will increase the person’s effectiveness and motivate them to make a commitment
to learn the skill and move to the next level.
Level 3 - Consciously Competent - When consciously competent, people can
reliably perform a skill without assistance, but it requires a certain amount of concentration and focus on their part. As they use
their newly acquired skill, it will become increasingly automatic.
At this level, supervisors and trainers need to keep people focused on performing the task correctly
and give them plenty of opportunity to practice. Practice is the most effective way to move from Level 3 to Level 4.
Trainers also need to remember that becoming consciously competent takes time. Learners often forget, plateau,
and/or need to start over in the training process.
Level 4 - Unconsciously Competent - At this level people can perform a specific task without
conscious effort. The person has had so much practice that the skill has become automatic or second nature. Some
common examples of tasks that
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often become automatic with practice are driving, knitting, typing, riding a bike,
repetitive assembly tasks, etc. At this level, the person may also be accomplished enough
to teach the skill to others. Though reaching this level may be the ultimate goal,
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it may also become the most dangerous. Supervisors and trainers need to make sure that
people avoid complacency and stay abreast of new developments and competency standards. If the “world” changes,
unconsciously competent people can quickly become unconsciously incompetent!
Understanding the Consciously Competent Model will better enable you to coach people through the
difficult learning process. It reminds us that there are several levels to learning a new skill and we must
patiently work with people wherever they are in the process. The model also reminds us that the process of
mastering a new skill is often painstaking and we need to properly reward and encourage those who do so.
* It is not known who originated the first Consciously Competent Model; it has been
attributed to several different people.
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