4 Stages of Competence

I recently read an article "Personal Best"by author Atul Gwande, a writer for the New Yorker magazine and a surgeon who specializes in procedures of the endocrine glands. He's written many books and articles and has been operating on humans for over 10 years.

It just so happens, he also loves to watch tennis in his free time, and was watching professional matches recently, when he noticed that there is a lot of attention paid to the coaches that sit in the stands-mention is made of their facial expressions and reactions, their seemingly silent "conversations" with the players. It turns out, that in addition to having incredible natural talent and the drive to succeed, followed by hours of practice, these amazing athletes attribute their championship career outcomes to the coaches-men and women whose own career may have not been stellar, but whose ability to observe and analyze an athlete's positive and negative attributes enables them to advise players on how to improve their performance. Even the best people in their field need a little input every once in a while to keep them at the top of their game. Gwande says, "...few can sustain their best performance on their own. That’s where coaching comes in. " He then wondered why a coach isn't available to ALL professionals, including himself- wouldn't it be beneficial for all concerned if he performed at his "personal best" every time he operated on a patient?

When I began as an instructor, I had to return to the role of student. I was fortunate then and now that I have met many excellent coaches and teachers. It is important when we learn something new or try to improve on our current performance, that we identify what it is that we are doing that is not working. It usually takes an outside observer, what we call in riding, "a pair of eyes on the ground" to point out specifically where improvement is needed . This first step toward advancing our goals is called "unconscious incompetence", because we are not even aware what it is that we are doing that isn't working or that needs improvement. A good coach or instructor can see it and hopefully offer constructive advice on how to change. Once we are made aware, this "conscious incompetence" becomes the beginning of changes that we will make, sometimes awkwardly as we try to use our body and our mind in a more deliberate and focused pattern of behavior. With a coach watching our "new" movements, encouraging and reinforcing the changes that feel so strange, we begin to find the repetition evolves into "conscious competence"-we now know what works and why and we will, with clear intent, repeat our success with greater ease and less effort.


With each stage we are seeing an improvement and gaining the confidence it takes to push on with the challenging work of acquiring a new skill. Eventually, with hours of practice and positive reinforcement from a talented coach or instructor, we are able to become "unconsciously competent", able to perform without even thinking about it.

The most difficult transition in the progression of learning or improving a skill is from the conscious incompetence stage to conscious competence. It takes a great deal of focus and may lead to failed attempts and frustration. This is where it helps to have a creative teacher willing to make the work interesting and keep a positive approach as you are given instuctions in simple, easy to follow steps. My students have learned the four basics of Centered Riding, have learned to find their center and stay grounded in their stirrups. In recent lessons they've had a chance to practice their "power breathing" which allows them to use their unconscious competence to maintain their balance and tone (strength with flexibility) without having to concentrate on a specific position or technique. Trying too hard to keep your body in one position or use your position in specific turns and twists can lead to tension. With a breath in and out, it can be done all at once. My students improve with the help of a good coach and instructor as they move through the four stages of competence. Wonderful!!!!!