The Four States of Competence

There are four recognized stages of competence, in the performance of any skill, described in a number of on-line references, including these:

Wikipedia - Four Stages of Competence

The Conscious Competence Learning Model


Without repeating what's available in these excellent references, I'd like to offer a brief observation on the four stages, based on personal experience:

4. Unconsciously Competent:
This is the "Master" stage; individuals are so expert at the skill that it has become "second nature". While these individuals may be good teachers, often they have forgotten how they got to this level, and may believe that they've forgotten more than their student will ever learn.

3. Consciously Competent:
This is the "Journeyman" stage; individuals are proficient at the skill, but it is not yet "second nature" to them, they don't do it automatically. These individuals often make good teachers, especially if they can identify which stage their student is at, and which part of the skill they need to master next.

2. Consciously Incompetent:
This is the "Apprentice" stage; individuals are aware of the skill, and what they will be able to accomplish when they are proficient at it. If they've made a commitment to learning the skill, they likely will make good students.

1. Unconsciously Incompetent:
This is the stage I've characterized as "The Bliss of Ignorance" or "Blind Ignorance"; individuals are neither aware of the skill nor their deficiency, and this makes them a danger to themselves and to others, if the skill in which they're deficient is potentially life-threatening. This is the stage in which student pilots and race car drivers exhibit the greatest confidence-performance gap, and are most likely to kill themselves and their instructors. For confirmation of this, simply ask any current or former military instructor pilot.