Practice Habits: Four Stages of Competence

Four Stages of Competence: A framework for measuring progress on the road to mastery… with implications for both students and teachers…

Lesson Goal

To profoundly accept the following truth and to study and practice accordingly:

“Mastery is the inevitable reward for studying and practicing the right things the right way.” ~fjp

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Four Stages of Competence

There are Four Stages of Competence on the path to mastering a new concept or skill…

Stage 1: Unconscious Incompetence (Ignorance)

The state of not knowing what you don’t know.

Stage 2: Conscious Incompetence (Awareness)

The state of being aware of what you don’t know… and realizing you have something to learn.

Stage 3: Conscious Competence (Learning)

The state of having studied or practiced something well enough to explain or demonstrate it to yourself or to others.

Stage 4. Unconscious Competence (Mastery)

The state of having studied and practiced something so deeply that you can apply it or express yourself without having to think about it.

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Implications for Students and Teachers

The secret to graduating to Stage 4 (mastery) is that there is no secret.

Progress from Stage 1 to Stage 2 requires you to have the humility to consider that you may not even be aware that you don’t understand something or don’t know how to do something. At this stage, having an experienced teacher who will can gently make you aware of things that would otherwise go unconsidered or unnoticed is priceless.

Progress from Stage 2 to Stage 3 requires three things: The humility to admit you have something to learn, the belief that you are capable of learning it with the right kind of effort, and the discipline to study and practice accordingly.

Progress from Stage 3 to Stage 4 requires the discipline and perseverance to keep on studying and practicing until you “get it” and “it” becomes an enduring part of who you are as a musician and human being.

None of the behaviors described above are fixed character traits or talents. Each one is a choice… available to anyone at this very moment. Choose wisely–with love for what you are doing– and you’ll discover that you are lots more “talented” than you every dreamed possible.

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learn more… Practice Habits