I still remember my first few months of making formal presentations. I cluttered my sentences with hmms, cleared my throat every few minutes, and stood with my arms locked across my chest. I had no idea I was doing any of it. That’s the first stage of learning: unconscious incompetence. You don’t know what you don’t know.
Then a colleague gave me feedback. Suddenly, I became conscious of the filler words, the nervous habits, and the closed body language. Thus, I entered the second stage: conscious incompetence.
Then, I took guidance and started to practice: tracking my filler words, paying attention to my hands, reminding myself to open up. This is the stage of conscious competence.
Fast forward a few years. My hands moved naturally, my voice carried, and my eyes connected. I had become unconsciously competent at making presentation
The four stages show up in every new skill—driving a car, playing an instrument, baking, negotiating or giving tough feedback. The pattern is the same:
You don’t know you are not good.
You realize you are not good at the skill
You practice towards getting better
You become good at the skill
The first stage is critical. Without awareness, you stay stuck. The second stage is uncomfortable, but that’s where growth begins. With enough practice, the later stages follow naturally.
How have you experienced progression through these four stages of development?
At the outset, I would like to thank you for stopping by my Blog.
I believe that there is nothing right or wrong in this world. What’s right in this moment and context may be wrong in another moment and context. This belief has inspired me to name my blog ‘Perspectives’.
Perspectives is a platform for me to share my experiences, thoughts and perspectives on various subjects. You may have a different point of view. I look forward to hearing them, these are the triggers for rich and deep conversations.
On personal front, I live in Mumbai, India. I love to read; Somerset Maugham and Nevil Shute are my favorite authors. My favorite books are The Razor’s Edge, Mrs. Craddock, Chequer Board and Gone with the Wind. I am thankful to my father who inculcated the habit of reading in me early on.
I am also passionate about traveling, I have been to most parts of India and to several countries across the globe.
On professional front, I work in Human Resources function. Over two and half decades, I have worked across multiple industries and cultures. I focus on Leadership Development, Talent Management, Visioning and Culture, Large-scale change, Employee Listening & Engagement, Employee Well-being, Inclusive work culture, HR effectiveness, Behavior and Mind-set shifts through sustained interventions
I currently lead Organization Effectiveness Function for Aditya Birla Group, a $44.3 billion conglomerate with 120000 employees across 35 countries.
I sincerely hope that you will enjoy reading my blog. I look forward to your thoughts and suggestions.
Thank you!
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Perspectives 