Building Unconscious Competence

We all know people that seem to exude competence.  What they say, how they say it, and even their body language come together to give a sense of ease and confidence.  They have what Lois Frankel calls“Unconscious Competence”.  Often we wonder, how do they do it, “were they born that way”?  The answer is usually not.  Ms. Frankel in her book “Nice Girls Don’t Get the Corner Office” has developed a model to help understand and gain “unconscious competence”. 

It helps me to understand this model by thinking about my daughter and the process she went through to become a highly trained gymnast.  When she first tried to learn to do a flip she not only couldn’t but she really did know how or what she was doing wrong.  Her coach talked her through the mechanics of doing a flip – she then had increase consciousness of how todo a flip but she was no nearer being able to do one.  Only after long practice and continually checking in with her coach did she gain the competence to do a flip – but she still had to think about what she was doing to get it done.  Today, after over 10 years of doing flips she really doesn’t have to think about it and, if you were to watch her do a flip today, you’d think she was born doing them.

Becoming highly competent at anything requires the same process:  First you must understand what you’re doing wrong, and then you must understand how to change it, and then you must think about it and practice what you have learned until it finally becomes part of you.  Notice a couple of things from the gymnast example:  there is a conscious and solid INTENT (remember part 2 & goal setting?)  and it often helps to have a coach (trusted advisor) to help you get it done.    

- Kristen Cheyney, BAO Technical Delivery Lead for IBM Global Business Services