CONTENTS
The great obstacle to competence
It's a process - period!
The levels of competence
You can't learn what an unconscious person can't teach
Virtually anyone can do it - but know these realities
Not know hoe to let the foot off the brake or what else is in the way - the greatest
cost of all
The success ingredients
What do you really, really want?
Is the benefit worth the price?
Are you willing to pay the price and not stop short?
How do I get there?
____________________________________________________________
THE GREAT OBSTACLE TO COMPETENCE
The standard thing you've probably heard over the years is "what if a child gave up just because he fell down?" This implied that you should accept "failure" or attempts at success before you know how to get there.
But, unlike the baby, we start to judge ourselves and to avoid "looking bad". So, we stop.
IT'S A PROCESS - PERIOD!
But we all go through the same process and steps. And we all start from "not knowing" - and when we don't know how to do something, we have a low likelihood of doing it well. Duh!
And, if we don't do it well, what are we actually risking? Did the baby lose anything? Or did it just eventually learn to walk (i.e. be successful at walking, and then even running!).
Guess what! If we don't stop, we'll succeed, too. Of course there are some practical considerations. We don't jump up to a position of complex wisdom instantly and we shouldn't expect to. And we shouldn't risk alot in terms of money or time if we are still not knowledgeable enough.
THE LEVELS OF COMPETENCE
The ability to do something is called "competence". We all can develop competence, if we learn and do what it takes.
And this is one view of the stages:
1. Unconscious incompetence - This is where we don't know that we don't know
or should know.
(Many people who practice "The Secret" are missing the point that they need to have competence to get the results rather than just visualizing and expecting things to happen!)
2. Conscious incompetence - Here we are conscious that we need to know something to succeed and we know we are capable yet.
3. Conscious competence - You know what is needed to succeed and you know that you've got it.
4. Unconscious competence - You get so good at it that it is natural and "just there". For instance, notice that you just drive your car, but put little conscious effort into it.
Generally, they are in this order.
YOU CAN'T LEARN WHAT AN UNCONSCIOUS PERSON CAN'T TEACH
However, there are some people who have just had the right exposure to the right ideas or have somehow come to the point of being able to do something, but they are not quite aware of how they got that way and/or what it takes. These people will often identify "wrong cause", telling you how to succeed as they did, but leaving out most of the details - because they aren't conscious of them. You can't learn well from them, as the details are missing!
VIRTUALLY ANYONE CAN DO IT - BUT KNOW THESE
And anyone can succeed if they have sufficient details, some intelligence, the time, and then act in that manner.
Conversely, if you haven't succeeded at something, the cause of that has to be either or both that you don't have sufficient details (knowledge) and/or you haven't done the necessary actions. (Of course, there are occasionally some outside forces that cause problems, but not on the average - if you made it once, and then lost it all, you can do it again - that's what my Dad always said, so he suffered from "no fear".
The big things to know are:
1. You can succeed at anything anyone else has if you get the details and the materials that person had and then you do what they did.
2. You won't get sufficient details from someone not aware of them! (Duh!) Go to someone who has made the whole process conscious.
3. If you're not succeeding, you're just not far enough along in the process and need to learn and do more.
4. You will eventually learn to be consciously competent and go on from there, but only if you don't stop before that!!!!!
NOT KNOWING HOW TO LET THE FOOT OFF THE BRAKE OR WHAT ELSE IS IN THE WAY - THE GREATEST COST
One of the biggest things to learn for competence is not just the "steps to reaching a goal" but how to handle the barriers that we set up - and how to get rid of them.
One cannot succeed well with one's foot on the brake with a mind full of trash, as Noah St. John (The Secret Code Of Success) says loudly and definitively.
Essentially, for most people, the biggest advance in being successful lies in removing the barriers and fears that create the "stops" in life - essentially driving with one foot on the brake, trying to accelerate but now knowing why you're not getting anywhere (or at least not very quickly).
THE SUCCESS INGREDIENTS
Success =
1. Learning the necessary details (steps) to get somewhere
+
2. Learning the necessary details to eliminate the unreal barriers (fears, false beliefs)
+
3. Doing what is necessary
Even missing one can cause failure or at least cause undue effort for getting what one wants.
WHAT DO YOU REALLY, REALLY WANT?
Oh, and by the way, you ought to figure out what you really want - or you have a senseless journey.
See and determine, as soon as possible, your Values.
IS THE BENEFIT WORTH THE PRICE?
Of course, we need to sit down and reasonably estimate how much it will cost to get something and then weigh that against the benefit (value) we will get from accomplishing it.
And we've got to measure the probability of success - and not do too many false starts. We want to do those things with reasonably good chances of success, things that we have control over, and things that are actually valuable.
We as humans are very poor predictors of what will make us happy. That's why we must look at the factors that actually make us happy - and then base our values soundly upon those things. (See The Only Path To Happiness.)
ARE YOU WILLING TO PAY THE PRICE - AND NOT STOP SHORT?
Basically, decide either to do it virtually no matter what or not to do it - the in-between doesn't work.
HOW DO I GET THERE?
Unless you sit down and figure out how you'll get there and know where the "here" is that you're starting at, you can't get there. So many people seem to think they can get by without a good plan - and they are fooling themselves and paving the road to hell.
One can never succeed without knowing the steps (actions) to take to get there.
And it almost always MUST be in writing or we are fooling ourselves.
