For those who are wanting more information on how to create more supportive habits, I suggest that we look at a model for learning that has been around for quite a while. It’s called the “Four Stages of Learning,” and when applied to living “Life from the Top of the Mind,” it can give us insight into the process of how all of this works, as well as hope for the future.

The Four Stages of Learning:
I. Unconscious Incompetence
II. Conscious Incompetence
III. Conscious Competence
IV. Unconscious Competence

I. Stage One is called “Unconscious Incompetence.” This stage is characterized by a general lack of awareness. In other words, in this stage, people don’t know what they are doing. Unfortunately, they don’t know that they don’t know, and this lack of awareness leaves them trapped in the problem, looking for who’s to blame. What generally moves them to action is that at some point the pain of the problem becomes so great that they realize something must be done.

“Most people will never change until it becomes too painful not to.”

II. This leads us to stage two, which is called “Conscious Incompetence.” While still an uncomfortable stage, at least now we know that we don’t know, and for some, this can be very valuable information because it lets us know where to begin. Basically, we all must start at this stage before we can acquire any knowledge, and thus it can be seen as the beginning of freedom from ignorance.

III. Stage three is “Conscious Competence,” and this is where most people will be after attending one of my seminars or reading my books. We have now raised our awareness significantly. In other words, we now know what causes us to become trapped in the lower part of our brain, we know how to shift from the brainstem to the neocortex and change the chemical makeup of our bodies, and we know how to sustain this more purposeful perspective and bring it to every aspect of our lives.

However, because this knowledge is new and has yet to become a habit, it will take a lot of purposeful focus and practice on our part to pull this off. We will have to make this new way of life the most important thing we do (our highest purpose) and think about it a LOT in order to become successful.

At this stage, we must be very gentle with ourselves, because just as if we were learning to play a new instrument, we may find ourselves hitting our share of wrong notes. However, if we are willing to keep practicing, keep looking for opportunities to choose more purposeful beliefs about ourselves and the world, and keep taking 100% responsibility for our ability to respond, we will succeed, because anything we practice over and over will eventually become a skill and a natural way of being.

IV. Stage four is called “Unconscious Competence,” and this is where we feel very influential in our lives, because now this practiced/purposeful way of life has become “second nature” or what we do automatically. For the most part, people in this stage interpret problems as “good information,” and choose who they want to be in response, almost without thinking about it. They have become practiced at going into situations clear about their highest purpose and therefore, even if they do become “stressed,” they know that the feeling is just a chemical change in their body, and thus use this awareness as a valuable signal that lets them know which part of their brain has become engaged.

In fact, given that this “Top of the Mind” perspective has become so practiced and familiar, people at this stage are able to make minute adjustments to their brain and body so quickly that they can go into almost any situation clear and confident about who is “in charge” of their thoughts and emotions, and thus, easily access their creativity in the pursuit of what they want to accomplish. Because of this, they are often very skilled at influencing their experience of life, and even the situations and people around them.

However, even at this fourth stage of learning, life will continue to give us plenty of opportunities to practice. Just as accomplished musicians never stop learning and improving, so to is the “Top of the Mind” concept a process of constant learning and growth. The difference is that at this stage the process is simply a lot more fun because, even when things don’t go as we expect, the ability to shift our focus and choose to respond in a way we would teach to our children or someone we love allows us to be very influential in how we experience life.

~ All the best, Dr. Bill

In addition to being named Speaker of the Year for organizations in both the United States and Canada, Dr. Bill Crawford holds a masters degree and PhD in psychology from the University of Houston. He is also a licensed psychologist, author of eight books, and organizational consultant. Over the last 40 + years, he has created more than 4,500 presentations for such organizations as T-Mobile, Shell, The American Medical Association, PBS and many other organizations and professional associations, both nationally and internationally. In addition, his two PBS specials on stress and communication have been seen by more than 15 million people, and he has been quoted as an expert in such diverse publications as The New York Times, Entrepreneur, The Chicago Tribune, Investor’s Business Daily, and Working Mother, just to name a few.