The Five Levels of Mastery

A jack of all trades is a master of none, so the saying goes. One thing that nobody likes to hear — success takes TIME. Success demands mastery of your skills. Success is a continuous process of growth. The following five levels of mastery will help you understand where you are, and where you need to go to achieve excellence.

Level 1 — Unconscious Incompetence

• You don’t know how bad you are.
• Example: You see someone snowboarding at an expert level and think you can do what they’re doing because they made it look easy. To your surprise, you will probably find yourself on your bottom most of the day. Sometimes you see Level 5 and don’t realize that it takes more than enthusiasm, you need skill.
• Most people quit at this level once their enthusiasm is gone.
• This is where you need to follow, DO NOT try to re-invent. Maintaining enthusiasm and a positive attitude is necessary to move to the next step.

Level 2 — Conscious Incompetence

• The pain of not getting results is bigger than the pain of you adjusting and growing.
• Look in the mirror and realize that there is a lot of room for growth. This is the stage where you need to proactively seek out guidance, ask a lot of questions!

Level 3 — Conscious Competent

• At this level, you’re becoming better, but you still must think about the steps you are performing.
• You will be here the longest as you learn a craft.
• Patience and repetition are key at this level.

Level 4 — Unconscious Competent

• You start putting in more productivity because muscle memory starts taking over. Your business becomes fun and you know what to do.
• At this level, you’ll start gaining traction and seeing results.
• Confidence increases because you see your success building.

Level 5 — Unconscious Mastery

• Confidence in every piece of knowledge of your industry.
• This is where you start to see 7+ figures of income because it pays to be a master of any industry. At this level, everything you do is for fun because you want to be better, not because you need to be better.
• This is where you can start to give back.

Questions to Ask Yourself:

What level am I at?
You have to be honest with yourself. Check your ego at the door. If you’re at level 1, remember that this is where EVERYONE starts. Don’t kid yourself! It’s possible to be at different levels with different skills within your industry.

What level do people that I coach reach?
This is important for you to note as you go to levels 4 and 5, as to identify the quality of leader you are. Don’t try to coach too early. It will hinder your credibility and you should wait until Level 4.

Just because you are getting results, doesn’t mean you have advanced a level. Sometimes the market can trick you or you are putting more hours in, which can lead you to believe that you are at a higher level of mastery. In reality, there may be several factors that are working out in your favor to help you achieve results, even though you haven’t moved up a level in skill. Also, just because you are not getting results, doesn’t mean you are not progressing your skillset. Don’t let results dictate where you believe you are on that scale.

Keys to Making it to the Next Level:

• REPETITION of the right skills — don’t repeat bad habits!
• MENTORSHIP — You can get this from association, business events, reading, etc. Seek out a mentor who can help you grow.
• BE PATIENT — Remember, success does not come over night. Don’t compare yourself to others, focus on YOUR progress. Everyone’s journey is different. If you stay focused on your track, you WILL achieve mastery.

Everyone has setbacks no matter where they are in their journey but the difference between those who are successful and those who are not is PERSEVERANCE! Be HUNGRY. Put in the work. DON’T be a jack of all trades and master of none.