Circle of Competence

Circle of Competence

“Being at ease with not knowing is critical for answers to come to you.” – Eckhart Tolle

Understanding our circle of competence is to understand the limits of our own knowledge. With awareness around what we know, and more more importantly, what we don’t know, we open up possibilities to keep expanding this circle as we continuously learn. This fits well with another common model in the world of learning called the Zone of Proximal Development. This model shows how optimal learning exists when we are pushing ourselves just beyond the limits of our circle of competence, where learning is required, but not so far that we are in over our heads. Doing so requires a keen awareness of where the limits of our circle of competence lie.

Failing to use this mental model results in severely limiting our ability to develop our capabilities. We fall into believing we have it all figured out, so we stop asking questions and looking for opportunities to learn. We may either 1) remain within our comfort zone where we are not learning anything, and/or 2) get in way over our heads where we are unable to perform. 

However, as we come to see how much there is still to learn, and how little we know in relation to what is possible, we cultivate a sense of curiosity and wonder which lies at the heart of a continuous learning mindset. We can strategically push the edges of our Circle of Competence, into the Zone of Proximal Development, so we are learning and growing in an optimal way.