The learning plateau is the experience of prolonged stagnation after initial rapid progress — the point at which existing practice patterns have been consolidated but new growth requires a qualitative change in approach. From a Sutric perspective, the plateau is the point at which saṃskāra has been formed but citta has not yet been reorganized around a new level of functioning. Breaking through requires identifying the specific component that is not developing, seeking expert feedback on it, and applying deliberate practice precisely where the discomfort is greatest.
Each step builds on the last.