Overwhelm and its twin brother Analysis Paralysis are the two biggest enemies health coaches and fitness professionals face when they try to create their first, or next great, course.
According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, overwhelm is defined as “defeat completely.” And that, my friends, is the complete opposite of winning.
Call me odd, but I love, love, love creating courses. Truth be told, if I could lock myself in my office for a month and do nothing but content creation, I would be happier than a kid eating ice cream on a summer day. Seriously!
Need proof? Then check out some of the many courses I have created:
But most coaches don’t feel the same way about creating courses. They start out super excited but then get overwhelmed with all the moving pieces. And they get paralyzed with all the following questions:
- What should I name it?
- How many weeks should it be?
- How many steps or modules should I include?
- How much should I charge?
- Who will buy it?
- Do I need videos? And if yes, how do I film, edit, and deliver them?
- Where will the written materials live?
- Should I have a private Facebook group for the course?
- Etc., etc., etc.
And that’s why I wrote this blog!
These tips will help you avoid overwhelm so you can actually build that course and get it out in the world.
Keep Your Ideal Client in Mind
I talk a lot about “knowing your why” when I coach my clients. And while it’s important to know why you want to create a course (e.g. have a bigger impact, reach more people, make more money, stop trading dollars for hours, etc.), tapping into your passion for serving your ideal client can be a stronger push to action.
So think about your ideal client and the pain she is in. You have the special sauce that can alleviate her struggles and help her live a much healthier and happier life.
Close your eyes for a moment and think about her completing your course and being your number one fan. You know the one that can’t stop singing your praises because you changed her life? Yeah, her!
Let her inspire you to greatness because she’s waiting for your brilliance.
Haven’t created an ideal client avatar? That’s a show stopper. So be sure to watch this training before you even think about creating a course. Otherwise you may create a course for the wrong person.
Ditch Perfectionism
Newsflash! You’re not perfect and your course won’t be either.
The first version (or any version) of your course doesn’t need fancy worksheets that look like they came off a publisher’s desk or Hollywood style videos.
And you don’t need some fancy membership site to deliver your course. Check out my Delivering Your Course blog for the free and easy way to host your course. The simple solution is so obvious it will surprise you.
What your course needs is you and your expertise. So take out a blank piece of paper and a pen (yes, do it by hand) and brainstorm all the things you love to teach. Don’t worry about how they all fit together in a course, just get them down on paper.
Break It Down Into Small Wins
When I coached weight loss, I helped my clients create 1% wins which then turned into healthy habits which eventually became non-negotiables. 1% wins are those little things that don’t seem like a big deal but eventually add up into something huge.
The same theory works with course creation. Rather than let all the moving pieces scramble your brain, write down the big tasks and break them into small steps.
Let’s say you already have your course modules named and you want to create graphics for each module. Here’s what my step-by-step process looked like recently:
- Spend 1-2 hours searching Shutterstock for vector images and place them into a folder for possible download. I always set a timer so I don’t look up and realize 5 hours has gone by. I love graphics and it would be very easy for me to waste the entire day looking at images without making a decision.
- Review contents of folder to discover if I have cohesive images for all modules. Each image should have the same style and weight so they flow together.
- Select and download final vectors.
- Send vectors to graphic designer for color change.
- Upload revised final graphics to Google Drive for future use.
Knowing the steps I need to take makes it feel a whole lot easier to get each task done.
Schedule Time to Work on It
When my clients tell me they are behind in their deliverables or feel overwhelmed, I typically ask the same question every time. And that’s “are you time blocking?”. If you don’t schedule time to work on specific tasks then they simply won’t get done. Period. End of story.
So get intentional about what you will do and when. Blocking out two hours on your calendar for course creation isn’t specific enough. Block the time and write down exactly what you will do during those two hours. Otherwise you run the risk of spinning your wheels, feeling busy, and not producing anything. And that would suck!
One of my favorite productivity hacks is the “Power Hour.” Set your timer for one hour and work on your most important task of the day. Do not get up from your desk, check emails, scroll through Facebook or anything else except work on the task at hand.
You are not allowed to leave your desk unless your house is on fire. You’ll truly be amazed at how much you get done in that one hour.
Get Support and Be Accountable
I’m not going to lie … course creation is a big task. And it’s one that requires accountability and support. If you don’t already have an accountability partner, then get one now.
My friend / fellow entrepreneur and I text each other each weekday morning with our top three deliverables. These are the three things we must get done that day. If we don’t complete them, then they show up on our texts the next day with an explanation of why they weren’t completed.
You’re a coach, so you know how important accountability and support is for your clients. You’re not special (well actually you are, but in a different way), which means you need it to. So go out there and find an accountability buddy.
Need help flushing out your course ideas, or want some support along the way? Then jump inside THE HEALTH COACHES’ CLUB FACEBOOK GROUP for tips, community fun, and support.
