So you want to create an online course, but aren’t sure where to start?
Okay! First of all, take a deep breath! Creating an online course is an exciting way to expand your reach by connecting to people who are geographically distant or unable to meet you in the real world. Here are the first three things you need to think about.
1. What do you want to share?
Be specific. Be real. Be you.
How can you use this course to help improve the lives of your students? What sweet, juicy kernel of information do you want to share? Start small. You do no need to create a twelve-course opus when you start out! How about a mentorship course? A favorite technique for practice? Make your first course something short and sweet so that you can get your feet wet with a smaller offering. You can always build from there!
My advice:
- Choose something specific and targeted
- Be simple
- Get very clear on what you want your students to be able to DO as a result of your teaching. (More on why that’s important here.)
2. How Can You Share It
Teaching in person is not the same thing as teaching online. When you’re sharing online you need to get very clear about the structure of your course and how you are going to lead your students from point A to point B (another reason to start with something simple!). Then, consider the tools that you can use to share your information one step at at time. And with every step, consider, “what do I want my students to be able to do as a result of this information?”
Most people immediately default to video and pdf. While these are good tools, also think outside the box! How do you want your course to feel? Think of other tools could help students learn:
- audio recordings
- online classes
- journal entries
- worksheets
- online articles
- personal practice
- etc.
Remember, your guiding star as you create your course is not, “what can I tell my students,” but rather, “how can I move my students from point A to point B?”
3. Platform
Your platform is how you host your course. If you’re tech savvy (or have tech savvy friends), you may host it on your own site. Frankly, I do not recommend this. More likely, you’ll want to use an online platform that already has some of the bugs worked out and makes it easy on you. I use Thinkific for my courses and like them so much that I’ve become an affiliate for them. They have a great platform that’s easy to use, they’re super responsive, and they put learners at the center. Other top contenders you can research: Teachable, Kajabi, or Udemy. You can play on many of them for free, then see what you like the most.
Here are some things to think about as you get started!
Want more help? Book a free consult with me. Creating great education is my jam, and my mission is to elevate yoga education in the world!
Happy creating!
