If you want to work on your own and become a freelancer, you’d better get used to the idea that you’re going to enroll in more than a couple of online courses. And not just before you take the leap and quit your job. Nope. You’re going to keep on learning – what’s the word? – forever! If you’ve started searching for the right online course for you, you’ll most likely have already realized how incredibly wide the choice is. And that’s where the problem begins. I mean, it’s more than positive that you can find an online course about almost anything these days, but the agony of choice can lead you to choose the wrong course for you.
I love learning from home in my PJ’s and with a nice latte macchiato! What’s better than that, right?? I must admit that there was a time where I had a serious online-course-binge-learn-syndrome, but I’m recovered now 😀 I had to! When you choose the wrong online course, you’re not only wasting your time and money. You can also get very anxious and overwhelmed because you’re not getting the results you thought you would – and you start wondering if it’s you. If this whole freelancing wasn’t such a good idea after all. If you’re not as smart as you thought.
Let’s find out what you should avoid when choosing the right online course for you
* As a side note, we’re only considering high-quality courses here, not those scums who try to get money from you in exchange for nothing!
In my experience as serial online course learner, I’ve come up to the conclusion that there are 3 kinds of courses that you won’t probably profit from as much as you could. And they are:
♥ Online courses which offer a lot of good info, but which aren’t well-structured. Problem caused: they overwhelm the students. The online course offer is growing at such a speed, that most online course creators feel almost forced to offer way more than they had in mind – and I think that’s where some courses start getting overwhelming.
The thing is that many of us have a full-time job and are trying to make some room for starting an online business. Having to search for info or for the next right thing to do is not helping at all. You already have Google for that, right? If I pay for a course, I’d like it to tell me exactly what to do next, not to figure out what’s better for me 😉
♥ Online courses which make use of way too complicated words! I guess it happens to us all: We want to show how much we know by using high-level terminology which only your peers can understand. The thing is, what’s the use in using such a vocabulary at a course which is aimed at people who need help in understanding? You don’t have to show off in front of your students, just help them find the answers they’re looking for! Problem caused: Frustration.
♥ Online courses which offer too much theory but hardly actionable tasks, that is, they offer nothing you couldn’t learn reading a book. Even if it’s a good book. I don’t need anyone to talk about strategies. I need someone to give me the guidelines to create my own strategy. Make me think, plan, create strategies and take action, please! Problem caused: At the end, action needs yet to be taken!
Introducing the Work at Home Bootcamp
Why is the Work at Home Bootcamp any different, you ask? Good question 😛 Well, because it avoids these 3 mistakes which I think stop students from profiting as much as they could: overwhelm, frustration and no action. Does that mean that the Work at Home Bootcamp isn’t challenging? Nope. You have to work A LOT! But the key lies in setting a very clear framework which you have to stick to for you to become a freelancer and work from home – or wherever you want:
- You set your big goal.
- You break it down into step-by-step manageable bites.
- You focus on one step at a time, without thinking about the next one.
- You take action!
No anxiousness, no overwhelm. And that is exactly why you don’t get all lessons available at once: For 6 weeks, you’ll get an email every Sunday with an introduction to the next lesson. You’re not going to see someone commenting on Section 4 when you still haven’t had the chance to open your workbook 😉 Now, I know that each of us has different daily routines and work at a different pace, so you’re free to complete the lessons when it best suits you!
When are we done with education?
Short answer here: Never! If you want to run your own business, you have to keep learning and developing your skills! Now, that doesn’t mean that you’ll have to keep on enrolling in courses every year, but you should at least keep on reading books, blogs or news related to your business. You don’t want to get outdated, right? #neverstoplearning
What do you think? Would you rather learn how to start an online business, or rather live a comfy – ahem, boring – life without challenges?
Alicia
Are you born to freelance?
Join the Work at Home Bootcamp and start freelancing in 6 weeks!
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