Have you ever purchased an online course and not finished it?
Or
Have you finished a course and didn’t the action at all?
Then this blog post is for you.
I have finished 100s of courses (both audio and video). In this blog post, I will share some of the best tips which helped me complete many courses and get maximum benefit from them.
Mindset
Here are a few mindsets which I think makes a huge difference when doing any course:
- It is better to do one course and take action rather than finishing 10 courses and doing nothing. (I have made this mistake many times)
- Do the course at least 3 times for best results.
- It isn’t what you learn but what you do from what you learn makes the difference.
- It’s OK to not finish the entire course.
- You needn’t do the course because your friend or someone has suggested. DO THE COURSE, ONLY IF YOU THINK IF IT WILL HELP YOU.
- Stick with few authors. If you don’t connect with a few authors, you needn’t do their courses. No guilt, please.
This is the system I follow to finish any course and get maximum benefit from them.
Here is the system in brief:
- Select the course
- Finish the course
- Take action
- Review
Simple, and straightforward right?
Let’s dig deeper in each step.
Step 1: Select the course:
This step is self-explanatory. In this step, you select which course you want to do. Here are a few tips which will guide you select a right course:
TIP 1: Select a course if you think applying the content of the course could improve your life or it is something you need right now. Don’t do the course just because someone thinks, it is great.
TIP 2: It would be more beneficial if you have prior knowledge about the author/ subject before you start the course.
For e.g., If you are listening to the audio course “personal power” by Tony Robbins. It would be helpful if you know beforehand who Tony is and what he teaches. It gives you an extra edge when you listen to the course. All authors say the same things in both books and audio courses. If you have read his work before your understanding will be deeper when you are listening to the audio course.
TIP 3: Be very selective about what course you want to do. It takes a lot of time and dedication to complete the course.
If you don’t which audio/video program to start with. I recommend you start with one of the following courses:
Tony Robbins – Personal Power II
Brian Tracy – Goals
Brian Tracy – Maximum Achievement
Jim Rohn Courses
Bob Proctor – You Were Born Rich
Step 2: Finish the course
Here are the steps for finishing the course:
Step A: Set a purpose
Step B: Overview and preview
Step C: Do the course
Step A: Set a purpose
Always have a specific purpose before you start the course.
Most people start with first audio or first video. After some time, they lose interest and then stop doing it. This cycle repeats for almost every course.
Before you start the course, you must have a clear idea why you want to do the course. (Your purpose)
To set the purpose, ask yourself these questions:
A) Why do I want to do this course?
B) What specific information am I looking for in this course?
C) Where will I apply this information in my life?
The clearer you are about the purpose, the more benefit you will get from the course and more likely you will finish the course.
If You are not clear about your purpose behind doing the course, do yourself a favor and don’t start the course.
Step B: Preview and Research
Don’t jump right to the CDs/ DVDs.
Spend some time reading sales page (if you haven’t already), testimonials, description of the course, preview the workbook, do research about the author. (If you don’t know about him/ her already).
This step will give you a complete picture of how the course is organized and you would be in a right state of mind before you actually start the course.
Doing this will also help you decide which part of the course is relevant to your purpose and also what to skip.
Step C: complete the course
Once you have familiarized yourself with the course, now is the time to do and complete the course.
Ideally, I recommend you to do the course 3 times
First time: Do the course without making any notes. Listen with your 100% focus to get a complete understanding of the course.
Second time: Do the course and make the notes with action steps.
Third time: Do it one more time for more clarity and understanding.
Tip: The main reason most people don’t do the course even if they have a strong purpose is “life gets in the way”. It’s normal. The solution to this is a – Schedule it in your calendar. Schedule at what time do you want to do this course in your calendar? The chances of you finishing the course increase drastically just by doing this.
Tip: You can do many courses while traveling. Convert your traveling time into learning time. You will be surprised how much content you can consume by listening to the courses while traveling.
Step 3: Take action.
Most people stop after finishing the course. The main work starts now. Take action on what you have learned from the course. It is better to do one course and take action rather than doing 10 courses and do nothing.
You can use the format I created to note down your insights and track your action steps from the course.
Step 4: Review
This is also one step where most people don’t do. Most people focus on doing more courses rather than focusing on the course. Here is what I recommend, select top 3 courses on one topic and do them as if your life depends on them. Do it multiple times for more clarity and revise the notes you made regularly.
I have shared the complete system I follow to do any audio/video. Follow it to the letter. If you have questions, please let me know in the comment section below.
Action step:
- In the comment section below, mention which course had the most impact in your life and how you implemented it in your life?
Thank you
Srinivas Vakati
FAQs
On the below-mentioned page, I have listed down all the FAQs I am asked about Speed reading, learning fast etc and my responses to the same.
Click here to see all the FAQs and my responses
Become an expert learner Online course
In my flagship course – Become an expert learner, I share with you all the strategies and systems to help you triple your reading speed, read book a week, make effective notes and remember what you read.