How to create a course you wouldn't consume yourself
A couple of years ago, I built a course to give face to face. In these times, it is close to impossible to organize workshops, and some people started asking for online courses. My main problem is that I don't like video courses. I really prefer reading a book, skimming through the parts I don't care about, focus on what I need to learn, etc.
This means, that I would be creating a product I wouldn't consume myself. And that makes it very tough to imagine how and what to make. Have you ever been in the spot of making something you wouldn't consume yourself? How did you overcome it?
You do have some other choices:
Thanks for the suggestions! I tried partnering, but didn't work out (there was no enough commitment from the other side). So, still going around in my own head about this.
Do you not want to create a course you wouldn't consume, or do you not know how to?
If you don't want to, then I don't think you should, but it sounds like your question is about the how.
You don't have to imagine anything though. I think the best way to figure out what to teach in a video course is to start by delivering the content in live format through webinars. If you've already done in-person workshops this should come even easier.
I know how to from a technical perspective, and I know what do I want to achieve from a pedagogical perspective. My question was more related to motivation. How to sit down to do something you wouldn't buy for yourself.
It's difficult to advise someone on finding motivation. I'm not even sure where motivation comes from sometimes; I find it ebbs and flows on a day to day basis, even when I'm genuinely excited about the project.
One method I've used for stirring up motivation is to reframe situations or problems, to see the situation holistically. In this case, if users have suggested an online course, you could frame the situation as users asking for your help. They want to learn from you, pure and simple. So the first problem to solve is figuring out a way to connect with your students to help them achieve their goals. And then you can start down the road of solving "what's the most effective way for students to learn this material; and are there ways to do this if they aren't in the room with me?"
You could also stand up a landing page to test demand before diving into creating anything. That would tell you more about your students' willingness to take your course - and you could validate the different content formats (text-based, video, webinar). This might also provide some motivation to get started - you aren't committing to making a course, just vetting the idea and getting user feedback. Real user demand can be a powerful motivator.
I like your holistic framework. I think this looks like the best way to look at the situation in order to establish my proper state of mind before going forward.
I thought about the landing page thing. However, I should establish the base line that sets me on the track of building/no building. And this is a tricky one. And I would prefer being transparent, such as releasing the idea as a Kickstarter, so it is clear it does not exist as of yet, and I need X amount of validation to build it.
So far, in my own train of thoughts, the kickstrater-like approach is the one I like the most.
I really like the idea of a kickstarter approach to validating. I'll be curious to hear how it goes.
If you're thinking of setting the baseline around recouping your hourly rate, from my experience, it usually takes experienced authors in the range of 30-40 hours of work per hour of content. That's inclusive of planning the curriculum, production, and revisions - so if you have most of the curriculum done, and depending on the course format, it could be less, but at least this gives an idea for what the range most of the authors I've worked with have experienced.
Thanks for the numbers! They are, more or less, what I had in mind.
Since I have already prepared for the face-to-face classes, mostly all of the planning and course content has already been done. So, it is mostly recording and editing at this stage. Which, fortunately, I have learned how to do thanks to my weekend project of documentary filmmaking.
Right now, for the face-to-face workshops, it is easier to convince managers to cover the costs, but for online teaching, this becomes trickier. If the costs are going to be covered by employees themselves, then the price has to be much lower. Let's see, let's see... I'll keep everyone posted.
If you don't feel motivated to do it, why do it?
I realise that's a paradoxical question, but if you can answer that, I think you'd answer your own question. For example, do you want to create a video course because you're motivated to help your audience, and a video course is what THEY prefer?
P.S. I haven't created an online course myself, so I haven't been in your situation and can't talk from experience. That's why I'm answering questions with questions, trying to help you come to a conclusion yourself! š
Thanks for the questions, I try to ventilate this frustrations because it always helps how others relate to them.
Indeed, what I'm trying to find is the motivation to do something, especially in the case where others see the value in it, but I don't.