Every time I want to learn a new skill, I browse through a list of online courses. I go through the course catalogue of Coursera, edX, and Udemy. After spending enough time researching, I pick one based on the credibility of the instructor, the institution, and reviews. Most of the time, I audit these courses. And my probability of finishing them is 50%.
Well, there’s something wrong with my approach to online courses. I figured that out today after deep contemplation.
Here’s what:
- I was not clear about what I wanted to learn.
- I wasn’t paying attention to why I want to learn that topic. For example, learning design thinking is an excellent choice. But what real-life problem led me to believe that learning design thinking is the answer.
- I was uncertain about my priorities. In short, I didn’t ask myself why now?
- I didn’t go through the course syllabus to know if it covers everything I wanted to learn.
- I neither thought about the timelines to finish a course nor created a realistic plan for it.
Because of a lack of answers to these questions, I become unproductive and feel directionless while pursuing online courses.
I’m aware of my blind spots now. Hence, I promise to not sign up for an online course unless I have answers to these questions.
Akkshaya Varkhedi 