Less is more when it comes to curriculum

An unexpected business lesson I learned in high school math class

In 11th grade I switched to a new school. It was a great school, huge improvement from my previous high school, and I was eager to thrive in this new environment.

Pencils sharp and scientific calculator in hand, I sat down for my first class in Algebra 2, eyes glued to the sturdy, sweater-vested teacher at the front of the class.

She dove full speed into the first lesson of the year and quickly had us working independently on our assignment. I’m going to be honest, the pace gave my 16-year old mind a pretty good case of whiplash, and my head was spinning. When I bravely raised my hand to ask what I thought was a pretty simple question, Mrs. Sweater Vest launched into an elegant recitation of some complicated algebraic function that may or may not have actually been needed to complete the problem I was trying to do. Talk about information overload.

She walked away, and I was even more confused than I was before I had asked the question! Not a great start to a new class, new school, and new phase of my young life. (side note - she was actually a lovely person and great teacher! I ended up learning so much from her...but day 1 was rough for me TBH)

While Algebra never ended up being my greatest love, I did learn a lot from that experience, and I carry that lesson with me now as I help scores of people build their online programs and courses.

Less is more.

No matter how much we feel like we have to justify our price point, adding MORE is not always the answer, and often times, MORE just muddies the water of our clients’ results.

What does my person absolutely need to know in order to get the results I’m promising?

When you’re developing your content arc, whether for a longer course or a one-off workshop, ask yourself, “What does my person absolutely need to know in order to get the results I’m promising?” Map our your steps and content points and start playing with what you could take away while still getting the same results.

TOP TIP: Write out the steps or phases of your content arc on index cards. Line them up and start removing cards one by one to see what is truly necessary for your end result and what you may be able to trim down.

When you keep your clients’ end results in mind, you’ll be able to sift through what is needed and what is just more for the sake of more.