Most Courses Lack a Process (And Why That's a Big Problem)

Jul 31, 2025

I once paid $2,000 for a course on creating social media content that builds a following.

Each day we were to create a social media post. The course had entertaining video lessons filled with information on the psychology of gaining attention. We saw many examples of compelling content that got attention. We were shown the principles that made the content effective.

But there was …

No framework for generating ideas.
No step-by-step process for structuring a post.
No guidance on crafting a compelling hook.

We were just told to implement the principles they gave but not given a specific process to enable us to use them well.

That's not teaching. That's exhorting. It's information without instruction.

The moment I realized I was doing the same thing

One summer, I was teaching SAT essay writing using what I thought was a brilliant approach.

I'd found research from an MIT professor about the five characteristics that high-scoring essays needed. I'd give students this framework and say, "Okay, now put these things into your essay."

The results? The exact same level of essays I'd been getting before.

Zero improvement.

I was doing exactly what that $2,000 course did to me—giving assignments without providing a process for completing them.

Here's what I learned: Information without instruction leads to frustration, not results.

What changed everything

Instead of teaching the entire framework at once, I decided to focus on just one skill at a time.

"We're going to learn how to write one persuasive paragraph," I told my students. "That's it."

Zooming in this way helped me realize the real problem: they didn't understand how to use logic and evidence to make their point. So we worked on just that skill until they mastered it.

Then we built the skill of writing strong introductions. Then conclusions. Then how to speed up the entire process.

One skill at a time.

The results were dramatic. Students who showed zero improvement with the "framework approach" started writing significantly better essays when we broke it down into teachable processes.

The difference between information and instruction

A well-designed course should provide clear, structured steps. For example, in a course on creating social media content, we might break down the content this way:

How to generate an idea (e.g., pulling from personal experience, current trends, or a proven framework)
How to structure the post (e.g., lead with a hook, introduce a problem, provide a solution, call to action)
How to refine the hook (e.g., using curiosity, contrast, or emotional triggers)

When you give students clear steps, they actually produce results. When you just give them information, many will struggle or fail.

How to find your process (when you've forgotten what it's like to struggle)

After all, as an expert, your work may have become so intuitive that you can't even remember the steps you take.

Here's what works:

Do the task yourself, but monitor yourself as you do it.

Try to break down what you're doing in real-time. Write out instructions for someone else to follow. Put those instructions aside for an hour, then come back and try following your own directions.

I did this for a storytelling workshop a few years ago. The first few sets of instructions I wrote were so bad I couldn't even follow them myself.

But eventually, I had instructions I could follow. When I shared them with my workshop participants, I was delighted by the results. Each of them produced amazing stories by the end and I got great feedback from them.

The real test of your course

Here's my standard: By the end of my workshop, students should be able to produce the skill with minimal notes or no notes at all.

If they can't do that, I haven't taught them a process—I've just given them information.

Most courses fail this test. They overwhelm students with frameworks, templates, and "proven strategies" but never break down the actual steps needed to implement them.

The result? Students who feel like they "learned a lot" but can't actually do anything with what they learned.

What this means for your courses

If you're creating courses, ask yourself: Am I giving assignments or am I teaching processes?

The difference isn't subtle. One leads to student success. The other leads to refund requests and poor reviews.

Your expertise is valuable, but only if you can package it in a way that actually helps people get results.

And getting results requires clear, step-by-step processes—not just information dumps with good intentions.

Want to see how to create courses that focus on processes instead of information?

The Atomic Course Blueprint shows you how to structure learning experiences that actually work. See for yourself here.

Still here?

Awesome! One thing you can do for me is reply to this email (or leave a comment) and share:

What's one skill you wish someone had taught you as a step-by-step process instead of just giving you the theory? Your response might inspire a future article.