The Curiosity Click: Issue 44 - Why Courses Feel Like Progress

People often argue about whether a course is “worth it.”

Which already tells me something, because that argument almost never shows up when anything real is getting built. It shows up when things are stalled. When things are quiet. When nothing’s moving and you’re trying to decide if buying one more thing will fix that.

Sometimes a course isn’t worth it. Sure. Sometimes it’s fluff. Sometimes it’s the same ideas you’ve already heard, just rearranged and renamed.

But that’s not usually where things break.

The expensive part usually isn’t the course.

It’s the time that passes while you’re in it.

Because ninety-seven dollars feels expensive.
Six months of not building anything somehow doesn’t.
(Still don’t understand how that math works, but a lot of people live by it.)

Watching feels productive. That’s the hook.

You’re paying attention. You’re engaged. You’re nodding along. You’re taking notes. It feels like work. It feels like effort. It feels like you’re doing the thing.

Building doesn’t feel like that.

Building feels awkward. Slow. A little embarrassing.

Building is where you stop being a consumer and find out if the idea survives contact with reality. Building is where other people can see what you made. Or not see it. Or look at it and move on without reacting.
(That last one messes with people more than they admit.)

So you stay in learning mode.

Another lesson. Another video. Another “before I start, I just want to finish this part.”

You don’t need the exact sentence. You know the one. You’ve used it. The wording changes. The function doesn’t.

It sounds responsible. It sounds careful. It sounds like discipline.

Most of the time it’s just a delay with good posture.

Because once you start, you lose cover.

Once you start, there’s nowhere to hide behind preparation. The work has to stand on its own. And if it’s weak, you’ll know. Other people will know. That’s uncomfortable.

So you keep yourself busy instead.

Nobody tracks this. There’s no receipt for it.

You don’t get an invoice that says, “Three months passed and nothing changed.” It just happens. Quietly. While you still feel like someone who’s “working on something.”

The course didn’t steal that time. You did.

Then the next layer shows up.

"Well, I paid for it. I should finish it."

So you do. You watch the last video. You close the tab. You feel good for about five minutes. Responsible. Like someone who follows through.

And nothing in your world is different. Nothing left your head. You just know more stuff.

Knowing more stuff didn't move anything.

At some point, starting feels harder than it did at the beginning. The work didn't get more complex. You just trained yourself to wait. You practiced delay. You got very good at staying just short of action.

Learning keeps things open.

Building forces decisions. You have to pick one thing. Let others go. Stop circling. Stop hedging.
(Nobody likes that part.)

So you stay in prep mode. Still feel like someone who’s building something.

You’re just not.

And here’s the part most people don’t like sitting with.

Nobody is impressed by how ready you are. Nobody cares how many courses you’ve completed. Nobody is keeping score of your preparation.

The only thing that counts is whether something exists outside your head.

A lot of people never make that turn.

They don’t quit. They don’t decide they’re done. They don’t fail loudly.

They just keep getting ready.

And they stay exactly where they are.

If you've been stacking courses and still not building, there's probably a reason that has nothing to do with what you know.

I put together a short PDF called The $50K Lesson. Thirteen traps that keep people stuck in prep mode instead of actually building anything.

Not another course. Just the patterns nobody mentions because they're too busy selling you the next system.

You can grab it here:. Grab it here. Wont cost you a dime.

Until Next Time,

Any questions? Email me - [email protected]