What the hell was that?

Renaissance Faire attendees dancing to synth across the countryside. Men Without Hats, Safety Dance. The first video I ever saw on MTV tattooed on my brain. Forever and ever.

My friend and I danced around the living room while we waited for a ride to Skoochies for a roller-skating party. I wore a brightly patterned sweater to impress my crush Paco, the boy who introduced me to comic books. Oh, what a life. Fifth grade in the glorious 80s.
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Have you seen this meme about Gen X being uniquely qualified for lockdown?

It’s not wrong.

I grew up training for decades on video games, entertaining myself in chat rooms, meeting people all over the world, teaching myself how to code, writing thousands of words daily, churning stories out by the dozens, and eventually working from home.
(I still haven’t met some of my best friends in person.)

As an obsessive Gen Xer existing online, when we went into 2020 lockdown, I was Olympic ready for the isolation decathlon.

I signed up for a lot of online courses, conferences, workshops, and masterminds.

I took classes on Amazon ads, advanced writing craft, copywriting, social media, Facebook ads, business marketing, website analytics, nutrition, baking croissants, productivity, indoor cycling, yoga, product launching, creative mindset… and so many more.

Instead of binge eating, I binge learn.

Did you know that over 90% of courses purchased online never get completed?

It’s easy to spend a lot of time, money, and energy when a Ceasar’s palace sized buffet is at your fingertips. All you have to do is enter your credit card number and click submit. Voila! Endless learning.

For writers, this can be Third Circle of Hell dangerous.

Writers will spend countless hours looking for a Fairy Godmother process to get from first draft to bestseller as fast as possible.

Nowadays even our favorite authors are monetizing their writing process by creating courses. It’s tempting to want to sign up for all of them.
​(I’ve signed up for my share.)

I wish I could offer you a list of The Best Online Fairy Godmother Courses. Instead, I’m going to share my own hard earned wisdom.

7 questions I ask myself before I type in my credit card number and hit submit:
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1. Do I have a problem that needs solving? What is it?
   ​(If I can’t articulate the problem, that’s a clue to myself that maybe I don’t have one.)
   ​
   

2. Do I want to solve this problem?
   
   ​

3. Does the program actually solve this problem?
   
   ​

4. How is the material being offered—live instructor-led or pre-recorded self-paced?
   
   ​

5. Am I paying for an industry celebrity or am I paying for a content expert?
   
   ​

6. Am I getting any personal one-on-one attention from the instructor?
   
   ​

7. Do I keep access to the information when it’s over?
   ​(Usually video content.)

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​No matter what I answer to these questions, I still may decide to take the class. Sometimes, the problem I’m solving is loneliness. Taking a class or going to a workshop can help build community.

As a Gen X DIYer, I’m going to tell you there’s nothing wrong with learning for the sake of learning.

HOWEVER, there is a caveat.

If you keep signing up for classes and never getting your writing finished, then the classes aren’t about problem solving—they’re about distraction.

If you’re going to keep signing up for classes because you have an insatiable desire to learn new things (like me), then whatever you do, don’t stop writing.

Hello!
My name is Jocelyn.

Story warrior, book lover, day dreamer, gardener, and creative. I help serious writers roll up their sleeves, get their novel ready for publishing, and reach readers. When I’m not elbow-deep in the story trenches, I’m outside world-building in my garden and battling weeds with my three criminal mastermind cats.