2022 Goal: Make a Course!
Because many people in 2022 will be TAKING them thanks to the supply chain drama.
The world has run short on several things, from breakfast cereal to computer chips. Is it just because of the pandemic, or has this been a long time coming?
And why does this mean you should take this time to teach a skill?
Let’s review.
Covid — 19
Along with toilet paper shortages, the world experienced many other inconveniences, like delayed shipping and deliveries and compromising on the colour of their new cars. Truly a tragedy 😔.
But more importantly, doctors have had to go without important medical equipment and medicines, and people have gone without food.
The pandemic has undoubtedly disrupted every stage of the global supply chain: mining, growing, manufacturing, transport, logistics… at the end of all that is the consumer who has paid for his goods and is now waiting.
Every passing day, the prices just went higher and higher.
There was an uptick in the number of goods people bought for home improvement, as more and more of them started working remotely. Office chairs, printers, gym equipment, video game consoles… even curtains and lawn furniture, as more of them tried to make their homes cosy and comfortable.
Suppliers couldn’t keep up with the sudden demand.
Is the pandemic alone responsible?
You could say it was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Covid-19 made the supply and demand volatile, but this has been years in the making because of lean inventories kept by companies to limit their costs.
If a company can save a dollar in storage, that’s an extra dollar they can use for something else, like in bonuses for upper-level execs or dividends for shareholders.
Monopolies also create problems: if you’re keeping a product scarce simply because you want to call the shots on the prices, it’s a choke point.
And let’s not forget the terrible wages, and let’s not discount the effect inadequate wages have had on worker retention.
How is corporate America fixing this?
The NEED for labour has pushed private sectors to increase their wages, but none of the positions are getting filled up. Could it be… that the average person is now frustrated with corporations calling the shots in their life? Maybe it’s Covid, maybe it’s deeper structural shifts in our society, which now has new working preferences that allow them more freedom.
Why are people not going back?
Hey HEY. You know what hasn’t taken a serious hit during the pandemic? The number of small business registrations!
You like numbers? Yeah you do.
4.3 million new business applications in 2020
🇺🇸 America
Yeah, 600,000 businesses had to shut down as people were forced into isolation. But 2020 also brought a flood of new business applications. Around 4.3 million business applications were filed in 2020, up 24% from 2019 and 51% higher than the 2010–2019 average, according to the Census Bureau’s Business Formation Statistics.
🇮🇳 India
According to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), the number of company registrations were at 3,209 in April 2020. It picked up pace and hit 16,000 in July 2020, and the numbers were above that level till October 2020. The numbers hit another high in March 2021, at 17,324 registrations, and stood at 10,915 in May 2021.
What does this mean? Well, either that businesses will have to do a lot more than promise higher wages, which means they need to built attractive value propositions, allow scope for growth, give more freedom, and adjust their salaries to stay ahead of competition.
OR.
They lose out as people start working from home permanently, building their own small businesses and living life on their own terms. Which honestly does not solve the supply chain issue and is bad news for bigger corporations.
“Okay okay, why should I make a course!?”
Because people want to learn!
I hate to borrow this tired, beaten to death meme template, but I am ridiculously outdated when it comes to social media, so.
I’m so sorry.
But seriously: people don’t just wake up and decide to start a business. So much prep goes into this, regardless of what they’re selling. It could be printing t-shirts, making home-made body lotions and shampoos, creating custom paintings and artworks… even if the person has prior experience in these fields, it takes a lot more commitment and talent to start making money from it. Not to mention know-how.
Small businesses aren’t just about creating. You are your own product designer, manufacturer, social media marketer, accountant, lawyer, salesperson, PR rep… it’s not a small task!
This undoubtedly gets overwhelming for people. And you know what they need when they feel lost and need guidance on how to get started?
Easily accessible, good quality, affordable online courses!
Whether you are a freelancer or a small business owner, people want to know about your experience and how you dealt with different hurdles. It shows them they are not alone and that breaking out of greedy, suffocating corporate America is worth it.
You can make your course more personal, talking about your internal as well as external struggles as you build your business and made a name for yourself. Alternatively, you can focus on facts and give a step-by-step, clear cut guide on how to go about handling registration, social media, packaging, branding, etc.
My point is: people want to know what you are doing and want to learn from you. So why not? You have nothing to lose and everything to gain!
Besides. The online course industry is going to be facing a shortage real soon, because we’re about have a massive influx of users thanks to Elon Musk.
So get on that train 🚆.
If you’re thinking of creating a course and need some guidance on structuring and scriptwriting, you can contact me through my website! I offer additional services like branding, animation, voice-over, and promotional content creation.
