Learn to teach, and you can teach anything.
The Smarter Template is a learning-first approach that helps creators, coaches, and other non-educators build courses that teach… based on how people actually learn.
What is a learning-first approach to course creation?
Many course creation programs focus on helping you sell. They show you how to outline your content, structure your modules, and market your offer. That approach can be great, especially if your main goal is getting a product out into the world.
But if your goal is different...
If you want to help people actually learn, apply what you teach, and walk away with real progress, then you need to apply a different lens to your course creation process.
A learning-first approach starts by asking what your learner needs in order to make sense of the material and use it in their real life. It shifts the focus from what you want to say to what they need in order to learn it. It's not about adding complexity. It’s about building your course in a way that supports understanding, practice, and follow-through.
Below, you’ll see six core principles that help make that shift.
01. Teach for a Goal
Effective courses don’t just share ideas. They help someone do something new, better, or more confidently. Always begin with the result in mind.
06. Teach the Way the Brain Learns
Design your course to support how understanding develops. Learning happens when the mind makes sense of something, not just when it’s exposed to information.
05. Teach What Matters
Design your course to offer guidance where it’s needed. Use examples, cues, and feedback to support the learner without over-explaining.
02. Respect their Starting Point
Design your course to begin at the earliest point of understanding that still makes sense for the subject. Learning is only possible when the entry point is truly reachable.
03. Build One Step at a Time
Don’t flood the learner with everything at once. Break your ideas into a thoughtful progression that builds real understanding as they go.
04. Make Space to Try
Give people small ways to think, reflect, and test what they’re learning along the way. These moments help learners check their own understanding, strengthen memory, and build the confidence to keep going.
These are the core principles of learner-first course creation. Each one reflects a deeper layer of practice: habits, decisions, and design skills that shape how effective your course will be. Once you understand how these pieces work together, the process of building your course becomes more natural, more focused, and far easier to navigate.
Get started with my Learner-First Thinking course.
Want to start designing your course from the learner’s point of view?
This free mini course gives you a clear, practical path to shift your thinking—from content-first to learning-first. You’ll explore how real understanding happens, how to clarify your course’s purpose, and how to build with your learner in mind. No email required.
Inside, you’ll get:
- marketability quick-test to assess whether your course idea fills a real learning gap
- A clarity worksheet to define your outcome, starting point, and success markers
- A learner-first audit tool to help you think like an instructional designer—without the jargon
Click below to explore the course, download the tools, and start building smarter.
