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How I injured my back while launching two online courses

On the 4 of March, I joined Teachable, a platform for creating online courses. Since I wrote my first book titled In or Out in late 2017, I always wanted to launch an accompanying online course. People consume knowledge in different ways, some like to read, others like to listen, and some like to watch. After releasing my first book in a printed and e-book format, I produced its audio version. Now seemed the perfect time for the creation of an online course.

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I committed to this journey of learning and creativity by paying for the Teachable basic tier of subscription to get access to the courses that teach how to make and how to launch an online course.

By the end of March, I launched The Decisions Academy and released my first mini-course, How to make great decisions – the definitive guide to making life decisions in life and work in less than 30 minutes. I also presell my first standard course – How to make great life-changing decisions – The complete guide to making big life decisions using Anchor System Thinking.

On the 24 of April, I officially released the standard course for the first batch of students who bought the course during the presell period. Later on, the 1 of May for the rest of the world. The course closed for enrollment on the 7 of May.

Now I understand why it is not wise to keep the course open for a more extended time.  Launching a course takes the same amount of energy to create a course. Everything was moving very fast, and I almost had a back injury.

Starting from the early weeks in March, I reduced my workload as a urologist due to the Coronavirus, and my working hours at home started to increase gradually. I did not have a desk for myself; I have moved mine to my clinic since finishing my Ph.D. So, the only place I could finish my work was by sitting in my IKEA chair or sitting at the dinner table.

All this comes with serious consequences. After eight weeks of many hours each day sitting working on the courses, I started to have severe upper back pain immediately after going to bed. It worsens after a few hours of sleep when I wake up in the middle of the night, feeling the pain while trying to change my sleeping side. I called my neurosurgeon friend, who immediately told me not to worry about it, probably because of your bad posture. Still, you may do an MRI, if this would make you more comfortable. I went for an MRI, which was a terrible experience, and the report confirmed his diagnosis. He advised me to change my writing posture regularly and to exercise.

I had to reduce the time spent on the computer, and I also went for a shopping spree. I bought a new desk, a chair, a 22-inch monitor, and a wireless mouse and keyboard.

Working the past two months on releasing two courses was excruciating. I learned a lot on many levels, technically and mentally. I even suffered physically, not to mention stress, anxiety, doubts, and fear of failure.

Now it is time to sit and reevaluate the past two months. Tell me, how are you coping with the “New Normal” and working from home?

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