The problem
Most coaches reach a point where they want to move beyond trading time for money and build a course or group programme that can serve more clients simultaneously. The intellectual leap is obvious: you have expertise, a methodology that works, and clients who have achieved results. A course should be the natural extension of that. And yet the outline phase alone stops many coaches in their tracks, sometimes for months.
The challenge is that designing a course is a different skill from delivering 1-to-1 coaching. In a 1-to-1 context, you adapt in the moment to each client. In a course or group programme, you need to create a path that works for a range of people without individual adaptation, which requires a different kind of structural thinking. What should come first? How much do participants need to understand before they are ready for the more challenging content? Where do the exercises and practical application points sit? How do you maintain engagement across multiple modules without the personal relationship to sustain motivation?
The blank page problem is real and it is expensive. Every week spent not having a course outline is a week without the potential to sell it. AI cannot replace the expertise that goes into the content, but it can solve the structural challenge quickly and give you a framework to start filling with your material.
The system
Step 1: Define the course parameters (Claude)
Start by giving Claude a clear brief about your niche, your typical client, the transformation your coaching delivers, and the practical constraints of the course.
Prompt example: "I am a career coach who specialises in helping people in their 30s and 40s who feel stuck in their current career and want to transition into more meaningful work. My 1-to-1 coaching typically achieves the following outcomes: clarity about what the client actually wants from their career, identification of specific alternative paths that match their values and skills, a concrete action plan for making the transition, and the confidence to take the first steps. I want to create an 8-week online group programme that delivers a version of this transformation. Please help me design the overall programme structure: the transformation arc, the key modules, and the logical sequence. The programme will be delivered via weekly live sessions plus recorded content."
Review the structure Claude proposes and adjust it based on your experience of what clients need and in what order.
Step 2: Develop each module in detail (Claude)
Once you have agreed the overall structure, develop each module individually.
Prompt example: "Please develop Module 2 of this career transition programme in full. The module title is 'Auditing Your Values and Non-Negotiables'. The objective is for participants to identify the 3 to 5 core values that must be present in their work, and to understand which of their current job elements violate those values. Please provide: (1) a detailed description of what this module covers and why it comes at this point in the programme, (2) learning objectives (what participants will know and be able to do by the end), (3) a suggested structure for the live 60-minute group session including exercises and discussion, (4) a between-session exercise for participants to complete before the next module, (5) any resource or reading recommendations."
Repeat this for all eight modules. You now have a complete module-by-module outline that is ready to fill with your specific content, exercises, and perspective.
Step 3: Create a programme overview for marketing (Claude)
With the full outline in place, use Claude to draft the marketing description of the programme.
Prompt example: "Based on this programme outline, please draft a marketing description of the programme. Include: a compelling programme title, a one-paragraph description of who it is for and what problem it solves, a clear articulation of the transformation it delivers, a bullet-point summary of what is included (modules, live sessions, resources, support), and a brief description of who the ideal participant is (and who it is NOT for). Write in a compelling but honest tone. Avoid hype. UK English."
Step 4: Create a visual overview slide deck (Gamma)
Use Gamma to create a visual overview presentation that can be used in sales calls, webinars, or as a downloadable PDF for prospective participants.
Prompt example for Gamma: "Create a professional programme overview presentation called '[Programme Name]: An 8-Week Group Coaching Programme'. Build a slide for each module summarising the theme, key activity, and outcome. Also include a title slide, a 'who is this for' slide, and a 'what you will achieve' slide. Use the following content: [paste module summaries]."
The results
Before: Coaches typically spent weeks or months in the outline phase, often bouncing between different structures without committing. The time cost of course design was one of the primary reasons coaches delayed launching group programmes at all.
After: A complete 8-module course outline with session structures, exercises, and a marketing description is produced in a focused three to four hour session. One coach who had been "planning to create a course" for 18 months had a complete, launchable outline within a day using this approach, and sold the first cohort of six participants within three weeks of having the outline in hand. The key shift was moving from staring at a blank page to editing and improving a draft, which is a fundamentally different and much faster cognitive task.