> Is it worth paying for a course and telling your friends, significant other, random strangers that you are going to learn X, even if that course is only part of learning X, so that you cannot quit because of pride and accountability?
This would kill the initiative for me. As soon as I get excited and tell someone about what awesome thing I am planning to do the likelihood that I will actually complete said thing goes down significantly. A few years ago I saw a TED talk on the topic ("Keep your goals to yourself" by Derek Sivers) and it made perfect sense. Now until I gain enough momentum in a project to feel confident that there's no turning back I just keep it to myself.
This would kill the initiative for me. As soon as I get excited and tell someone about what awesome thing I am planning to do the likelihood that I will actually complete said thing goes down significantly. A few years ago I saw a TED talk on the topic ("Keep your goals to yourself" by Derek Sivers) and it made perfect sense. Now until I gain enough momentum in a project to feel confident that there's no turning back I just keep it to myself.