Design an Experience That Scales (Episode 20260402)

Many instructors find that repetitive tasks and disorganized processes are distracting. Take control by looking at recurring tasks to spot bottlenecks, simplify processes, and identify opportunities to automate steps. Most instructors begin by asking, “What should I teach?”

Instead, ask something to build momentum: “What experience am I creating—and why would someone choose to come?”

A lesson delivers information. An experience creates clarity, confidence, and connection. Attendees are looking for an experience.

When someone signs up for one of your events, they’re not just looking to learn. They’re looking to feel capable at the table. They want to feel included, comfortable, and like they know what they’re doing.

When you shift from teaching content to designing an experience, something changes. Your offering becomes easier to explain. It becomes easier to repeat, and people are more likely to say yes. It also becomes something you can grow.

In this session, you’re going to design one experience—something you can run at a single table or expand to a full room—without overwhelming your players or yourself.

• Think about how you currently approach a topic like the Charleston. Are you explaining how it works—or creating an experience where players can feel how their decisions shape the outcome?
  When players struggle with something like the Charleston, what’s missing—more information, or a structured way to build confidence through practice and feedback?
  If you were to design a session around a theme like “using the Charleston with intention,” what would players need to experience—not just hear—to walk away feeling more confident?
• Where do bottlenecks or inefficiencies occur and which steps could be simplified?

Talking Points

Lessons vs. Experiences

When we teach the Charleston as a lesson, we explain:

• The passes
• The sequence
• The rules

When we design it as an experience, we focus on:

• What to pass with intention
• How decisions shape momentum
• How to recognize improvement in real time

The shift is: Explanation → Application → Awareness

Learn more: Bloom’s Taxonomy Hierarchy of Learning

1. Remembering: Recalling facts, terms, and basic concepts.
2. Understanding: Constructing meaning and interpreting information.
3. Applying: Using information or procedures in new situations.
4. Analyzing: Breaking information into parts to explore understandings and relationships.
5. Evaluating: Justifying a decision or course of action.
6. Creating: Generating new ideas, products, or ways of viewing things.

The Three Anchors

Every strong event is built on three anchors:

• Outcome — What will participants be able to do differently?
• Audience — Who is this designed for?
• Structure — What format delivers the experience?

For our anchor example: Strategy Lab: Harnessing the Power of the Charleston

• Outcome: More confident, intentional passing
• Audience: Beginner to early-intermediate players
• Structure: Interactive workshop

You are not covering everything. You are solving one problem well.

One Idea, Multiple Formats

The same idea can scale without changing its core.

• 4–8 players: Hands-on coaching
• 12–20 players: Guided tables with shared instruction
• 30–40+ players: Facilitated experience

The idea stays the same. The structure adapts.

Naming the Experience

Compare:

• “Charleston Lesson” vs “Strategy Lab: Harnessing the Power of the Charleston”

A strong name:

• Signals application
• Creates curiosity
• Attracts the right audience

Your title is your first layer of value.

Designing for the Moment of Insight

Ask yourself: Where does the “aha” happen?

• When a pass improves the hand
• When a mistake reveals a pattern
• When a player recognizes momentum

Your job is not to explain the insight. Your job is to design the moment where it happens.

Design with your teaching style in mind. Learn more about the Five Effective Teaching Styles.

Activity:
Using the worksheet, design one scalable experience.

Step 1: Choose a Concept

Something you already teach:

• Hand selection
• Defense
• Reading exposures
• Joker management

Step 2: Define the Experience

Write:

• Working Title
• Audience
• Outcome
• Format (initial idea)

Step 3: Clarify the Focus

• What is the ONE problem you are solving?
• What are you intentionally NOT covering?

Consider using the Block Buster Principle + Triple-Step Framework

Step 4: Design the Experience

Identify where participants will:

• Feel confident
• Feel challenged
• Have an “aha” moment

Step 5: Scale It

How could this exist as:

• Small group
• Workshop
• Large event

Reflections

• What changed when you shifted from teaching a lesson to designing an experience?
• Which of your current lessons already contain the foundation of a scalable experience?
• Where might simplifying your focus actually strengthen your offering?