I have small ambitions for learning to play the guitar. I’m not looking to join a band or even play in front of a real audience. I’d just like to be able to strum out “Sweet Home Alabama” around the campfire for a good ole’ fashioned family sing-along. I’ve been working on this goal, on and off, for about a decade. I’m starting to get close, maybe (finally!) I’ll be able to pull it off this summer.

My friend’s middle school-aged son can do it. Objectively, I know it isn’t that hard. So why is it taking me a decade? The online classes I’ve ventured into time and time again have been excellent. They teach exactly what I need to know in a clear, linear format. I always start out on a schedule, with a very disciplined approach. I start to feel great about my progress. But then, within two months the schedule has gone out the window and I sign in for my lessons sporadically at best. Inevitably, sporadically turns into infrequently, which turns into never. Has this ever happened to you?

The online-learning space is exploding, and I’m not just talking about guitar lessons or remote high school. Top universities and global companies—brands like Harvard and Google—are offering free access to their courses. World-class instructional material is readily available to us…and to CareerWise apprentices. The possibilities for our apprentices are limitless. All they have to do is show up consistently. Easy right?

We know it isn’t. That is why CareerWise is launching our new Bootcamp Extensions Technical Training program for all CareerWise apprentices, regardless of training occupation or year within the program. We’ve built an innovative, high-structure, high-accountability model that supports apprentices in succeeding in these online courses. We’re blending facilitated live meetings and assignments with the online courses to ensure our apprentices keep showing up, and stick with their online courses.

Ultimately, the thing that finally got me over my pattern of being a guitar-school drop-out was a person. A person waiting for me on the other side of a zoom call that I couldn’t let down. Let us be that person for your apprentice.