After teaching a wide range of software application training courses at New Horizons Computer Learning Center in San Diego in the early 2000s, I noticed a recurring misunderstanding about how these courses are designed. Many people believed that skipping the first level of a four-part series was acceptable because they thought that was only for beginners. The problem is that skipping an entire course can prevent these learners from gaining the core 25 percent of knowledge for that software.
Many professionals assume that if they have “used the software for XYZ years,” they can jump directly to the level two or three of the series. They often equate time spent using the software with mastery but in reality, there is no correlation. Consider this statement: “I have been playing soccer since 1980.” That is more than forty years of experience, yet being totally honest, I am still terrible at the game. The same principle applies to driving a car. Someone can drive for decades and still be a poor driver. Time alone does not guarantee a more refined skill level.
The Reality of Software Training
The truth is that software training is organized by the importance of the skills to be taught, not by their difficulty. Most people imagine a progression: beginner, intermediate, advanced, and then the most difficult topics. That is not how it works. This belief is a massive misconception.
The same misconception exists in elementary school. Many think that math from first through sixth grade moves from easy to hard. In reality, these courses start with the most important core material and then progress to concepts that are used less often in life until there is nothing left to teach.
The Misconception About “Levels”
While at New Horizons, I saw this constantly. Students would skip “Level 1” because they thought it was beneath them. That is why I started calling that course “Part 1 of 4” to emphasize that there are multiple parts, and skipping one means missing critical knowledge. Skipping Part 1 means missing the foundation that makes later lessons easier and more valuable for the learner.
In reality, courses are organized by priority like this:
- Part 1: The most important topics covering the essential building blocks
- Part 2: The next group of tools that expand upon those introduced in Part 1
- Part 3: Specialty tools that require the skills from the previous two courses and are not as commonly used
- Part 4: Niche features and an introduction to writing code within the tool
This structure ensures that each layer builds on the previous one. By the time you reach specialty features, you already have the foundation to understand them quickly.
Why Later Lessons Feel Easier
When a student learns how to create an AVERAGE formula in Excel, they accomplish three things:
- They learn the structure required to build a formula in Excel
- They learn how to reference cells within a formula
- They learn the SUM formula itself
Once they understand these three core skills, learning another formula—like IF or VLOOKUP—becomes much simpler. At that point, they only need to learn the concepts for the new formula, not how to build one from scratch. Each new concept builds on what they already know, making the later lessons feel more approachable.
This principle applies across many applications:
- In Microsoft Word: once you understand paragraph formatting and breaks, learning styles, columns, and templates is far less cumbersome and the base terms are already understood.
- In PowerPoint: mastering slide layouts and designer makes advanced design features like transitions easier to apply and understand to a template master.
- In Adobe Photoshop: learning layers first makes masks and blending modes much simpler later.
Course Examples from my Experiences Working for New Horizons
Here’s how this layering approach looks in real courses:
Excel Training Path
- Part 1: Core concepts like cell references, formula structure, keyboard shortcuts, and formatting
- Part 2: Functions like VLOOKUP, conditional formatting, and data validation
- Part 3: Pivot tables, specialized formulas, Macros, and automation tools
- Part 4: Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) and integration with other applications or tools
Word Training Path
- Part 1: Document creation, printing, document structure, formatting, and page setup
- Part 2: Styles, headers/footers, templates, and page breaks
- Part 3: Section Breaks, Table of Contents (TOC), mail-merge, Columns, and macros
- Part 4: Collaboration features, reviewing tools, track changes, and integration with other apps
Notice how each part builds upon the previous, using the knowledge already discussed since they have already mastered the core concepts. Jumping straight to Part 3 without understanding Styles will make Table of Contents (TOC) or mail merge feel overwhelming.
Trainer’s Perspective
Instructing these courses taught me a lot about learners and below are some insights from my firsthand experience.
Favorite Part of Teaching:
Hearing feedback from individuals and organizations about the success they achieved after applying what they learned in my classes. Many discovered how simple certain tasks really are and found answers to real world challenges that they brought with them to class.
Surprising Discovery:
Many students were told to take the class, after they had already gotten a new job. Organizations realized their actual skills didn’t match their résumé, so the course was to be used instead of replacing the new team member.
Additional Insight:
I often encountered situations where students returned to take Part 1 of a four-part course after struggling to jump directly into Part 2 or Part 3. This typically happened when they assumed they already understood the core of the application. In Excel, the challenges often involved grasping cell references or building formulas. In Word, many students felt lost with indenting or managing page breaks because they had skipped the foundational concepts covered in Part 1.
Biggest Challenge:
It’s like being a pitching coach for a major league baseball team. You make a fraction of what the stars earn and yet are expected to make those you are teaching better.
Memorable Moment:
One student was amazed to learn that keyboard shortcuts are displayed (written) right on the menus and ribbons with most applications. It was a profound realization that the tools were always in front of them in plain English, yet they were blind to the help.
Redesigning Courses:
I often combined Level 1 and Level 2 content for Microsoft Word into one custom class. This was to ensure learners got what they needed not just want they wanted.
Advice for Students:
Don’t feel embarrassed; it’s not a “beginner” class. It’s Part 1 of 4. Starting with the core of the application is better than starting with only a portion and assuming you know it all.
Why This Matters for Learners
Confidence: Starting at Part 1 removes the fear of “being behind.”
Retention: Layered learning improves memory because each concept reinforces the last.
Efficiency: You learn shortcuts and best practices early, saving time later.
Peace of Mind: Skipping courses doesn’t save time—it costs you more in frustration and inefficiency.
What You Should Do
- Start at Part 1: Even if you think you know the basics.
- Commit to the full series: Taking one of four courses only gives you 25% of the knowledge.
- Think in terms of ecosystems: Excel isn’t just formulas; it’s part of a larger Microsoft suite that works together.
- My Blogs about Ecosystems:
- The Power of Ecosystems
- Ecosystems: Not Randomized Optioning
The Big Takeaway
Software training isn’t about difficulty levels. It’s about layering knowledge so that each step makes the next one easier. Look at the whole picture:
- Learn the entire application feature scope
This means understanding the full scope of the software, not just isolated features. For example, in Microsoft Excel, it’s not enough to know how to enter data or create a simple formula. One should also understand formatting, data validation, charts, macros, and pivot tables because they all work together. Mastering the entire application gives you confidence and flexibility to solve real-world problems without feeling limited by partial knowledge.
- Entire ecosystems of related software
Modern workplaces rely on interconnected tools and functions. Microsoft Excel doesn’t exist in isolation. As most of us know, it integrates with Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, and even cloud services like OneDrive and SharePoint. Learning how these tools interact can save hours of work, and your knowledge can be compounded. For instance, knowing how to link Excel data into a PowerPoint presentation or maybe collaborate on Word documents through Teams makes you far more efficient than someone who only knows each tool individually.
- Whole course groups for one application
Training programs are designed as a series for a reason. Each part builds upon the previous one. Skipping Part 1 because one thinks it’s “too basic” often means missing foundational concepts that make future topics easier. For example, if you skip Excel Part 1, you might struggle with VLOOKUP or Macros in Part 2 and Part 3 because you never learned absolute vs. relative cell references. Completing the full series ensures you have a complete skill set, not just fragments.
Additional Information
The Most Underestimated Feature, Keyboard shortcuts: I even wrote a blog about them: Keyboard Shortcuts Save You from “Clickitus” – LifeCycle365.
Patterns in Learners: Professionals believed they knew enough until someone told them they needed a class. Students often had theoretical knowledge but lacked practical application.