Be Excellent!

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$389

AUD

35% off

$599 AUD

Quick Facts

Delivery Method Online
Professional Certificate
24hrs Suggested Study Time
3 Months Access
Tutor Support
Study On Any Device
3838 Students

Master twelve career-enhancing skills including goal setting, time management, personal organization, and creativity.

Develop career-enhancing skills in a single course that covers twelve popular one-day seminar topics, including goal setting, time management, and personal organisation. You'll learn how to improve your creative abilities, gain confidence with financial matters, and how to minimise conflict in your life. Develop a fulfilling career plan and improve relationships with co-workers, friends, and family.

Courses are delivered to you through expertly executed lessons, online instruction and interaction with like-minded students. Our courses are designed to deliver all of the benefits of studying in a classroom whilst giving you the flexibility to study at a time and place to suit your needs. You can access your classroom 24/7 from any device with an internet connection.

This course has a 3 month duration. You'll complete comprehensive lessons, quizzes and assignments before submitting your final exam at the end of the course to achieve your certificate. Courses must be completed within the 3 month access period.

Career planning creates a road map for your life. It determines what you do and when you do it. Effective career planning begins with a self-assessment, continues on to researching potential career moves, and ends with goal setting. Today, we'll show you how to start developing a useful career plan, regardless of whether you're at the beginning of your journey or have been traveling on the road for a while.

In our first lesson, we identified goal setting as an important ingredient in developing your career plan. We shared a step-by-step process for creating and implementing meaningful goals. In this lesson, we'll investigate many more elements of effective goal setting. We'll also explore the nature of creative thinking and share methods for increasing your creativity.

Whenever two or more people interact, communication takes place. Unfortunately, communication often leads to misunderstanding, frustration, and dissatisfaction. Today, you'll learn how to become a better verbal communicator. We'll help you develop a clear message, deliver it through the right communication channels, and improve your listening and understanding of body language and other forms of nonverbal communication.

Now that you have a good understanding of verbal communication, it's time to discuss written communication. In this lesson, we'll present principles and concepts to help you plan, organize, and write your ideas so that you become a master communicator. We'll also discuss the various types of written documents such as reports, memos, e-mails, letters, proposals, policies, and procedures.

Personal organization is a highly desirable goal, but one that many people find hard to achieve. It's not about having good intentions or telling a close friend, "This year I'm going to be organized!" The keys to personal organization are awareness, preparation, execution, and follow-through. Our objective for today's lesson is to help you use these keys to open the doors that will lead you to becoming organized.

Life is filled with opportunities, problems, and choices. So, today, we'll examine key elements of problem solving, present a model of decision-making, and discuss how to use numerical methods to arrive at the best solutions.

In this lesson, we'll discuss time management, which should really be called self management. The ability to use time wisely makes it easier to accomplish tasks, improves performance, and reduces stress. So, your goal should be to use time to increase your productivity and accomplish a greater number of objectives. The concepts we'll discuss today will help you do just that.

Stress is an unavoidable part of life and can't be eliminated. You experience stress during a salary negotiation, a visit to the dentist for a root canal, or at an exciting basketball game. When you manage your stress, you increase your chances of enjoying a fulfilling and rewarding life. In this lesson, we'll help you understand what stress really is, identify where it comes from, find out how it affects you, and learn some stress reduction and coping strategies.

Risk taking and risk avoiding are parts of everyday life. Life requires choices and choices require risks. These days, how well you identify, research, measure, and take risks is a big part of what determines how successful you will be. Today, we'll help you understand what risk is and present concepts and strategies to help you take calculated risks and make the right choices.

Most people dislike conflict. But it's often unavoidable. Conflict comes from your beliefs, opinions, values, desires, needs, and habits. Contrary to what many people think, conflict is not necessarily undesirable. In this lesson, you'll learn where conflict comes from and examine different strategies that can help you manage it constructively.

Some people call accounting the language of business. To be able to use this language, you need to have a good grasp of key financial concepts and fundamentals. So, today, we'll discuss the differences between bookkeeping and accounting, share basic accounting terms, show you various types of accounting methods, and walk you through the two most widely used financial statements.

In our final lesson, we'll continue our discussion of accounting and finance. We'll examine various types of costs, determine what cash flow really means, identify key differences between financial and cost accounting, and explore how to make rational investments. After all, you don't mind making a little money, do you?

Becky and Tony Swaim

Becky and Tony Swaim have helped thousands of clients, colleagues, and students reach organisational and personal goals. Working in the medical, manufacturing and education fields, the Swaims manage a successful consulting firm. Starting her caree... Read more

Read Becky and Tony Swaim's Profile

Frequently Asked Questions

Once you've made the payment, we'll send you a confirmation email with a link to start your course. Feel free to get started whenever you're ready!

You'll have 3 months access to your course. In that time you are free to study at your own pace. The course duration is 24 hours.

Online learning is a flexible way to study that fits around your schedule, giving you the freedom to learn at your own pace from anywhere in the world. You'll have 3 months to complete the course and can take the multiple-choice questions and final exam whenever it suits you.

If you need help, you can contact us anytime. You can also join the discussion area where you can interact with other students. The discussion area for each lesson is open for the entire duration of the course.

Of course! We offer a 7-day money back guarantee. As long as you haven't completed the course, you can get a full refund within 7 days of enrolling.

We do not offer extensions or transfers for this self-paced course. However, you will have 3 months to complete the course, and if you need to cancel within the first 10 days of enrolment, we offer a money back guarantee.

What people are saying about our courses

With my present responsibilities I would not have been able to attend regular classes so the convenience of this course was tremendous. The course covered a lot of ground quickly, but the on-line resources were wonderful, and I hope to make use of them often. Thanks for the opportunity to participate.

Verified Student

I enjoyed the wide variety of topics of this course. One course with so many useful subjects.

Verified Student

This course is extremely helpful for career change, and also current employment advancement and management. Most of the concepts can also be applied to daily life encounters such as time and stress management. Tony and Becky are wonderful and I have already recommended this course to many people.

Verified Student

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The Learning Environment

From the moment that you enrol in the Be Excellent! you will become an integral part of our learning community. You'll find yourself with the freedom to learn at a speed that suits you, on any device, from anywhere in the world. Achieving your career goals no longer has to mean compromising family and work commitments.

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Our Values

Learn At Your Own Pace

We believe in personalised learning. That's why we provide all the tools and support you need to succeed at your own pace. With flexible learning, you'll stay motivated and retain more information. Plus, you can balance your studies with work and family commitments to make your dreams a reality.

We Won't Break The Bank

Education should be accessible to anyone who wants to learn. That's why we offer some of the most competitive prices in the industry with payments plans for just $25 per week. Investing in your future is a smart choice and doesn’t have to break the bank.

Industry-Led Courses

There's no better way to learn than from experts with years of experience in your field. That's why each of our 200+ industry-led courses are designed to give you a real-life perspective on your industry. With our expert mentors, you'll learn from people who have a wealth of knowledge and experience, and who are passionate about sharing it with you.

Get The Personal Support You Deserve

At Vibe Learning, we're real people who are dedicated to providing you with personal support every step of the way. Our industry experts are not only professional and knowledgeable but also incredibly passionate about sharing their expertise with you. With their guidance, you'll gain invaluable insights and practical knowledge to help you succeed.

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Be Excellent!

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Mystery Writing

Quick Facts

Delivery Method Online
Professional Certificate
24hrs Suggested Study Time
3 Months Access
Tutor Support
Study On Any Device
2792 Students

Using vivid examples from bestselling mystery novels, this course will teach you the techniques you need to become a successful author.

What makes a mystery?

If you consider the books you've read most recently, you may be surprised to discover that many--if not all--are mysteries. From Dan Brown to Dennis Lehane, mysteries are hot items on today's best-seller lists.

This course will teach you the techniques you need to know if you want to become a best-selling mystery author.

Mystery Writing begins by introducing the four story types and then explains how they relate to mysteries. It then reveals the three-act story structure, which is any story's key to success. Next, it shows you how to propel the action forward to a climax, followed by a catharsis in which your readers feel the release of tension that accompanies a great finish.

The difference between story and plot is one of the most important distinctions in fiction writing--and one that many professional authors don't fully understand. But you will have mastered it by the end of this course. You'll also get a chance to experiment with viewpoints and see which one works best for your mystery. And you'll write a complete scene from your story and learn the internal structure that makes every scene feel right.

Finally, you'll delve into the special techniques that apply to mysteries, including crime scene description, MacGuffins, and the use of red herrings to misdirect your readers and create suspense.

Examples from real mystery novels will show these techniques in action. Then, following each lesson, you'll get to practice on your own story. And when you have questions or insights to share, you can join your instructor and classmates in a dynamic, interactive discussion area.

This information-packed online course combines the best advice of many writing professionals, tempered with the instructor's own experiences as a mystery writer. Follow the guidelines taught in this course, and you'll be well on your way to writing a successful mystery of your very own!

You're probably wondering if you can really write a novel or screenplay. You may have already started one—maybe even several—and then run out of steam. In this first lesson, you'll begin finding out the secret that guarantees success. It's the secret of knowing where you're going before you start. We'll also take some time today to discuss what makes a mystery great, and to explore a number of real-world examples.

Did you know that there's a big difference between story and plot? Amazingly, even many professional authors are confused about this. Today you'll learn that plot is physical while story is emotional. Balancing the two is one of the keys to writing fiction that will satisfy your audience.

This lesson is about the dramatic elements at the heart of every story: passion, theme, character, and premise. Your passion is what drives you to tell your story and the theme is the underlying message it carries. To convey your theme, you create characters that represent it—either positively or negatively. Put these elements together and you've got your premise.

Character is what story is all about. Without a character—and a change in him or her—there can be no story. Today, you'll discover why the best characters are flawed. We'll explore you main character—the protagonist—and the opposing force of the antagonist. And then we'll look at tricks and techniques for creating characters that are memorable.

In this lesson, we'll explore the structure underlying almost every great story. That's right: Nearly every successful story has the same structure—a structure that virtually guarantees success! Like Sherlock Holmes, we'll examine each element of it under our writer's magnifying glass. Then we'll test our theories against some well-known mysteries. By the end, we'll have solved the mystery of story structure.

This is the first of three lessons in which you'll construct your story outline, act-by-act. In Act 1, you'll hook your readers. Then you'll fill them in with some character history called backstory. Finally, you'll exit Act 1 with a bang by triggering a traumatic event in the life of your protagonist.

Today, we work on Act 2 of your mystery. If Act 1 ended with a bang, Act 2 starts with a whimper. Your protagonist begins in crisis—an emotional state brought on by his or her flaw. And because of that flaw, your protagonist will struggle throughout the act as the antagonist deals setback after setback. Fortunately, at the conclusion of Act 2, your protagonist finally figures out the source of all this emotional distress and overcomes it.

The epiphany that ended Act 2 has prepared your protagonist for triumph in Act 3. So it's time to devise a plan. The result will be a final confrontation with the antagonist. This lesson looks at the best way to defeat the antagonist—it's not what you might guess. Then, with that dramatic climax behind you, you'll be ready to tie up all your story's loose threads in the ending.

We've accomplished a lot and you've gotten pretty comfortable with story structure. This is the lesson where we put it all together. We're going to move from story idea, to story outline, to developing scenes. From these little seeds, we're about to grow a forest.

In this lesson, we'll unravel the internal structure of every piece of fiction you've ever read. This is different from story structure and it's something I bet you never even knew existed. It's called scene and sequel. After today, you'll never forget it.

One of the most important choices an author makes is viewpoint. It affects every aspect of story—from theme, to pacing, to suspense. Today we'll look at the three most common viewpoints: third person omniscient, third person limited, and first person. We'll explore the advantages and disadvantages of each by considering examples from real-word mystery novels.

Much of what we've talked about in this course applies to all types of fiction, not just mysteries. So, in learning how to write a great mystery, you've also been learning to be a better writer in all genres. But in this final lesson, we'll examine some elements unique to mystery writing. Then we'll wrap up with ideas about how to follow the roadmap you've created and actually reach your goal of a finished novel or screenplay.

Steve Alcorn

Steve Alcorn is the published author of a wide range of fiction and nonfiction works including the mystery A Matter of Justice, the historical novel Everything in Its Path, the romance Ring of Diamonds (under the pseudonym Sha... Read more

Read Steve Alcorn's Profile

Frequently Asked Questions

Once you've made the payment, we'll send you a confirmation email with a link to start your course. Feel free to get started whenever you're ready!

You'll have 3 months access to your course. In that time you are free to study at your own pace. The course duration is 24 hours.

Of course! We offer a 7-day money back guarantee. As long as you haven't completed the course, you can get a full refund within 7 days of enrolling.

What people are saying about our courses

Every person considering writing any type of fiction should take this course with Steve Alcorn. It contained concise information, writing assignments and quizzes, as well as comprehensive review by the instructor. Mr. Alcorn was in his classroom available for instruction and assistance when it was 2:00 a.m. and I was in my pajamas! The class was strikingly beneficial, fun and up-to-the-minute with instructional responses. He has my highest recommendation.

Verified Student

During the course I wrote a mystery using your guidelines. I finished it last week and sent off a query letter. The publisher has requested the complete manuscript!

Verified Student

Having this course being taught by a published author was immensely valuable. It is great to be taught by someone who has the success and experience, yet can still relate to us beginners and cares that we are successful too. Wonderful!!

Verified Student

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The Learning Environment

From the moment that you enrol in the Mystery Writing you will become an integral part of our learning community. You'll find yourself with the freedom to learn at a speed that suits you, on any device, from anywhere in the world. Achieving your career goals no longer has to mean compromising family and work commitments.