Most online schools have a 9:30 pm pillow fluffing problem.

There’s nothing like being shaken out of deep sleep so someone can “add value” to your experience.

A few weeks ago, my wife and I stayed at one of those hotels that looks like it belongs in a movie. Infinity pool, dramatic lighting in the hallways, staff gliding around in crisp uniforms. Honestly, the staff were dressed better than I am on my best day. Everything about it screamed five-star.

Each night around 9:30 there would be a polite knock at our door. A staff member would appear, smiling, with fresh towels and an offer to fluff our pillows. They called it “turn-down service.” On paper, it sounds like the height of luxury. The kind of thing you’d tell your friends about later.

Except for us, it was the opposite.

We’re early sleepers. We’re up before the sun most days, which means by 9:30 we’re already out cold. That knock wasn’t a gift, it was an interruption. Being startled awake by someone asking if we wanted warm towels did not improve our stay. In fact, it slowly became the one thing we dreaded every night.

When it came time to reflect on the trip, the memory of that constant intrusion lingered. What should have been a flawless experience was spoiled by something meant to impress us.

The hotel thought they were adding value. What they were really doing was annoying us. And schools, especially online schools, fall into this same trap.

It usually starts with good intentions. You want your students to succeed, so you add more. Another worksheet to show you’re thorough. A weekly phone call to check in. A bonus module you’re sure will make a difference. It feels like you’re going above and beyond. But often, you’re just creating the equivalent of a 9:30 knock at the door. Something that nobody asked for and that, for some students, gets in the way of the very thing they came to you for.

I’ve seen schools that insist every student show up to a one-hour group call each week, no matter what. For the students who are behind, that can be useful. For the students who are already hitting every milestone, it’s just another calendar block they resent.

Or schools that bury their curriculum in “bonus content.” What was once a clear path becomes cluttered with detours. Instead of feeling supported, students feel overwhelmed.

This is dangerous because in a Productized Education business the real value you provide isn’t the information itself. Information is cheap and everywhere. What you provide is clarity, connection, and accountability. Done right, these three things are what make transformation possible. Done wrong, they turn into friction.

Clarity is supposed to mean that a student knows exactly where they’re going and how they’ll get there. Pile on too many “extras” and you destroy that clarity.

Connection is supposed to be about building relationships with the teacher, with the other students, and with the outcome they’re working toward. Confuse connection with constant contact and you wear people out.

Accountability is supposed to be the gentle push that keeps students moving when they stall. Use it on people who are already moving forward and it starts to feel like micromanagement.

The hard question every school owner should ask is this: what is your 9:30 pillow fluffing call? What are you doing that you think is adding value but is really just creating frustration?

Sometimes the only way to know is to ask. You might find out that the weekly “support calls” you’re proud of are seen as a nuisance. Or that the endless worksheets don’t get touched. Or that the extra modules are ignored because they’re not essential to the outcome. The things you poured energy into creating might be the very things students wish would disappear.

It reminds me of Kendo practice. In Kendo, you don’t build skill by layering on more and more flashy techniques. You build it by repeating the fundamentals until they become second nature. My teacher never tried to “add value” by tossing in tricks we weren’t ready for. He made us practice kihon and men strikes endlessly. It wasn’t glamorous, but it was what mattered. Adding more would only have been a distraction.

The same principle holds true in education businesses. Every unnecessary feature you bolt on adds complexity. It costs time, it costs money, and it confuses both your team and your students. What seems like generosity can actually slow you down. And when you try to scale, that weight multiplies. Your operations get bloated, your teachers stretched thin, and your growth stalls.

The future belongs to schools that keep it simple. That give their students exactly what they need to succeed and nothing that gets in the way. That means focusing on a path that is clear, connections that matter, and accountability that’s applied only where it’s useful.

When you strip it down to what really drives transformation, you create a learning experience that feels smooth and effortless. Students don’t remember you for the towel service they didn’t want. They remember you for helping them reach the outcome they signed up for.

So look closely at what you’re offering. Be honest with yourself. Do your students truly want it, or are you just doing it to look like you’re delivering more? Because the truth is, sometimes the best thing you can do for your students isn’t adding another feature. It’s removing one.