Brain Trust: 100 Ivy League Business & Entrepreneurship Courses You Can Take for Free

By Kelly Kilpatrick

Just because you don’t have the deep pockets or stellar grades it takes to get into top tier schools doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy some of the same resources these establishments offer. Through open courseware programs, you can access course materials from a wide range of top universities. Whether you decide to take these courses on your own time or just skim through the information, we’ve compiled a list of 100 places to start looking for great business and entrepreneurship information.

Leadership

These courses can help you be a better leader by teaching you important skills like working as a team, ethics, and how to work with a diverse group of people. Read more

Small Business Tips – It’s Never The Perfect Time

Many people wait for things to be “perfect” before they pursue their dreams and goals. They wait for the perfect conditions, the perfect attitude, and the perfect time of year. They really want to achieve their goals … but the time just isn’t right.

In business they wait to take action on things they need to do to grow their business until they have their strategic plan in place, until staff turnover settles down, until they stop being so busy, until they get a few more clients. They really want to get around to taking the actions they need to do to grow their business … but the time just isn’t right.

When managing people they really want to tackle the poor performer, the rude staff member, the tardy employee. They want to give recognition to the high performing team member and take time out to plan their team’s projects or tasks… but the time just isn’t right.

Are you seeing any patterns?
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80 How-To Sites Worth Bookmarking

by Thursday Bram

Sitting on my dining room table, I currently have half a dozen projects in various states of doneness. Some involve vivisected computer parts, others will eventually be wearable and a few are just cool things I’ve ran across on the internet. I like doing things myself — I think the DIY bug is one of the best communicable diseases in the lifehack community.

These eighty sites are the places I turn to when I’m trying to figure out how to accomplish any particular goal. Any time I’m facing a new project, I start searching for how-tos that will help me figure out how other people did similar things and how likely I am to finish the project with all ten fingers still intact. I’ve broken them up into a few different categories, just to help you narrow down what you might be looking for. Some are simply archives full of tutorials. Some are blogs that publish how-tos fairly regularly. Some are just great resource sites. But they all have provided me with the information necessary to carry through on a project.

Every How-To They Can Get Their Hands On

These ten sites are more than happy to host any how-to around. I’ve seen everything from computer hardware hacks to instructions for brewing beer on these sites. This is the place to start — you can narrow down your search as you get a better idea of your project.

1. Make Magazine’s Blog
2. Instructables
3. How Stuff Works
4. Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories
5. wikiHow
6. flickr
7. Lifehacker
8. Popular Mechanics
9. DIY Happy
10. Expert Village

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What is the Value of One Hour?

By John Assaraf

When I was 21 years old a gentleman asked me what I thought the value of an hour was. At that point, I honestly did not know how to answer the question. He went on to teach me one of the most valuable lessons I have ever learned.

He suggested that the value of an hour was priceless. When this confused me some, here is what he went on to tell me this:

If you invest one hour each day in understanding yourself and your environment better, you will accumulate nine 40-hour weeks over the course of a year! As you can imagine I was blown away when he put it to me that way. Nine 40-hour weeks? This seemed impossible until I did the math. 365 days multiplied by one hour each is…yep, nine 40-hour weeks!

He went on to ask me how well I would be able to do something if I did it all day, every day for just over two months. Well you already know the answer to that…I could be awesome!

He went on to tell me that over the course of just five years I would have invested the equivalent of 1825 hours of focus on whatever I desired to accomplish in my life.

Imagine for a minute how incredible you could become at anything you did for one hour each day for the next year.

How physically fit could you get? How much more love could you give and receive? How much more money could you earn?

Let me suggest that one hour is a small price to pay in comparison to the payoff.

Just one hour each day may just be the razor’s edge you need to really get the results you want in your life.

For me the decision was easy. I have been studying human potential and the mind for over 20 years. Each time I think I’m getting a good handle on it, I am gently reminded of how much there is to observe and learn.

Is getting what you want in life worth one hour a day? I certainly hope so.

Regardless of the success I have achieved in my life, I still manage to set aside my hour to read motivational stories or listen to inspirational people. They are the fuel for my mind and it keeps me learning and yearning for more.

Please adopt an hour a day for yourself!

Pick one area of your life that you want to improve and commit the next 90 days to that one thing.

I assure you that the results you achieve will be well worth the decision!

And remember…you can’t get out of this life more than you put into it.

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