Let’s face it: you change, or you die. That might be hard to swallow at first, but it’s true. You evolve, or you become extinct. You grow, or you wilt. I’ve noticed that many people reach a stage in their life where they feel like there’s nothing new to learn, they can’t learn anything, or the world has simply left them behind. While the world will (hopefully) keep spinning, it’s time to re-think some goals and challenges coming ahead for yourself in 2013. While you are not doing anything to better yourself, thousands more of your competition are doing something to improve themselves. I personally know people who want to learn new things, but feel overwhelmed by the resources available or don’t know about them at all! I also know some fellow artists others who feel they are lacking in skills suited for the working world. My advice? Pick one from this list here, and stick with it! This New Year is sure to teach us new, wonderful things! Knowledge is power, baby.
Lynda.com
Lynda.com is for the designer, the programmer/developer, the artist, the animator, and then some. They offer a huge selection of courses you can take, and the subjects vary from animation to learning C# to mastering Dreamweaver. They also update their coursework – and as new technologies and programs are created/found, Lynda.com is there ready to provide information about how to harness it. It does come with a price – just $25 a month. If you’re dedicated, you can easily get in a few courses in that time span if you’re on the price-conscious side.
Udacity.com has a different teaching style. It’s a little less focused on specific subjects, but does engage its “students” in higher learning by creating courses that are a little more abstract. For example, the Algorithms Intermediate course is more like a class you would enroll in at a college or university. It’s not as concrete in subject matter – and that’s excellent for those who are looking for a challenge. It does teach more familiar courses that you might have missed in college like Statistics or Physics. So, there’s a plus. The best of all though? It’s free. Udacity.com will provide you with actual coursework and tests, much like a real college class. Be prepared!
It’s foolish to assume that a huge online forum such as Reddit.com could never teach you anything. Everyday, however, die-hard Redditors post enlightening threads that vary in topics. At some point, a sub-Reddit called “The University of Reddit” was born, and Redditors from around the world have been posting courses ever since. It’s almost exactly like going to college – except it’s on a forum, and your teacher posts your coursework over the “semester”. Fascinating how it works. It’s also free, but they encourage donations. You do have to create an account, but if you are already on Reddit, you can just connect your profile.
Years ago, iTunes created podcasts for people to share information, ideas, points of interest, music, etc. Somewhere along the way, though, Apple also created the iTunes University when they discovered that people were using podcasts to teach. Actual universities can now post their own, real recorded classes on their iTunes U accounts. We’re talking universities like Harvard, Stanford, MIT, and most any other Ivy-League school you can think of. Most are them are videos, too. Did you suck at physics when you were in high school? Come rack your brain with some of the most brilliant physicists and thinkers at the best schools in the world. Can you hardly remember that one business class in college because you partied too hard? It’s probably on iTunes U already. Launch iTunes, and check out iTunes U. Enroll in some classes! It’s free!
Never underestimate the oratory learner! If reading seriously gets you down, consider listening to the information. Almost all of the examples above are for the more visual learner, and while you can carry those videos around with you on your mobile devices, some of you won’t have time to watch all of those videos. Consider listening to them instead. I put Audible.com specifically on here, though, because they have topics that most of the previous examples just don’t cover: marketing and business. While mostly informal, Audible.com provides learners with the thinkers and leaders in their field. It’s a different way to learn, but it works. It’s how I learned about content marketing in 7 hours. We just passed the holidays, but they’ll be back. So why not listen to a book while you drive to Grandma’s house?
TED Talks is for the blast-learner. Blast-learners are often too busy, don’t have the time, or can’t sit still long enough to work through a full course, book, or video series. It just gets too monotonous for them. I recommend TED Talks for this group of people. Most of the videos are no longer than 30 minutes – and they bring you fresh, new ideas in your field for free. They will inspire you, make you cry, have you rolling on the floor with laughter, and then some. TED Talks will teach you in a unique way – they cater to those who want to innovate and lead. They aren’t meant for the faint of heart, but if you’re a blast-learner, you probably aren’t that way in the first place!
Other places to learn? Well if you haven’t noticed already, YouTube.com is the place to learn literally anything that might not be considered “higher learning”. If you don’t know how to properly bone a duck, YouTube.com can teach you. eHow.com is a close competitor for that type of information as well. Treehouse is much like Lynda.com in subject matter. Coursera is another great tool. It has more of an official-feel because apparently they mail you a certificate when you complete a course, but still, very college-oriented. They also offer classes from MIT, Princeton, Harvard, etc. Amazon.com and Oreilly.com are the book masters for learning, so if print doesn’t scare you, read away! Some of the books are a little pricey, but if you’re lucky, you can find the used ones that only cost a few dollars.
What are some of your favorite resources to learn new things?