Practice Notes

What's new in the world?

This month we're focussing on open courseware and calculating your personal brand

A surge in Open Courseware

Open courseware is free information provided by institutions free of charge to the public. There are all sorts of examples and we've picked out a few of the best for you to have a look at.

What does this raft of free content mean? Well it's great for everyone and is an example of how the internet is opening up the world. We also think it highlights the value of great facilitation. The knowledge is out there, and it's the way you present it and engage with it that gets great results.

• MIT OpenCourseWare A few years ago MIT put up the full course notes, reading lists and assessments for many of their courses. There are now up to 1800 courses online. At first people thought they were crazy, giving away their IP. However it hasn't turned out that way, and now everyone is doing it. Click here to check it out
• Academic Earth This is a collection of thousands of videos from the worlds top professors. Some are short, sharp and to the point. Others are whole lecture series online. It's a great resource and lets you tap some great minds. Click here to check it out
• YouTube - EDU Here you'll find a conglomeration of videos from about 100 academic institutions that have partnered with YouTube to bring you this free content. We like the 10 part lecture series on Einstein's General Relativity. Which ones take your fancy? Click here to check it out

Personal Branding Calculator

Personal Branding is a topic that has been picking up steam for a while. It's the concept of considering how you communicate who you are, in every aspect of what you do. This includes your dress, your voice, what you say and how you say it. It's taking a deeper look at how you come across. Are you marketing yourself as the wise sage, or the go getter? Are you involved in lots of topics, or presenting yourself as a specialist? There's a lot going on in the personal branding space and we think it's an important topic to consider.

Reach Branding is one of the big personal branding organisations our there. They have developed a tongue in cheek 'Online Personal Branding Calculator'. With employers, and potential customers now using the internet to check you out before they work with you, it's important to have a finger on your online presence. So try this calculator to see how you measure up. Click here for the calculator

Training Practice Website Upgrade

We've upgraded our website, after many IT trials and tribulations. We'd love your feedback. So click here to check it out and let us know what you think.