Top 4 places to look for free (or almost free) learning opportunities

By this time in the year, the school year has started for almost everyone, and most people are breathing a collective sigh as the summer draws to a close.  But, just as the quest for furthering education is happening to the younger generations, it’s a great time for businesses to increase and refresh their skills as we approach the fourth quarter of 2019. 

So, where are the best places for a small-to-mid-sized business to gain some new insight without breaking the bank?  Here’s our list of the top 4 places to look for free (or almost free) learning opportunities:

1. The Small Business Administration (SBA) — While the SBA is largely well known for helping businesses gain access to funding, and providing a gateway to federal contracting opportunities, they also run a tremendous learning center which is an asset for any business which chooses to take advantage of it.  Offering courses both in-person and virtually, they have topics geared to businesses at the start-up phase all the way through the ending phases of owning a business.  With topics ranging from anything needed to start a business, to all aspects of growing a business, to management within your business, there really is something for everyone to learn from, and the majority of their online courses are completely free (there is a small charge at times for in-person learning).

BEST FOR: Businesses who are just starting up, Businesses who are involved in the federal contracting arena.

VISIT THEM AT:  https://www.sba.gov/learning-center

• SCORE – For over 50 years, SCORE has partnered with the SBA (above) to provide a tremendous source of free mentoring and education for small-to-mid-sized businesses.  SCORE relies heavily on volunteers, primarily experienced businesspeople, who are willing to provide time and advice to others.  The main mission of SCORE is connect these volunteers with small-to-mid-sized business owners who could benefit from their advice and experience.   In addition to mentorship opportunities, SCORE offers a wide range of online and offline educational resources.  All of the services provided by SCORE are typically done for free.

BEST FOR: Businesses looking to connect with a mentor, Established businesses seeking advice.

VISIT THEM AT:  https://www.score.org/content/take-workshop

• Udemy/Skillsoft– Udemy and Skillsoft are online learning companies which both offer a wide range of classes on almost any topic which you can dream up.  For businesses, this can be an asset, as if you are facing a specific issue/need training for specific licensing/want to connect with a specific trainer, both of these platforms make it very easy to narrow down the list of courses which could be beneficial to you.  While there is a nominal charge for the courses a majority of the time, there are some free ones available as well.  Additionally, with the ability to read reviews and feedback provided by students who have already taken the course, you can gain some insight as to what the course is like prior to investing your time and money.

BEST FOR: Time constrained learning opportunities, Specific skill set/licensing prep/etc. opportunities.

VISIT THEM AT:  https://www.udemy.com/ and https://www.skillshare.com/

•  CreativeLive – While the three learning opportunities above all focus on specific skills which can help you to run a business, what if the learning you need focused on inspiring and developing your employees?  That’s where CreativeLive comes in.  Touted as a place to develop your employees as people, this subscription-based learning platform boasts content from some the biggest inspirational speakers and leaders of our time.  Want to boost your team’s emotional intelligence and communication skills…there’s courses for that?  Have a need to team build virtually?  They can help with that as well.  While the upfront costs may seem prohibitive at first, the year-long subscription ensures that your team will have access to consistently refreshed inspiration throughout the entire period.

BEST FOR: Soft skills, Inspiration, Employee Development.

VISIT THEM AT: https://www.creativelive.com/

With this list, almost any small-to-mid-sized business can find a way to increase their knowledge for free (or at the very least, extremely reasonably).  Cheers to all those starting a new school year, and cheers to all the businesses increasing their knowledge.  Remember, you should never stop learning, as your business will always find a way to continue teaching.

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