Seven free lectures from Stanford University that will replace business school

Businesses founded by Stanford alumni have created 5,4 million jobs and bring in almost $3 trillion annually. But it's an achievable dream - many lectures from Stanford University are freely available, and you can learn how to build a business without attending expensive business schools. "Smapse News: Education and Science" on Yandex.Zen collected 7 lectures that will be useful to you.

How to continuously grow

Many people wonder when it is necessary to open a company. But do not wait for the right time from a financial point of view. It's time to start your own business when you have developed the necessary skills and connections, and not when you have collected money, but do not know how.

And remember, to build a scalable self-organization, you need to be willing to take on some of the responsibility or hand it over to someone more capable.

Beginning entrepreneurs need to answer two questions:

1. What problem am I solving?
2. How big is this problem?

How to become a true leader

Act like the ancestors. Parents encourage us to excel and help us reach our goals by sharing responsibility with us, and business leaders can apply the same concept.

Treating employees as owners will make them care more about the company if they feel they own it.

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Recruiting is a business-critical function, and not, as many people think, a side duty that needs to be done after everything else has already been done.

Define the corporate culture, formulate the company's values, and then, starting from them, hire staff who will accept it all.

Why you need to learn on the go

It's a pity (probably), but the path to success is not a to-do list.

Amazon, Google, Facebook, and Apple were founded by people who didn't even know what they were creating, but found out along the way. So don't panic if you don't have all the answers and a clear plan, everything will work out.

Don't worry too much about competition. It still needs to be taken into account, but it is better to spend time and effort on something that you can definitely control.

How to get out of your comfort zone

Set yourself uncomfortable high goals. Ambition pushes you out of your comfort zone, which allows teams to overcome everyday obstacles, and thus accelerate professional growth.

Develop an innovative culture. Take the time to connect with colleagues if you want as many people as possible to know and appreciate what you do. A healthy work environment is where everyone can share their ideas.

How not to destroy your startup

Only a third of startups fail because they don't meet market requirements. 65% of these companies fail because of internal problems.

According to research, more than half of teams are made up of people who interact more socially than professionally. This approach usually does not bring any benefit: teams of friends or families are the most unstable, therefore, despite close ties, they often fail.

How to learn to take risks

Do everything on time. To prevent your startup from failing, develop a timeline with milestones - this will allow you to create a clear schedule that is easier to work with and plan.

Give the idea life. Most young entrepreneurs often keep their idea under wraps. Projects are like children that we need to hug and protect, but it is important to release them on time, this is necessary for their improvement. Getting feedback is very important.

Don't forget to analyze your performance. When you doubt your abilities or skills, remembering what you have already done can become a source of second wind.

How to scale a company

As an organization grows, everything about it grows, including unnecessary workloads. Every growing business has processes that continue to work even when they no longer make sense (for example, unnecessary reports). Therefore, the higher the level of development, the more ruthless optimization and reduction.

Try different scaling paths. It is important to carry out local standardization of products, taking into account local conditions.

Scale your thought. In this process, the chain of events is very important: if you want your employees to move in one direction, and they don’t really want to, push them, and over time they may change their minds.