Psychology 1504 Positive Psychology from Harvard

 

In my haste to get this site up for it’s April 15th official release, I’ve been putting in very sparse descriptions for the sites I’ve recommended. Permit me to be a little more descriptive here.

I would say that it’s just about indisputable that this will be the most important course you’ve ever watched online. Why? Because, if you want to have true succcess in life, you should have scientifically valid models of what works and what doesn’t work.

Here’s the link for the class http://isites.harvard.edu/icb/icb.do?keyword=k14790 and here are some other links that talk about the class.

http://www.berkeleybubble.org/2007/02/18/harvards-professor-of-happiness-psychology-1504-2/

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5295168

This class is more than self-help BS- it’s the scientific study of peak psychological behaviors. If you want to be your best, this class is a great start.

I’m in the process of developing an online course using the lectures and course materials from 1504. I expect that I’ll launch the course, free of charge, to US residents in June. (overseas is welcome, but for the first run of the class, I’ll be using a concall number with a US Area Code). I’m planning on using Skype conferencing for the second class. 

Six Tips for Happiness

Advice from Tal Ben-Shahar.

1. Give yourself permission to be human. When we accept emotions — such as fear, sadness, or anxiety — as natural, we are more likely to overcome them. Rejecting our emotions, positive or negative, leads to frustration and unhappiness.

2. Happiness lies at the intersection between pleasure and meaning. Whether at work or at home, the goal is to engage in activities that are both personally significant and enjoyable. When this is not feasible, make sure you have happiness boosters, moments throughout the week that provide you with both pleasure and meaning.

3. Keep in mind that happiness is mostly dependent on our state of mind, not on our status or the state of our bank account. Barring extreme circumstances, our level of well being is determined by what we choose to focus on (the full or the empty part of the glass) and by our interpretation of external events. For example, do we view failure as catastrophic, or do we see it as a learning opportunity?

4. Simplify! We are, generally, too busy, trying to squeeze in more and more activities into less and less time. Quantity influences quality, and we compromise on our happiness by trying to do too much.

5. Remember the mind-body connection. What we do — or don’t do — with our bodies influences our mind. Regular exercise, adequate sleep, and healthy eating habits lead to both physical and mental health.

6. Express gratitude, whenever possible. We too often take our lives for granted. Learn to appreciate and savor the wonderful things in life, from people to food, from nature to a smile.

Wikiversity Section on MBA

Wikiversity has a great outline of the subjects you need expertise in to advance you MBA.

http://en.wikiversity.org/wiki/Topic:Master_of_Business_Administration

How to Handle That First Sales Meeting

Eric gives an overview of how to get to that first meeting. From the site:

These notes are intended as a guideline for the first sales meeting with a buyer. It is not expected that all sales meetings will go this way, but we believe that our salespeople will find it useful, in many cases, to use parts or all of these guidelines. They are based on The Everything Selling Book.

http://wolfram.org/writing/howto/sell/first_meeting.html

Overview of Structured Modeling

Site gives an overview of Structured Modeling, and compares it to other management models. 

http://www.anderson.ucla.edu/faculty/art.geoffrion/home/csts/index.htm

TED.com Thoughtful, Innovative and Exciting.

To me, TED.com is the pick of the litter. Go to this site, and you’ll have access to video lectures from innovative thinkers all over the map. I watch a lecture with my son every night.

www.ted.com

Strategy + Business: Worthwhile Self-Promotion from BAH

Those smart guys and gals over at Booz Allen and Hamilton have created a site with a lot of valuable information. You can see how smart those folks are at http://www.strategy-business.com/

A no cost way of getting some consulting help.

Papers from the Stanford Center on International Negotiation

These studies have more of a focus on negotiations from an international conflict standpoint, but I felt that they were of such high quality, they merited entry.

http://www.law.stanford.edu/program/centers/scicn/#scicn_papers

Building Trust In Negotiations

A superb article on building trust in negotiations can be found at Harvard’s Working Knowledge Website. From the site:

All negotiations involve risk. That’s why establishing trust at the bargaining table is crucial. Professor Deepak Malhotra presents strategies to build trustworthiness. From Negotiation.

http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/4033.html

Harvard Program on Negotiation Poncasts

An audio supplement to the Harvard Program on Negotiation. Great articles on all kinds of negotiations, even raising your kids.

http://www.poncast.com/

Program of Negotiation at Harvard Clearinghouse

Harvard’s Negotiation Clearinghouse covers all kinds of negotiations. From the site:

Founded in 1986 as the first institution of its kind in the United States, the Clearinghouse serves as the Program on Negotiation’s educational resource center. The PON Clearinghouse develops and disseminates role simulations and other interactive teaching exercises as well as books, educational videos, curricular packages, and scholarly working papers. In addition, the Clearinghouse offers some materials and services free of charge, such as an online negotiation syllabus collection, online access to its Negotiation Pedagogy Video Series, and telephone consultations regarding pedagogical questions such as role simulation selection and course development. All PON Clearinghouse products have been developed or endorsed by PON faculty or affiliates.

http://www.pon.org/catalog/index.php?cPath=22