Viridis Blog

The us and co guide to getting things done

Some people call it “being in the zone”. You know that dream where you run really fast for really long and don’t get out of breath. That’s where Bill Gates was at when he was building Microsoft, and that’s where you can be to, with the right source material.

We’ve put together a list of resources designed to help spur you on when you reach the wall at any stage of a project. Whether you’re struggling to think of an idea, wondering how you can put your latest brilliant idea into action or trying to learn from past experience, these incredibly useful resources will help.


Inspiration-

https://www.reddit.com/r/InternetIsBeautiful/– There are so many Reddit threads that we could direct you to for a daily dose of brilliance, but if we had to pick just one it would be r/internetisbeautiful. It’s a great place to learn how some of the world’s boldest thinkers are applying their skills, even if you’re not into technology.

https://www.producthunt.com/– New products, apps, games, podcasts and books are added to Product Hunt every day, meaning it’s the go to destination for discovering new ideas and cutting edge thinking. Watch tomorrow’s unicorns as take shape and give the creators feedback in the process.

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/– Seth Godin is refreshingly logical. Sign up to his newsletter or just visit his blog every now and again- you might not find your next big idea there, but his common-sense approach will keep you on the right track.

http://www.donothingfor2minutes.com/– Turn on, tune in and drop out. Visit this website and do absolutely nothing for two minutes. You’ll quickly learn that just two minutes of doing nothing can quickly change the way you look at a problem.

http://www.ted.com– Bite sized nuggets of video inspiration to get you in the best frame of mind possible to dream up your next big idea, or just turn a few minutes downtime into valuable learning time.

http://99u.com – 99U’s tagline is “Insights on Making Ideas Happen.” Need we say more?

http://1000awesomethings.com/– Possibly one of the most refreshing sites on the web. 1000 Awesome Things is just that, a list of 1000 awesome things updated every weekday. Our favourite? #104 “Any restaurant where old ladies are doing the cooking.” When you’re stuck in a rut, take a look and remember you’re just having a bad day, not a bad life.


Bootstrapping-

So you’ve had that great idea and now you’re thinking “How do I make this happen?” Whether you’re looking to raise funds or bootstrap from the ground up, you’ve got some serious hustling to do. These resources will help you get in the right frame of mind.

http://fourhourworkweek.com/blog/ Tim Ferris is on a mission to deconstruct world-class performers and find out what makes them so great. This hasn’t just led to some really entertaining podcasts (check out his interview with Jamie Foxx) but also some life-changing, highly actionable tips for transforming productivity and performance.

http://www.slideshare.net/ryanholiday/10-classic-growth-hacks Marketing and PR has changed beyond recognition. Did you know Facebook, Hotmail, Twitter and AirBnB didn’t undertake any traditional advertising in their earliest, biggest phases of growth? Ryan Holiday’s thoughts on Growth Hacking distil what it means to be a smart marketer in the 21st Century.

http://www.sethgodin.com/sg/docs/bootstrap.pdf In the words of Seth Godin- There’s never been a better time to start a business with no money. The man is the godfather of bootstrapping, so is it any surprise he’s written the ultimate guide to putting your idea into action?

http://andrewchen.co/ Andrew’s blog might have a tech focus, but anyone who is building something can learn from his musings on growth and start-up culture.


Learning-

https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive– This is the place to go to learn the answers to the questions you were too afraid to ask. No matter how elementary, ask your question here and get ready to learn!

https://www.mooc-list.com/– Ever heard of a MOOC? Massive Open Online Courses are offered by some of the best universities in the world. That’s right, you can get a red-brick, ivy league education for free! Mooc List is a substantial collection of courses from multiple resources from universities around the world.

https://udemy.com – Udemy have a mission: to help anyone learn anything. With a mix of paid and free modules, Udemy offers a great opportunity to catch up on those lectures that you might have slept through the first time around…

https://www.codecademy.com/– Learn the basics of coding for absolutely free with Codecademy. From making a website, to learning languages like Rails, AngularJS and Java. It’s all free and absolutely vital.

http://ed.ted.com/ – We’ve already mentioned Ted Talks, but have you heard of TedEd? Take a look at TedEd’s library of actionable lessons created by some of the world’s highest achievers.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qykl – Transform your commute with Melvyn Bragg’s In Our Time, where each week Melvyn and a panel of experts discuss the history of ideas. Don’t wait for them to come on the radio though, just search Melvyn Bragg