Learn about Entrepeneurship & Innovation

Do you think of yourself as an entrepreneur or innovator?  Do you have a passion for identifying problems and solutions?  Ever wished you could start your own business or non-profit?  If you want to get grounded in the basics of entrepreneurship review i-lab Director Gordon Jones' "Entrepreneurship 101" presentation.

From experience we can tell you that it's unlikely you'll look in the mirror one morning and suddenly be an entrepreneur. For students and community members, we have a few suggestions on how to use the i-lab to help you start your journey:

RESOURCES

The i-lab's resources page is a good starting point to explore the nearly infinite information on the internet about entrepreneurs, entrepreneurship, and entrepreneurial companies. Sites like TechCrunch can help you stay on top of the latest startup news, and Quora provides a great way to find answers to common questions about startups and entrepreneurship. We'd also suggest finding a few entrepreneurs to follow on Twitter and on their blogs; for example, friend of the i-lab Eric Ries.

EVENTS

i-lab events offer the opportunity to hear from entrepreneurs about their experiences, learn specific skills like how to write a business plan, and meet others interested in entrepreneurship from all around the university. Check out upcoming workshops in particular for opportunities to learn more and build your skills.

If you're not able to attend one of the events, check out the Harvard i-lab YouTube Channel, where you can watch recordings of many of the workshops and seminars hosted at the i-lab.  The past spring, we hosted a five seminar series, taught by Michael Skok, entitled "Startup Secrets: How to Gain an Unfair Competive Advantage;"  Part 1, Value Proposition is embedded below.  Click through to our YouTube channel for the rest of the series, and for more educational videos. 

CLASSES

The i-lab hosts courses that are run by various schools around the university. One example is the Commercializing Science course, which brings together students from Harvard's schools of business, medicine, science, engineering, law, public health, government, and teaching hospitals. Check with your school's registrar for course options that might help you identify and pursue an entrepreneurial opportunity.

And don't forget: stay on top of everything that's going on in the i-lab by joining the mailing list.