ACCOUNTANTS, AUDITORS, LAWYERS, FINANCIAL INVESTIGATORS: THIS GUY NEEDS HELP BAD!

The Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program ("SIGTARP") was established by the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 ("EESA").

New York Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil Barofsky has been appointed Treasury-based "special inspector general," to keep an eye on how the government spends the remaining $400 BILLION of financial industry bailout money.

The Special Inspector General has the responsibility to conduct, supervise and coordinate audits and investigations of the purchase, management and sale of assets under the Troubled Asset Relief Program ("TARP"). SIGTARP’s goal is to promote economic stability by assiduously protecting the interests of those who fund the TARP programs - i.e., the American taxpayers - by facilitating transparency in TARP programs. WOW, BIG job.

http://www.sigtarp.gov/

START A COMPANY THAT TRAINS DOCTORS HOW TO "GO DIGITAL"

A national paper-free medical records an prescriptions initiative aims to change completely the way doctors prescribe and practice medicine, by digitizing the entire medical record-keeping process, from patient charts to lab reports and test results. Already, other U.S. cities, and even some states, have joined the movement at the urging of its highest-profile supporter, President Obama, who campaigned on the promise to make every government health care agency entirely electronic by 2015.

"Electronic health ambassadors" will be needed to visit every doctor's office, no matter how big or small, and teach its entire office staff how to keep electronic health records on the computer.

Allscripts is the leader in this area and is looking for sales reps...

www.allscripts.com

OVER 700 SCHOOLS FOR SALE AT THIS MOMENT

Schools For Sale, Inc. is a Real Estate Brokerage Corporation Licensed by the Florida Departments of Business & Professional Regulation. They have Broker relationships with other Brokers in all fifty states.

Schools for Sale specializes in the Sale and Acquisition of schools, they include Childcare Centers, Preschools, Montessori, and Private Schools, Preparatory, Adult Training Schools, Technical, Trade Schools of all types, Vocational, High-Middle-Elementary Schools, Charter Schools, and even Universities.

They maintain a very comprehensive and current database...

http://www.schoolsforsale.com/SchoolsOnTheMarket.htm

REMEMBER: A SMALL ENTERPRISE CAN HAVE A BIG IMPACT, SO THINK BIG

"You are not here merely to make a living. You are here to enrich the world-and you impoverish yourself if you forget the errand."

Woodrow Wilson, 28th President of the United States

ENTREPRENEURIAL CONCEPTS ON THIS BLOG DESIGNED FOR VETERANS CAN GET GOVERNMENT FUNDING FAST

The U.S. Small Business Administration has announced the SBA’s Patriot Express Pilot Loan Initiative for veterans and members of the military community wanting to establish or expand
small businesses.

http://www.sba.gov/patriotexpress/index.html

THE VC IN MY DORM ROOM

http://www.inc.com/magazine/20001001/20434.html
This old article from Inc. magazine about business students setting up mini-venture capital funds from their dorm rooms is inspiring.

Good idea for out of work investment bankers, find enterprising students at your alma mater, and support a "dorm room angel fund" for students about to graduate jobless. Go back and teach as well.

This is a venture fund by University of Pennsylvania alum for Penn alum and current students.
http://www.mentortechventures.com

START A WEB SECURITY ALERT FIRM THAT SCOURS THE WEB FOR CLUES ABOUT POTENTIAL CRIMES

The police in Britian have credited a group of young Internet users at a Montreal university with alerting them to a Web posting by a British 16-year-old who said he planned to attack his high school with “arson and other forms of violence,” enabling officers to arrest the teenager as he approached the school carrying a knife, matches and a plastic jerrycan of what the police described as “flammable liquid.” (3.21.09 NYTimes)

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/21/world/americas/21canada.html?ref=world

This is a wonderful example of a "global community watch" initiative.

IDEA: Create a team of dorm-room cyber sleuths that fights cyber-crime (ie child pornography) and aids law enforcement worldwide.

This blog has lots of useful information on the subject:
http://www.thecybersleuth.blogspot.com

Here is a list of courses on cyber investigation.
http://certification.about.com/cs/securitycerts/a/compforensics.htm

CREATE A BUSINESS THAT HELPS GRANDPARENT CAREGIVERS

In the US, 4.5 million children (9% of children under 18) live in a household headed by a grandparent. For almost 2.3 million children, a grandparent, often the grandmother, is their primary caregiver. This figure reflects an 27% increase from the previous year. Nearly 43% of these children are African American, 40% Caucasian, 12% Hispanic and 5% Other.
(US Census Bureau)

Without these grandparents being willing to assume care, many of the grandchildren would be in foster care. But raising grandchildren is demanding and usually results from difficult circumstances for botth the grandparent and the child. These grandparent caregivers need our help to overcome the demands of their role.

AARP has some excellent advice at:
http://www.aarp.org/families/grandparents/raising_grandchild

Converting foreclosed homes into daycare centers could be 1 viable business opportunity.

STAY TRUE TO YOUR CORE BELIEFS WHEN PURSUING YOUR VENTURE IDEA

Dame Anita Roddick, (23 October 1942 – 10 September 2007) was a British businesswoman, human rights activist and environmental campaigner, best known as the founder of THE BODY SHOP, a cosmetics company producing and retailing beauty products that shaped ethical consumerism. The company was one of the first to prohibit the use of ingredients tested on animals and one of the first to promote fair trade with third world countries. After a stint as a teacher, Roddick worked for the UN, for which she traveled extensively and met people from a number of different cultures. She used her cultural knowlegde to start the Body Shop in 1976. The rest is history. A must read book...

http://www.amazon.com/Business-As-Unusual-Entrepreneurial-Principles/dp/0954395956/ref=pd_sim_b_1

YOUR LIFE IS CONTENT: SMARTLY PACKAGED IT IS VALUABLE

A beat-up old car, a few dollars in the pocket, and a sense of adventure.

Urged on by their friends, Tony and Maureen Wheeler stayed up nights at their kitchen table writing, typing and stapling together their very first travel guide, Across Asia on the Cheap.

Within a week they'd sold 1500 copies and Lonely Planet was born. Two years later, their second journey led to South-East Asia on a shoestring, which led to books on Nepal, Australia, Africa, and India, which led to… you get the picture.

30 years later, Lonely Planet became a globally loved brand, Tony and Maureen received several offers for the company. But it wasn't until 2007 that they found a partner whom they trusted to remain true to Lonely Planet's principles. In October of that year, BBC Worldwide acquired a 75% share in Lonely Planet, pledging to uphold Lonely Planet's commitment to independent travel, trustworthy advice and editorial independence.

http://www.lonelyplanet.com

ARE YOU A BLACKBERRY ADDICT? THEN DEVELOP A BUSINESS AROUND THE DEVICE

RIM, the makers of the Blackberry, have introduced a $150 million venture capital fund focused on applications and services including mobile commerce (payments, advertising, retailing and banking), vertical and horizontal enterprise applications, communications, social networking, location-based applications and services (navigation and mapping), media and entertainment, and lifestyle and personal productivity applications for the BlackBerry® and other mobile platforms. The Fund will consider all stages of development and is co-managed by JLA Ventures and RBC Venture Partners.

http://www.blackberrypartnersfund.com/

(this is the new Blackberry Javelin, just becoming available in the US)

CREATE A PRIVATE TOUR GUIDE BUSINESS

This is brilliant...

Imagine talking a tour of Hong Kong with lovely Chinese actress Shu Qi as your own personal guide. Actually, you don't have to imagine anymore because through the Louis Vuitton Soundwalk, a digital audio guide, anyone can listen to Shu's soothing voice as she guides travelers through the streets of Hong Kong.

Luxury brand Louis Vuitton collaborated with Soundwalk, a company specializing in audio walks for urban travelers, to produce digital audio guides to three Chinese cities. The company asked Shu, and actresses Gong Li and Joan Chen to lend their voices for the city guides to Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai. They decided on Chian to support visits for the Olympics last summer.

http://www.louisvuittonsoundwalk.com/

Here is a list of personal tour guides you can hire around the world to guide you:
http://www.infohub.com/tour_guides/

POSITION YOURSELF ON A VALUABLE INFORMATION CURVE : BECOME A PATENT EXAMINER

Regardless of age, opportunity comes your way when you are positioned in a flow of information that you can use to advance your personal goals / craft. Remember, from 1902 through 1909, a young Albert Einstein worked as a patent examiner in Bern, Switzerland, and was exposed to thousands of "new" ideas. Sign up for free email newsletters and any other information that is relevant to your pursuits.

Learn more about opportunities at the US Patent and Trademark Office
http://usptocareers.gov/Pages/PEPositions/Jobs.aspx

A MUST READ PRIMER ON OPPORTUNITY IN THE "GREEN" SECTOR

World Changing: A Users Guide to the 21st Century, is a brilliant book that nearly overwhelms with ideas, tools, models, and guidance for building a better future. Please do yourself a favor by buying this book and spend some time on this site> http://www.worldchanging.com/

STUDENT LOAN RATES ARE LOWEST IN YEARS - GO BACK TO SCHOOL

nearly every student of all ages who fills out a Free Application for Federal Student Aid can receive a regular federal Stafford loan. Once students have graduated, those who go into low-paid public service jobs may eventually get some of their education loans forgiven.

Stimulus Plan Would Provide Flood of Aid to Education

HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN DRIVE IN MOVIE THEATER FOR $800

The very same equipment that is fueling the home theater revolution can bring back the outdoor cinema experience. High-definition digital home cinema projectors using either DLP or LCD technology have plummeted in price of late and can be had for less than $800. With a few basic parts and accessories, you can take the same projector you bought for your home theater and set it up in your car, just like Hollingshead did — and create a drive-in theater anywhere.

Several drive-in enthusiast groups (mobmov.org and guerilladrivein.org) have sprung up, staging impromptu movie screenings in public areas. However, that type of outdoor exhibition may put you on the wrong side of the law. Projecting The Fast and the Furious on the outside wall of a local Wal-Mart for the entertainment of you and your buddies qualifies as a public performance under the federal Copyright Act, and requires a license and payment of a fee. If, however, you are on private property with a limited number of guests, you should be in the clear.

The setup is surprisingly simple. We hooked up our portable theater inside a 2007 Toyota Sienna minivan. Our projector was a 1280 x 720-pixel Panasonic PT-AX100 ($2999) that was, frankly, a bit of overkill for this project — the DVD source material we used was far below the projector's hi-def capabilities — but we were intrigued by its 2000-lumen brightness. Providing video was a Sony DVP-FX810 portable DVD player ($200) with a composite video output, a 6-hour battery and an 8-in. swiveling screen, which paled in comparison to the suggested maximum 200-in. screen of the Panasonic projector. For power, we used a Husky 750-watt inverter ($80). (Our projector had a maximum power requirement of 290 watts, but we figured that it couldn't hurt to at least double that to deliver consistent power.) Finally, we hooked up a C. Crane Digital FM Transmitter ($70) to the audio output of our DVD player to broadcast the movie soundtrack to the radios of other nearby cars. (from Popular Mechanics)

IRAQ AND AFGANISTAN VETERANS: MAKE A FORTUNE SELLING INSURANCE IN THE REGION

Come to find out, there is a booming business selling hi-risk and non-standard insurance covering businesses in emerging markets. You can earn a very comfortable living. Here is one such firm.

http://www.aai-insurance.net
Click introduer agreements

REDISCOVER THE AMERICAN DREAM...BEYOND US BORDERS

IS IT REALLY POSSIBLE TO BUY A SMALL VINEYARD - HOME IN ITALY FOR $100,000?

We all know that Italy is fabulous – a thrilling escape that’s right at the very top of almost every traveler’s wish list. But here’s the surprise. When it comes to buying a home, prices are a lot more pleasing than you may think.

On the west coast of Calabria (the “toe” of Italy) consider these apartments in the seaside town of Scalea. The first is 484 square feet, has a kitchen, living room, and one bedroom; it’s partially furnished. The second is a bit larger at 645 square feet, comes with all of the above (except it’s totally furnished) and a small garden. Both are available for $27,700 each.

• Basilicata is another little known and unspoiled region in Italy’s deep south. Here you’ll find an 850-square-foot house on two levels. It has a kitchen, living room, two bedrooms, and two bathrooms. Price: $46,390
• In Le Marché (not as well known as Tuscany and Umbria but with equally mesmerizing landscapes), Casa Montevecchio is a farmhouse of two floors with approx. 3,875 square feet of living space. It needs restoring but part of the house is livable. The property includes a 645-square-foot annex and a half acre of land. Price: $85,100
• In Liguria – the Riviera of Flowers - there’s a totally reconstructed one-bedroom house with a garden and wonderful views of the Mediterranean. It’s in an excellent, ready-to-move-in condition. Price: $89,200
• In Apulia, near the town of Martina Franca and not too far from the Adriatic, $98,000 is the price of a soon-to-be-completed 2,305-square-foot villa with a huge veranda. (Oh, and did I mention the land and 100 olive trees that come with it?)

http://www.internationalliving.com/Publications/Featured/best-place-to-retire

START A HOME ENERGY EFFICIENCY COMPANY

Home owners all over the US will need help taking full advantage of the new energy programs being offered, as well as advice on home to best weatherize and manage their homes for maximum cost savings. http://www1.eere.energy.gov/consumer/tips/

The Department of Energy is releasing the first installment of an $8 billion package for home improvements throughout the U.S. Participating homes, according to the administration, will receive as much as $6,500 worth of improvements. The families that participate will benefit indefinitely, as their electric and heating and cooling bills drop, thanks to the energy efficiency improvements like the installation of better windows and doors. Some homes will cost as much as 32% less to heat and cool. Improving energy efficiency is "the most cost-effective route to energy independence," according to Energy Secretary Stephen Chu.

To qualify, the homeowner can make no more than 200% the poverty level, or about $44,000 for a family of four. Weatherization programs are administered by each state, so look to your state's energy or environmental agency for information about how to participate. With federal money, states may also offer other incentives to a wider array of families, like subsidized energy audits or additional tax breaks for energy efficiency or renewable energy projects. (Check out existing federal home energy tax credits, which can add up to thousands in savings.)

Use these green tips from the daily green website as the starting point for your business:
http://www.thedailygreen.com/green-homes/latest/save-money-megaflip

BRILLIANT FUND FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVE ALTRUISTIC, ENTREPRENEURIAL IDEAS

Acumen Fund is a non-profit global venture fund that uses entrepreneurial approaches to solve the problems of global poverty. We seek to prove that small amounts of philanthropic capital, combined with large doses of business acumen, can build thriving enterprises that serve vast numbers of the poor. Our investments focus on delivering affordable, critical goods and services – like health, water, housing and energy – through innovative, market-oriented approaches.

www.acumenfund.org

CITIBANK SMALL BUSINESS GUIDE

http://www.citigroup.com/citi/financialeducation/smallbusguide.htm

ROLL OUT A HIPSTER ICE CREAM TRUCK BUSINESS

Mister Softee has become the largest franchiser of soft ice cream trucks in the United States. This has been achieved through quality truck construction, advertising and most importantly by the efforts of the great people that make up the franchise dealer organization. Mister Softee has approximately 350 franchise dealers operating 600 trucks in 15 states.

Time for an innovation...

MOBILE MINI-CONVENIENCE STORE

Seems like a winner in rural areas where it could be a 10 minute drive to a convenience store.

Mobile 7-11 franchise?
http://www.7-eleven.com/Franchising/tabid/148/Default.aspx

BRING YOUR SERVICE TO THE CUSTOMER

This mobile shop idea was from 1938.

THE HOUSE CALL IS BACK: TAKE YOUR SERVICE TO YOUR CUSTOMER

Enterprising entrepreneurs are laucnhing businesses that come to people's home. Devika Mukherjee, chief executive of Mobile Spa, started the company in 2002 out of her Stoneham home. In 2003, Mukherjee decided to franchise Mobile Spa, launching operations in Chicago and Atlanta. Today, the company has 700 technicians in 50 states, and since 2006 its revenue has grown 300 percent. Services start at $200.

http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2008/08/11/when_the_company_goes_to_the_customer/

YOUR RV CAN BE A MOBILE RETAIL SHOP

Recreational Vehicle (RV) owners are struggling with that purchase these days. RV dealers have been closing their doors across the country as consumer spending falls. Increased incentives have largely failed to lure buyers. Sales of RVs are closely tied to discretionary spending, which has fallen sharply in the economic recession. This means RV's can be purchased at very low prices.

Venture Idea: Make money by converting your RV into a mobile retail shop...

In this example, these enterprising entrepreneurs converted this van into a mobile barber shop thats big enough for 2 haircutting work stations.
http://thebarbus.com/

MAKE MONEY HOSTING A FOREIGN EXCHANGE STUDENT

you can rent out an extra room to exchange students looking for a place to stay.
http://www.moneymagpie.com/article/277/renting-out-a-room-2/

ORGANIZE A TEAM OF FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS TO BUY PRODUCTS AND SERVICES IN BULK

Team buying or group buying (also known as store mobbing), is a recently developed shopping strategy originating in China. Several people - sometimes friends, but possibly strangers connected over the internet - agree to approach a vendor of a specific product in order to haggle with the proprietor as a group in order to get discounts. The entire group agrees to purchase the same item. The shoppers benefit by paying less, and the business benefits by selling multiple items at once
http://shanghaiist.com/2006/05/15/team_shopping_w.php

This web site lets users group together to buy items at volume discounts. The company was initially formed to secure volume discounts for healthcare insurance for large groups of people.
http://www.eswarm.com

ITS MOST SUCCESSFUL "SWARM" TO DATE HAS BEEN A LARGE GROUP OF PEOPLE ALL COLLUDING TO REFINANCE CREDIT CARD DEBT AT LOWER INTEREST RATES.

1 GUY IN HIS APARTMENT IS A MILLIONAIRE FROM HIS ONLINE DATING SERVICE

A very useful blog from the founder of www.Plentyoffish.com, a hugely successful, free online dating service. It generates millions per year using Google adsense. 1 MAN OPERATION.

In this post, he explains how he started...
http://plentyoffish.wordpress.com/2006/06/page/2/

UNEMPLOYED HUMAN RESOURCES EXECUTIVES OPEN RESUME WRITING AND INTERVIEW CONSULTING SERVICES

Thousands of people are out of work who haven't written a resume of CV in many many years. They need help.

OPEN A DAY CARE CENTER IN YOUR HOME

There's a definite need for day care centers as more and more mothers of pre-school age children are forced to find jobs outside the home. This is due in part to the current economy, and unfortunately, to the high divorce rate, which means mothers who might ordinarily stay at home and care for their own children must seek income to help make ends meet.

Profitable day care centers are much more than glorified baby-sitting services. Social researchers have found that the most important years in a child's development are those from one to six. So this has to viewed as a sort of "pre-school in your home".

This is a regulated business that require a license, and lots of love.

http://www.ownadaycare.com/

This is the simplest business plan help we could find:
http://www.125aday.com/books/103/business-plan-day-care-center.cfm

SIMPLE GUIDE BOOKS FOR UNUSUAL CAREERS

http://www.fabjob.com/

THIS BOOK WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE

Whether you're an overworked employee or an entrepreneur trapped in your own business, The 4-Hour Workweek is the compass for a new and revolutionary world.

Forget the old concept of retirement and the rest of the deferred-life plan—there is no need to wait and every reason not to. Whether your dream is escaping the rat race, high-end world travel, monthly five-figure income with zero management, or just living more and working less, this book is the blueprint.

You can have it all—really.

Join Tim Ferriss, popular guest lecturer in entrepreneurship at Princeton University, as he teaches you:

• How to outsource your life and do whatever you want for a year, only to return to a bank account 50% larger than before you left
• How blue-chip escape artists travel the world without quitting their jobs
• How to eliminate 50% of your work in 48 hours using the principles of little-known European economists
• How to train your boss to value performance over presence, or kill your job (or company) if it's beyond repair
• How to trade a long-haul career for short work bursts and frequent “mini-retirements”
• What automated cash-flow "muses" are and how to create one in 2-4 weeks
• How to cultivate selective ignorance—and create time—with a low-information diet
• Management secrets of Remote Control CEOs
• The crucial difference between absolute and relative income
• How to get free housing worldwide and airfare at 50-80% off
• How to fill the void and creating meaning after removing work and the office

The 4-Hour Workweek also includes the sample e-mails, voicemails, and real-life deals (with dollar figures and all) you will need to master the new world of luxury lifestyle design.

http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/

GOVERNMENT FUNDING READILY AVAILABLE TO BUY HOMES, THEN RENT THE ROOMS TO VETERANS

Hard to believe but in 2007, the US Veteran Affairs Department reported about 196,000 veterans are homeless on a given night!

A joint Supported Housing Program with the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Veteran Affairs provides permanent housing and ongoing case management treatment services for homeless veterans who would not be able to live independently without the support of case management. HUD's Section 8 Voucher Program has designated over 10,000 vouchers for veterans who are homeless. This program allows veterans to live in veteran selected apartment units with a “Housing Choice” voucher. These vouchers are portable so that veterans can live in communities served by their VA medical facility where case management services can be provided. HUD- VASH services include outreach and case management to ensure integration of services and continuity of care. This program enhances the ability of the VA to serve homeless women veterans, as well as other targeted homeless veterans, and their immediate families. Evaluation of an earlier similar program indicates that this approach significantly reduces days of homelessness for veterans and most veteran participants remained permanently housed.

Amazingly, these homeless veterans with the vouchers worth up to $1,000/month, often can't find a landlord who will rent them a place. Create a facility for them and have a government guaranteed rental income IN PERPETUITY.

http://www1.va.gov/homeless/page.cfm?pg=3

START A CHARTER SCHOOL

Billions of stimulus package dollars will be flowing into education this year.

Charter schools are elementary or secondary schools in the US that receive public money but have been freed from some of the rules, regulations, and statutes that apply to other public schools in exchange for some type of accountability for producing certain results, which are set forth in each school's charter.

While charter schools provide an alternative to other public schools, they are part of the public education system and are not allowed to charge tuition.

This PDF document, for those new to the charter school movement, provides a "road map" through the five general stages of charter school development: getting started, developing the school, writing the charter, approval, and opening the school.
http://www.uscharterschools.org/cs/r/view/uscs_rs/1892

Convince a business closing a factory or warehouse to "donate" the building for conversion into a school. Or convert excess commercial real estate, floor of an office building.

Michael Dell's foundation is active in this area:
http://www.msdf.org/

PLENTY OF JOBS IN MILITARY SUPPORT - PRIVATE CONTRACTING

ICA (International Contractors Association) is a professional association that offers a cyber home to all civilian contractors working in the security industry across the globe and addresses the unique needs of these people. ICA’s membership represents a group of like-minded professional individuals working in close protection, security, PSD, IT and technical support, logistical support, life support, emergency medical support and any other support services.

Hundreds of job vacanies listed:
http://www.icaonline.us/page.php?53?gclid=CJ7ytPrqtZkCFQETGgodXWjN5g

NEW CAREER AS AN INVESTIGATOR

Increasing cases of fraud, identity theft, are driving the private investigation industry to an fast upward growth curve. There are over 28,000 small private investigation agencies in the US.

As long as you are 18 years and over and have a clean criminal record then you qualify for a private investigation career. There are no formal education requirements for most private detective and investigator jobs, although many private detectives have college degrees or have taken legal or criminal investigation courses.

In the US, most states require P.I.'s to be licensed however, it may pay to check with your state's governing body on the requirements as far as licenses are concerned in your state.

While there are no formal education requirements for entering the private investigation business it might pay to take a course particularly if you lack any qualifications in other areas. It's interesting to note some schools and colleges are starting to offer courses in the P.I. business as part of their curriculum.

Insurance companies, banks, law firms and most corporations use investigators in some form or another.

The average freelance investigator earned around $4o,000 in 2008.

http://www.detectivetraining.com/detective_training.html

OCUPATIONAL OUTLOOK HANDBOOK

An incredibly valuable free resource on labor trends in the US.
http://www.bls.gov/oco

UNEMPLOYED CONSTRUCTION WORKERS: FIELD SERVICES IS THE ANSWER

Field services companies assist mortgage servicers and banks in helping to maintain homes that have been foreclosed. They manage a network of skilled independent inspectors and contractors who provide detailed information about foreclosed properties and maintain the properties until they find a buyer.

This is s a booming business and there is a real need for field services labor.

How to start a foreclosed home maintenance business:
http://hubpages.com/hub/how-to-start-a-business-cleaning-out-foreclosures

This is a good opportunity for unemployed mortgage bankers with access to bank managers who are responsible for the foreclosed homes on their accounts.

TIGHTER REGULATION OF THE FINANCIAL SYSTEM MEANS OPPORTUNITY FOR FORENSIC ACCOUNTING

Major increase in demand for forensic accountants is expected from regulatory authorities such as the FBI, SEC and other such bodies, as their scrutiny of corporate accounts becomes much strict. Unfortunately, economic downturn means an increase in crime.

Good time to round up a small group of out-of-work accountants, investigators, lawyers and bankers, and hang a shingle. Get paid to help catch the bad guys.

WOMEN ENTREPRENUERIAL OPPORTUNITY WITH THE FDIC

The FDIC is desperately searching for women and minorities who have the capability and capacity to provide Receivership Assistance (Facilities, Asset Management, Claims, Investigations, Settlements, Personnel Administration, Environmental Due Diligence, Franchise Marketing), Legal Services for Owned Real Estate and Asset Dispositions, and other Financial Services (Accounting, Appraising, Auditing, and Auctioning).

http://www.fdic.gov/buying/goods/mwop/seminar.html

OUT OF WORK BANKERS, START A BANK THAT ENSURES TRUST

Creating a more sophisticated version of this site, with funding to buy failed banks, could be a good venture opportunity.

http://www.startabank.com/

Loan sale annoucements can be found at:
http://www.fdic.gov/buying/loan/loansales/index.html

COLLECTIVES OF SMALL BUSINESSES CAN FORM LOW RENT CO-OP "RETAIL COMMUNES"

A few years ago, the New York Times reported on unique retail concept in Manhattan that seems relevant today.

Not a bazaar, a flea market nor a mall or a department store, the best description might be ''collection of mini-boutiques.''

The creator of the retailing concept behind Edge NYC, a newly opened shopping space on Bleecker Street in Manhattan, calls it ''the future of retail.'' Whether that turns out to be true -- it has been open only since the beginning of August -- remains to be seen. But it is clear that Nicholas Petrou, who came up with the idea for Edge NYC, has created a distinctive approach to retailing.

Displayed in 3,500 square feet are 26 tiny open-fronted boutiques lining the walls and another 26 glass counter spaces that form a center island. Emerging designers -- who run the shops themselves -- sell upscale handmade clothes, bags, jewelry, accessories and even some fine art directly to customers.

Like curators at a gallery, Mr. Petrou and his manager, Alex Pabon, selected the designers to maintain a balance of products and an interesting aesthetic mix aimed at appealing to shoppers who want to buy unique pieces.

''It's a department store for young designers,'' Mr. Petrou said, when asked to describe his creation. ''Customers get to meet the designers, find out about their inspiration, and the designers get feedback from customers on prices and craftsmanship. Sometimes, you can even see the designers working.''

A group of entrepreneurs could come together and split rent on a commercial space 20 ways to create the "new take on the flea market".

GET YOUR iPHONE VENTURE IDEA FUNDED

Silicon Valley venture capital firm, Kleiner Perkins KPCB’s iFund™ is a $100M investment initiative that will fund market-changing ideas and products that extend the revolutionary new iPhone and iPod touch platform. The iFund™ is agnostic to size and stage of investment and will invest in companies building applications, services and components. Focus areas include location based services, social networking, mCommerce (including advertising and payments), communication, and entertainment. The iFund™ will back innovators pursuing transformative, high-impact ideas with an eye towards building independent durable companies atop the iPhone / iPod touch platform.

iFund companies include:

• Booyah - A motivator for life and personal discovery.
• GOGII - A new social interaction and marketing platform.
• iControl - Stay connected in real-time to what matters most—family, property, home, and business—from anywhere in the world, anytime, day or night.
• ng:moco - The first iPhone-only games publisher.
• Pelago - Discover the world through the eyes of your friends and other people you trust.

The iFund™ is be managed by KPCB Partner Matt Murphy in collaboration with partners Chi-Hua Chien, John Doerr, Bing Gordon, Bill Joy, Randy Komisar, Ellen Pao and Ted Schlein. Apple will provide KPCB with market insight and support.

For more information or questions, please email iFund@kpcb.com

http://www.kpcb.com/initiatives/ifund/index.html

Their blog is:
http://ifundvc.com

BENETTON FREE DESIGN SCHOOL FOR A LUCKY FEW

Fabrica, Benetton’s communication research centre, was set up in 1994.

Fabrica is not a school, advertising agency or university. It is an applied creativity laboratory, a talent incubator, a studio of sorts in which young, modern artists come from all over the world to develop innovative projects and explore new directions in myriad avenues of communication, from design, music and film to photography, publishing and the Internet. These artist-experimenters are accompanied along their research path by leading figures in art and communication, blurring the boundaries of culture and language and transgressing the traditional borders between a diverse range of communication mediums.

Communication research at Fabrica services a wide variety of social causes and disciplines such as economics, social or environmental sciences. Fabrica’s aim is to grasp the future by giving innovative exposure to cultural or scientific projects which open a window onto tomorrow’s world.

To apply to Fabrica all you need to do is to send a copy of your portfolio (not the original), a letter of application and a letter of reference from a teacher, professor or other person who is deeply involved in your work. All CD-ROM based portfolios must include a print copy.

Applications are accepted throughout the year and may be written in English, Italian or French.

Please specify which studio are you are applying for: Design, interactive, media, photography, visual communication, or writing

Selection:
You must be 25 or under, speak English well, be open to new ideas and be able to use technical equipment related to your field.
If your portfolio meets selection criteria, you will be invited to Fabrica for a trial period of two weeks. Accommodation and lunch (during the week) will be provided, but you will arrange to pay for travel expenses. If the trial period is successful, you will get a one year contract/scholarship.

http://www.fabrica.it/

OPPORTUNITY FOR CREATIVE FREELANCERS OR LOW COST CUSTOM LOGOS/IDENTITY FOR YOUR NEW BUSINESS

This website has thousands of freelancers who can do all sorts of creative assignments. There is also a job board of interesting job openings.

Also, i you are starting a small business and need a company identity, website, letterhead and logo etc. you can get it done here.

www.creativehub.com

FREE COURSES FROM MIT!

MIT OpenCourseWare is an initiative of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to put all of the educational materials from most of its undergraduate and graduate level courses online, free and openly available to anyone, anywhere. Some courses also include interactive web demonstrations in Java or Matlab, complete textbooks written by MIT professors, and streaming video lectures.

http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/web/home/home/index.htm

MIT is one of 200 universities around the world participating in this initiative. OpenCourseWare is a free and open digital publication of high quality educational materials, organized as courses. The OpenCourseWare Consortium has created a broad and deep body of open educational content using a shared model. The mission of the OpenCourseWare Consortium is to advance education and empower people worldwide through opencourseware.
http://www.ocwconsortium.org/members/consortium-members.html

FREE SKILLS.COM - YOU NEED KNOWLEDGE TO REIVENT YOURSELF

This site offers unlimited access to over 575 online training courses for only $149.

One course that get good reviews is HTML 4.0 where you learn to create, format and publish a small website using HTML 4.0. You will learn to create web pages incorporating formatted text, images, hyperlinks and tables. You will also learn the basics of publishing and registering your site on the World Wide Web.
http://training.freeskills.com/course/html-4.0-introduction-course.html

GOOGLE CODE UNIVERSITY: FREE CODE WRITING TUTORIALS

Google has a free "Code University" that offers tutorials and a set of introductions to some common tools used in Computer Science such as version control systems and databases.

The CS Curriculum Search will help you find teaching materials that have been published to the web by faculty from CS departments around the world. You can refine your search to display just lectures, assignments or reference materials for a set of courses.

Google Summer of Code (GSoC) is a global program that offers student developers stipends to write code for various open source software projects. We have worked with several open source, free software, and technology-related groups to identify and fund several projects over a three month period. Since its inception in 2005, the program has brought together nearly 2500 students and 2500 mentors & co-mentors from nearly 100 countries worldwide, all for the love of code. Through Google Summer of Code, accepted student applicants are paired with a mentor or mentors from the participating projects, thus gaining exposure to real-world software development scenarios and the opportunity for employment in areas related to their academic pursuits. In turn, the participating projects are able to more easily identify and bring in new developers. Best of all, more source code is created and released for the use and benefit of all.

http://socghop.appspot.com/program/accepted_orgs/google/gsoc2009

FREE WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT PLATFORM

Drupal is a free, open source website development platform written in PHP. It is used as a "back end" system for many different types of websites, ranging from small personal blogs to large corporate and political sites.

The standard release of Drupal, known as "Drupal core", contains basic features common to most CMSs. These include the ability to register and maintain individual user accounts, administration menus, RSS-feeds, customizable layout, flexible account privileges, logging, a blogging system, an Internet forum, and options to create a classic "brochureware" website or an interactive community website.

Drupal was also designed to allow new features and custom behavior to be added by third parties. For this reason, Drupal is sometimes described as a "content management framework". Although Drupal offers a sophisticated programming interface for developers, no programming skills are required for basic website installation and administration.

Drupal can run on any computing platform that supports:

• a web server capable of running PHP (version 4.3.5+), including Apache, IIS, Lightpd, and nginx.
• a database, such as MySQL or PostgreSQL, to store content and settings

Drupal's popularity is growing rapidly. Over 70 well-known brand names and not-for-profit organizations now use Drupal.

http://drupal.org/

LEARN ARABIC OR FARSI OR LAUNCH A SCHOOL WITH GOVERNMENT FUNDING

www.job-search-engine.com/keyword/arabic-speakers

There is an overwelming demand for arabic speakers across multiple branches of the federal government. Arabic courses swelled in number soon after the 911 attack. But six years later, the post-9/11 spike in interest seems to be fading. And it's unclear how many of today's Arabic students will stick around for the five to 10 years it takes to become the advanced speakers the government requires. Learning it is time-consuming, and the dropout rate is high. The resources to teach it are sparse, and a perplexing policy sometimes discourages students from studying Arabic abroad.

Arabic is among the most time-intensive languages for English speakers to learn. Reaching "limited working proficiency" takes 1,320 hours, almost three times as long as it does for Spanish or French, according to the Foreign Service Institute.

National Security Language Initiative is a set of multiagency proposals that seeks to support students and build programs and resources at all levels of schooling.

Rosetta Stone language course:
http://www.rosettastone.com/personal/languages/arabic

Here is a free online arabic course to get started
http://www.madinaharabic.com/

REORIENT YOUR MIND REGARDING HOW YOUR CASH FLOWS

Most people who have worked in corporate roles are used to a pay check every 2 weeks. It very difficult to imagine a pay schedule of once every year or bi-monthly. But when you re-orient your personal cash flow schedule, it opens up a whole new realm of opportunities.

You can earn $72,000 a year by receiving a $6,000 check every month, or a $36,000 check twice a year.

But what would happen if you could consistently produce or organize an event / gathering twice a year, that got 100 people to pay you $500 (above costs for the event)?

BUILD A VIRTUAL ASSISTANT COMPANY WITH COLLEGE STUDENT LABOR

Brickwork India, pioneered the concept of Remote Executive Assistant (REA) in early 2004. The idea was to make the benefits of outsourcing available to individuals and small to mid-sized companies, for all kinds of business assistance, at an affordable price.

Imagine having a virtual assistant who can deliver a basket of support services that are available on demand to accelerate an individual/organization’s productivity. It can help save time by allowing you to delegate typical support work and prolonged research projects. By sending routine work such as the creation of PowerPoint presentations or secondary research projects.

http://brickworkindia.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=141&Itemid=27

Why does this have to be outsources to India?

FREE SERVICES YOU SHOULD BE AWARE OF...

There are so many valuable FREE services available:

conference calling
www.foonz.com

large file transfer
www.yousendit.com

text to speech conversion
www.spokentext.net

phone calls
www.skpye.com

web and mobile conferencing and online meetings
www.fuzemeeting.com


voicemail to text
www.spinvox.com





Please add to this resource list in comments....

SEXY FACEBOOK COFFEE SHOPS FOR SINGLES

Must present proof of your facebook membership for entry

enough said...

THROW HOUSE PARTIES ONCE A WEEK

People still want to go out and meet others, but don't want to spend $100+ on drinks etc. If they could go to a private home where the crowd is "curated" and pre-screened, and they can pay $40 all-they--can-drink, that a nice value. 100 people = $4000 /wk. Partner with a friend with a nice house or loft, or with neighbors on both sides of your house to "create a mini-block party". All you need is black-light bulbs, a decent iPod playlist and good speakers, drinks and some snacks. Should be a nice $2000 a week business.