Invest Your Creativity

Wasaga Beach names best in business

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Sat, 10 May 2014 01:46:00 +0000

Wasaga Sun
By Trina Berlo
Article from http://www.simcoe.com/

The best in business were honoured at the Wasaga Beach Chamber of Commerce’s 18th annual Awards and Recognition Ceremony May 8.

Patrice McCammon is the recipient of the Citizen of the Year Award, sponsored by the Wasaga Sun.

McCammon is recognized for her tireless fundraising efforts on behalf of Hospice Georgian Triangle and the Rotary Club of Wasaga Beach and Area.

Parkbridge Lifestyle Communities holds the honour of being named Business of the Year.

The award, sponsored by RBC Royal Bank, recognizes a business that has experienced outstanding achievement in growth, innovation, excellence in leadership, increased productivity and has a positive impact on the community through good business.

The Athena Award, sponsored by the Wasaga Beach Women’s Business Association, goes to Janice Campbell, financial advisor.

The award recognizes excellence and leadership in a Wasaga Beach businesswoman who has a positive impact on the community through good business citizenship.

The Community Involvement Award, sponsored by Parkbridge Lifestyle Communities, goes to Boston Pizza.

The award recognizes a local business that has made a noticeable contribution to the community through volunteerism, financial support and representation by employees who enrich, protect or entertain the citizens of Wasaga Beach.

The Gene Langevin Award, sponsored by George Watson of Primecorp Commercial Realty, goes to Luau Resort owners Nick and Monique Plesa.

The award recognizes 25 years or more in business.

Travel Time Travel Agency is the recipient of the Professional Service Business of the Year Award, sponsored by TD Canada Trust.

The award recognizes an individual or business that has demonstrated responsible business leadership, customer service, commitment to local development and community support.

The title of Employee of the Year is bestowed on all of the nominees: Sunset Grill staffers Bernadette Lehner, Carolyn Beaulieu, Joyce Peterson and Lori Barter, Chris Carrigan of 97.7 The Beach, Christine Melanson of Pizza Dee’s and Nadia Vittorella of Boston Pizza.

The award, sponsored by Wasaga Tax and Accounting, RBA Financial Group, recognizes employees with a professional manner who are courteous and contributes to the company by continuously going over and above and shows leadership and problem solving skills.

Brenda Lougheed at Wasaga Flowers is named Boss of the Year.

The award, sponsored by Enterprise Bulletin, recognizes the person whose vision, inspiration, and leadership make them an extraordinary boss. The award is also to identify the many unsung heroes and heroines who use their positions of power to empower others to achieve career success and are a pleasure to work for.

The title of Young Business Person of the Year, an award sponsored by the Centre for Business and Economic Development, goes to husband and wife team Kareem Thomas and Pina Stillitano of Taste of Paradise, the event caterers.

The award recognizes inspirational people under the age of 40, who show commitment and passion, demonstrate outstanding entrepreneurial spirit and inspire a new generation of young business people.

Rick Baldry of Rick’s Happy Hooka Custom Tackle is named Entrepreneur of the Year.

The award, sponsored by Travel Time Travel Agency, recognizes a person who has developed their business to meet changing community and consumer demands in the past year, providing a high level of business service or product needed in Wasaga Beach.

Trina Berlo
Article from http://www.simcoe.com/

'Why Passion Matters, According To 15 Of The WorldPursuit of Happyness

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Sat, 03 May 2014 02:42:00 +0000

BY Michelle V. Rafter | September 30, 2011|
Article from http://www.entrepreneur.com/

Chris Gardner knows about reinvention.

Gardner's journey from homeless dad to millionaire stockbroker was the basis for his autobiography, The Pursuit of Happyness, and the hit 2006 film of the same name starring Will Smith.

People who lost a job during the recession might not be living in a subway bathroom like Gardner did. But they may feel just as desperate, the 57-year-old Gardner told a crowd of several hundred at AARP's recent Life@50+ convention in Los Angeles.

Though he's come a long way since his homeless days, Gardner is still reimagining his life and facing obstacles doing it. In the middle of last decade, he spent four years and millions of dollars to launch an investment fund supporting South African business development. But the global recession killed his project before it got off the ground. Now he's starting over with a different plan and new business partners, he told the crowd.

Your struggles to earn a living might be different from his or anyone else's, but Gardner says the answer to pulling yourself up is the same. Find something you're passionate about and go for it. "Maybe it's not time for us over 50 to be finding a job," but instead finding a career to create, Gardner says. "Maybe it's time to find our button and push it."

Here's his advice for people contemplating a midlife reinvention:

1. "Ain't nobody gotta dig it but you." Forget what other people think or say. Do something that makes you happy. "We're afraid that because everybody might not like it" we shouldn't do it, Gardner says. "But you gotta push that button."

2. Go with what you love, but stay grounded. "Probably the hardest question I get asked is 'How do I choose between passion and practicality?'" Gardner says. "I can't answer that. I had to do both. I was passionate about pursuing a career in financial services. But I was also passionate about feeding my child."

3. Start a business. Gardner added his voice to the chorus of experts who see a wave of small-business startups run by baby boomers pushed out of Corporate America due to ageism or the bad economy. That's OK, he says, because entrepreneurs over 50 are in a better position than younger workers to capitalize on their "reputations and Rolodexes." It's the start of a creator economy, he says, "with a whole lot of folks being entrepreneurial."

4. Have a plan. If you're starting a business, hope isn't enough. You need a plan that's clear, concise, compelling and consistent. On top of that, you need to be committed to what you're doing, he says.

5. Play to your strengths. "Your skills, talents and expertise are transferable" to other types of jobs and industries, he says.

6. Look out for yourself. "The cavalry is not coming....and things might be getting worse."

7. Remember what's important. For a long time, Americans worked to get things, Gardner says. It's time to focus on what really matters -- family and friends.

8. Any progress is progress. "Baby steps count, too, as long as you're moving forward," he says

Michelle V. Rafter | September 30, 2011|
Article from http://www.entrepreneur.com/

'Why Passion Matters, According To 15 Of The WorldPursuit of Happyness': Chris Gardner on Reinventing Yourself

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Tue, 22 Apr 2014 11:20:00 +0000

: Inc. | by Dave Kerpen
From http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
Posted: 04/02/2014 6:29 pm EDT Updated: 04/02/2014 6:59 pm EDT

I am passionate about social media. I'm passionate about helping small businesses. I'm passionate about playing with my wife and kids. I'm passionate about watching baseball, and playing tennis. I'm passionate about writing and reading. Heck, I'm passionate about passion.

Passion is the energy that keeps us going, that keeps us filled with meaning, and happiness, and excitement, and anticipation. Passion is a powerful force in accomplishing anything you set your mind to, and in experiencing work and life the fullest extent possible.

Ultimately, passion is the driving force behind success and happiness that allows us all to live better lives.

I'm also passionate about quotes, and the power of quotes to inspire people. So, I thought I'd share my favorite quotes about passion with you. I share quotes like these with my team all the time. May these quotes inspire you to live a better life, and may they inspire those you share them with as well.

1. "Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world." - Harriet Tubman

2. "There is no passion to be found playing small--in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living." - Nelson Mandela

3. "Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you will never cease to grow." -Anthony J. D'Angelo

4. "Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you." - Oprah Winfrey

5. "If passion drives you, let reason hold the reins." - Benjamin Franklin

6. "We must act out passion before we can feel it." - Jean-Paul Sartre

7. "It is obvious that we can no more explain a passion to a person who has never experienced it than we can explain light to the blind." - T. S. Eliot

8. "Nothing is as important as passion. No matter what you want to do with your life, be passionate." - Jon Bon Jovi

9. "You can't fake passion." - Barbara Corcoran

10. "You have to be burning with an idea, or a problem, or a wrong that you want to right. If you're not passionate enough from the start, you'll never stick it out." - Steve Jobs

11. "Yes, in all my research, the greatest leaders looked inward and were able to tell a good story with authenticity and passion." - Deepak Chopra

12. "If you feel like there's something out there that you're supposed to be doing, if you have a passion for it, then stop wishing and just do it." - Wanda Skyes

13. "If you don't love what you do, you won't do it with much conviction or passion." - Mia Hamm

14. It is the soul's duty to be loyal to its own desires. It must abandon itself to its master passion. - Rebecca West

My personal favorite quote on passion is from a man who clearly had way more talent than he claims in the quote:

"I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious." -Albert Einstein

: Inc. | by Dave Kerpen
From http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
Posted: 04/02/2014 6:29 pm EDT Updated: 04/02/2014 6:59 pm EDT

Seven Secrets of Self-Made Multimillionaires

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Fri, 17 May 2013 09:24:00 +0000

BY GRANT CARDONE | February 2, 2012

Article from http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/

First, understand that you no longer want to be just a millionaire. You want to become a multimillionaire.

While you may think a million dollars will give you financial security, it will not. Given the volatility in economies, governments and financial markets around the world, it's no longer safe to assume a million dollars will provide you and your family with true security. In fact, a Fidelity Investments' study of millionaires last year found that 42 percent of them don't feel wealthy and they would need $7.5 million of investable assets to start feeling rich.

This isn't a how-to on the accumulation of wealth from a lifetime of saving and pinching pennies. This is about generating multimillion-dollar wealth and enjoying it during the creation process. To get started, consider these seven secrets of multimillionaires.

No. 1: Decide to Be a Multimillionaire -- You first have to decide you want to be a self-made millionaire. I went from nothing—no money, just ideas and a lot of hard work—to create a net worth that probably cannot be destroyed in my lifetime. The first step was making a decision and setting a target. Every day for years, I wrote down this statement: "I am worth over $100,000,000!"

No. 2: Get Rid of Poverty Thinking - There's no shortage of money on planet Earth, only a shortage of people who think correctly about it. To become a millionaire from scratch, you must end the poverty thinking. I know because I had to. I was raised by a single mother who did everything possible to put three boys through school and make ends meets. Many of the lessons she taught me encouraged a sense of scarcity and fear: "Eat all your food; there are people starving," "Don't waste anything," "Money doesn't grow on trees." Real wealth and abundance aren't created from such thinking.

No. 3: Treat it Like a Duty - Self-made multimillionaires are motivated not just by money, but by a need for the marketplace to validate their contributions. While I have always wanted wealth, I was driven more by my need to contribute consistent with my potential. Multimillionaires don't lower their targets when things get tough. Rather, they raise expectations for themselves because they see the difference they can make with their families, company, community and charities.

No. 4: Surround Yourself with Multimillionaires - I have been studying wealthy people since I was 10 years old. I read their stories and see what they went through. These are my mentors and teachers who inspire me. You can't learn how to make money from someone who doesn't have much. Who says, "Money won't make you happy"? People without money. Who says, "All rich people are greedy"? People who aren't rich. Wealthy people don't talk like that. You need to know what people are doing to create wealth and follow their example: What do they read? How do they invest? What drives them? How do they stay motivated and excited?

No. 5: Work Like a Millionaire - Rich people treat time differently. They buy it, while poor people sell it. The wealthy know time is more valuable than money itself, so they hire people for things they're not good at or aren't a productive use of their time, such as household chores. But don't kid yourself that those who hit it big don't work hard. Financially successful people are consumed by their hunt for success and work to the point that they feel they are winning and not just working.

Related: How to Conquer Your Sales Fears

No. 6: Shift Focus from Spending to Investing - The rich don't spend money; they invest. They know the U.S. tax laws favor investing over spending. You buy a house and can't write it off. The rich, in contrast, buy an apartment building that produces cash flow, appreciates and offers write-offs year after year. You buy cars for comfort and style. The rich buy cars for their company that are deductible because they are used to produce revenue.

No. 7: Create Multiple Flows of Income - The really rich never depend on one flow of income but instead create a number of revenue streams. My first business had been generating a seven-figure income for years when I started investing cash in multifamily real estate. Once my real estate and my consulting business were churning, I went into a third business developing software to help retailers improve the customer experience.

Lastly, you may be surprised to learn that wealthy people wish you were wealthy, too. It's a mystery to them why others don't get rich. They know they aren't special and that wealth is available to anyone who wants to focus and persist. Rich people want others to be rich for two reasons: first, so you can buy their products and services, and second, because they want to hang out with other rich people. Get rich -- it's American.

Grant Cardone

Grant Cardone is an international sales expert, New York Times best-selling author, and radio show host of The Cardone Zone. He has founded three companies: Cardone Enterprises, Cardone Real Estate Holdings, and the Cardone Group. He has shared his sales and business expertise as a motivational speaker and author of five books: Sell to Survive; The Closers Survival Guide; If You're Not First, You're Last; The 10X Rule; and Sell or Be Sold.

The author is an Entrepreneur contributor. The opinions expressed are those of the writer.

GRANT CARDONE | February 2, 2012

Article from http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/

Tributes paid to ‘inspirational’ man who founded Hitchin British Schools Museum

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Wed, 15 May 2013 09:06:00 +0000

Laura Burge Monday, May 13, 2013 5:06 PM
Article from http://www.thecomet.net/news/

Brian Limbrick lecturing in the Gallery Classroom in 1994, the year the museum opened.

TRIBUTES have been paid to an “inspirational figure” who founded one of Comet country’s most renowned cultural attractions.

Hitchin resident Brian Limbrick died last week, aged 81.

He saved the building which is now home to Hitchin’s British Schools Museum from being sold and developed in the 1990s, and subsequently founded the museum in 1993.

The Queen Street site was a school up until the 1960s, with Mr Limbrick a former pupil.

A former Hitchin Forum and Friends of the British Schools Museum president, the grandfather of three and father of one was also awarded an MBE in 2003 for services to the history of education.

His wife of 48 years, Yvonne, said: “The MBE was the proudest moment of Brian’s life. He was thrilled and he definitely wanted to share that with the British Schools Museum.

“Brian was a people person, he loved people. He was a crusader, really. He had a number of passions and founded the Offley Morris Men. He was very, very well known for the barn dances that he did in the area and nationally. Every time he went into Lister Hospital, there would be someone come up and mention it.

“Brian loved Hitchin. He had a passion for Hitchin and subsequently a passion for the British Schools.”

Museum manager Andy Gibbs said tributes have been pouring in from across the world, with people from as far away as Mexico, Russia, South Africa and Australia paying their respects to the stalwart.

He said: “This is a very sad time for us. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to Brian.

“He was an inspirational figure with an unquenchable and infectious enthusiasm for the museum and for the town of Hitchin.

“He will never be forgotten here and will continue to be an inspiration for us as we strive to build upon his remarkable achievements.”

Hitchin Forum has also paid tribute to Mr Limbrick.

Chairman Mike Clarke said: “Brian was larger than life, and a lion who championed Hitchin.

“British Schools was his big project, and he put that on the national map, but he treasured and fought for many other parts of the town.

“As such, he was a strong supporter of Hitchin Forum from its inception, angry at anything which looked likely to spoil the town, and enthusiastically encouraging any campaign for sensible development. He had a vast store of knowledge about the history which made any conversation an education for the listener.

“We were delighted when he became our president two years ago and mourn the loss of someone who gave so much to the town.”

Mr Limbrick’s funeral will be held at 2pm tomorrow (Friday) at St Mary’s Church, Hitchin.

It’s family flowers only, but donations can be made to the Hitchin British Schools Trust.

Laura Burge Monday, May 13, 2013 5:06 PM
Article from http://www.thecomet.net/news/

A day with the Master

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Mon, 13 May 2013 11:30:00 +0000

BenCab and Shell Support Emerging Artists
By Nickky Faustine P. De Guzman
Published: May 13, 2013
Article from http://www.mb.com.ph/article.php?aid=11657&sid=3&subid=17#.UZDNxIKKz6E

Benedicto Reyes Cabrera, famously known as BenCab, walks across his own museum sans the air of arrogance, as if the National Artist for Visual Arts in Painting has only started his career. On the contrary, he has been in the art industry for almost four decades. His BenCab Museum fittingly personifies him—creative, low key, influential, tranquil. These characteristics reflect the artist’s beautiful artworks that depict simple yet sublime masterpieces.

His brushstrokes, left, right, up, down, are easy on the eyes, colorful, sometimes black and white. His iconic pieces include his series of paintings of ‘Sabel’, a lady scavenger who marked his consciousness as a symbol of desolation and peace. For a time, BenCab’s works resonated the country’s colonial history and current state.

One of his early works recalls a vivid childhood spent in places like Sta. Cruz and Bambang in Manila, where the reality of poverty opened his eyes to social issues and possible sources of inspirations that he embodied in his painting. Take for instance, ‘Blue Serenity’, which depicted a shanty community along a river with a man on a boat.

The said piece was a second prize winner at the 12th Shell National Students Art Competition (NSAC) in 1962. During those earlier days, he used the bamboo-as-brush technique, which is reminiscent of Balinese art.

“‘Blue Serenity’ is a quiet painting,” the 71-year old reserved master painter says. Too bad the painting is not within the confines of BenCab museum. He also says he has been buying and regaining his previous artworks from other collectors.

Now, his collections range from Cordillera’s bulols, erotic paintings and sculptures, print photography, and installations that are all showcased in his museum, which stands amid the pristine and lush forest in Benguet. The four-storey art gallery serves as BenCab’s sanctuary for inspirations and other endeavors.

Currently, the still youthful-looking artist says he finds himself doing sculptures and figurines, which is a total opposite of painting that requires solo execution and seamless union of one’s own skills, muses, and hand strokes.

“Sometimes you can’t explain an artwork, you just feel it,” the soft spoken BenCab shares. “When an artwork provokes people’s emotions like in reading novels, that’s when you send the message across.”

NSAC

NSAC is the longest-running art competition in the country that started in 1952. Sponsored by Shell Philippines, it has helped produce National Artists in the likes of BenCab, Jose Joya, Ang Kiukok, and Federico Aguilar Alcuaz.

“This year, we recognize the growing sense of self and limitless creativity and passion for self-expression of Filipino artists. These manifestations, all geared toward leaving their mark on today’s fast-paced world, can help mold the consciousness of Filipinos for centuries to come—just as the work of other great masters have done,” NSAC organizers says in a statement.

The acceptance and recognition given to art these days has remarkably changed since BenCab’s time, “The art market is different from before, when it used to be difficult. Art market today is very active. Even students are having one-man shows. Now we have a realization that painting is a good investment,” BenCab says.

“If the feeling is to do art, it just happens,” he adds.

Evidently, younger and younger artists are finding their niche and slowly making a name for themselves in the art scene. Parallel to this, national competitions like NSAC are constantly searching for future artisans who will create imprints on society and will be immortalized as influencers of future artists.

Also, NSAC recently sponsored an art workshop for students and aspiring artists with none other than BenCab himself, together with moderator/artist Renato Habulan and other previous NSAC winners at the BenCab Museum. The one-day interaction was an exchange of insights between established and budding artists.

Moreover, an artist is still his own master, with own sense and style. As for BenCab, he is his own man. Perhaps, this is the lesson for the young: create an imprint, an insignia of your own, be your own master.

The 46th NSAC is looking for artists who can join in the four open-themed categories: oil/acrylic, watercolor, sculpture, and digital fine arts. Each participant can submit a maximum of two entries across all categories. Metro Manila contestants can submit their entries from July 4-6 at the Shell House, Salcedo Village, Makati. Provincial entries meanwhile can submit artworks from June 26-28 at designated Shell provincial depots and installations.

For more details check www.shell.com.ph/shell_art

Nickky Faustine P. De Guzman
Published: May 13, 2013
Article from http://www.mb.com.ph/article.php?aid=11657&sid=3&subid=17#.UZDNxIKKz6E

Generous Vacation Is an Investment in Creativity

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Sat, 11 May 2013 07:50:00 +0000

Tore Leifer is a radio host and a culture editor with the Danish Broadcasting Corporation.

UPDATED MAY 5, 2013, 7:00 PM

Article from http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2013/05/05/denmarks-work-life-balance/in-denmark-generous-vacation-is-an-investment-in-creativity

In Danish arts funding we have the “arm’s length principle,” which means that politicians appoint, for example, the board of directors at the Royal Theater or the members of arts councils that distribute public funding. But government officials are not allowed to interfere with artistic decisions.

That said, they can demand that institutions expand their audiences or sell more tickets. This can sometimes create tension between artists and the public funding system. For example, last year a recent children's film on immigration failed to receive financial support from the Danish Film Institute. This provoked a heated debate on who should have the ultimate authority on movie decisions in Denmark, but the film was ultimately made, and was a success.

When it comes to public radio and television, everyone who owns a television or computer has to pay an annual license fee -- not a tax -- of $410 directly to the public broadcasters. But politicians can in no way interfere with content. The viewers and listeners pay. And the producers have artistic and creative freedom.

Radio isn’t art, but occasionally we do something that goes a little beyond journalism. When poet and filmmaker Jørgen Leth turned 75 last year, I wrote a poem for him and he read it to the listeners. We have musicians playing live on our show every week, and occasionally we, the journalists, even perform music on the show ourselves.

This level of creativity and sense of play is partly inspired, I think, by the five weeks of vacation per year, stipulated by law, that we receive in Denmark. On top of that, many journalists are guaranteed a sabbatical leave of six to eight weeks every six years. This sabbatical can be used for educational purposes or to finish off a book project. But it can also be used purely for recreational purposes.

Vacation and sabbaticals ensure that we spend time with our children and families, that we refresh our creative depots, and that we grow and develop as humans and professionals. Creative jobs can be very demanding; it's easy to burn out. But vacations and sabbaticals allow workers to return refreshed; watered and fertilized and ready to flower again.

Tore Leifer

UPDATED MAY 5, 2013, 7:00 PM

Article from http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2013/05/05/denmarks-work-life-balance/in-denmark-generous-vacation-is-an-investment-in-creativity

As Crowdfunding Grows, the Rewards Increase -- but So Do the Risks

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Thu, 09 May 2013 07:41:00 +0000

Published: May 08, 2013 in Knowledge@Wharton

The campaign to front a movie based on the cult television show "Veronica Mars" through crowdfunding broke records for the fastest project ever to raise $1 million on Kickstarter. It was the website's biggest film project so far, and it has the most backers of any project to date.

What it probably didn't do, Wharton experts say, is throw open the doors of crowdfunding to major motion pictures. But that's OK: Crowdfunding is successfully helping entrepreneurs raise capital without the need for them to go Hollywood.

What the "Veronica Mars" case does illustrate, however, is that Kickstarter and its crowdfunding brethren have proven their mettle as mainstream, reliable avenues of funding for both start-up businesses and established firms. Not only do crowdfunding websites provide a cheap, easy way for individuals to seek start-up funding, but would-be investors are also doing an excellent job of picking winners out of the crowd, according to Wharton management professor Ethan Mollick.

Similar Cues of Success

According to Mollick's recent paper, "Swept Away by the Crowd? Crowdfunding, Venture Capital and the Selection of Entrepreneurs," a draft of which was published in March, entrepreneurial quality is being examined in similar ways by donors on Kickstarter, one of the largest and most well-known crowdfunding websites, and also by venture capital firms, which for decades have been the go-to source for start-up funding.

"They are looking for similar signs of quality," Mollick notes. "There are things that increase the chance of being [crowd]funded if your backers don't know whether you're going to be successful yet." These factors include: "Does the project creator have experience in the field? Do they have a prototype? Do they have an endorsement from a prominent organization or individual? Those factors increase the chance a company is going to be successful, and they're things a venture capitalist looks for as a signal of success. They seem to be the things crowedfunders look for, too."

In an earlier paper, "The Dynamics of Crowdfunding: Determinants of Success and Failure," Mollick writes that while most projects that were funded delivered their goods with a mean delay of more than one month, "very few projects did not appear to be making a good effort to fulfill their obligations." In other words, the crowdfunding community was fairly adept at picking initiatives with a high probability of success.

What crowdfunders aren't looking for -- or at least, aren't concerned with -- is the gender or location of the entrepreneurs seeking funding. By analyzing 3,200 technology projects from Kickstarter in the fields of hardware, software, video games and product design -- areas that traditionally attract venture capital investment -- Mollick found that crowdfunding "is more democratically distributed than VC funding" and that "the proportion of crowdfunded start-ups with female founders was larger by an order of magnitude than that of VC-backed firms.

"You either believe that we have an existing system that makes sure the best computer science people work at Google and the best entrée funding is given by venture capitalists ... or you believe that talent and opportunity are more widely distributed and that because of differences in opportunity, geography and background, people don't have similar chances," Mollick states. "What makes crowdfunding so interesting is that this puts the possibility of creating things in the hands of more people."

That's especially important as the availability of small business loans has dried up, adds William Cunningham, CEO of Creative Investment Research, an economic analysis firm based in Washington, D.C. "Large financial institutions have abandoned this field. It's easier for them to invest in derivatives than to invest in small business loans," he says. The technology to crowdfund new ventures "makes all the difference in the world. It's a force multiplier; it's a cheapener."

Small Audiences, Big Dollars

The "Veronica Mars" Kickstarter campaign was probably unique, but it still caused rumblings through the entertainment industry.

Launched March 13, series creator Rob Thomas set a $2 million goal for the movie, with the franchise's owner, Warner Bros., pledging to kick in marketing and distribution support for a limited theatrical run. At that price, Thomas said in a Kickstarter message, a small cast could pull off a modest film that would continue the story of the high school student sleuth. Any more than that would allow Thomas and company to make a more ambitious film, but $2 million was the bare minimum needed.

Eleven hours after Thomas announced the campaign via Twitter, the initial funding goal had been reached. When the 30-day fundraising window closed last week, the "Veronica Mars" campaign had raised more than of $5.7 million with 91,585 backers, a site record. Not bad for a show that went off the air in 2007 and only averaged 2.5 million viewers during its three seasons (two on the WB network and a third on the CW network.)

"The 'Veronica Mars' case is a little bit weird," Mollick points out. "It may or may not be an embrace [by movie studios] of crowdfunding. By far, it's the exception to the rule. I'm not sure that method is going to work outside of a particular set of circumstances."

Although other passionate fan bases of beloved-but-defunct television properties started expressing hopes that their favorite show could follow the lead of "Veronica Mars," even Thomas expressed doubts that he had stumbled on a way to short-circuit the traditional Hollywood funding channels.

"I don't know that I would bet that a Kickstarter model starts to work across the board and that everyone who wants to make a $3 million, $4 million, $5 million movie can expect to go to Kickstarter and get financed," he told the Associated Press. "When there is a brand-name product that people have responded to and want to see, and there's already a built-in following for it, people can be very successful. I hope that, in that respect, we are pioneers and we see more of them."

Crowdfunding movies is hardly new; about 10% of this year's entrants at the Sundance Film Festival received money through that method, according to Kickstarter. But for a studio like Warner Bros., who could find $4 million for a movie using the change in its figurative couch cushions, the real value of a Kickstarter-funded film is "much stronger, much more powerful data than you'd get from a survey saying, 'Yes, I'd like to see 'Veronica Mars' made into a movie,'" says Wharton marketing professor Jehoshua Eliashberg.

"From Warner Bros.' point of view, this is very valuable marketing research," he adds. "I don't think we're looking at an innovative financial arrangement in getting consumers involved in funding movies. But I do think studios will have to get used to the idea that consumers will have greater and greater demands for what movies we want to see get made, and how they get made."

It's Equity Time

Crowdfunding has also found approval from the federal government, opening up the fundraising field to more potential risk and reward for investors and entrepreneurs.

The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, or JOBS Act, was signed into law by President Barack Obama in April 2012 as an effort to ease funding restrictions for start-ups and small businesses. Among the act's provisions was opening up equity-based crowdfunding to United States investors. Unlike a Kickstarter-type project, where backers are either making a pure donation or essentially pre-ordering a product, equity crowdfunding would allow potential backers to buy a share of a nascent company, thus opening the door to a financial return.

Although the Securities and Exchange Commission has yet to issue regulations on the JOBS Act promises, equity crowdfunding has been happening in the United Kingdom and European Union for several years. Jeff Lynn, CEO of equity crowdfunding firm Seedrs, says that about 15 similar companies now exist in the United Kingdom and the European Union, and that the funding method has proved to be a game-changer for the angel investment field, which he describes as the step before a venture capital round of funding.

"Instead of it being very rich and clubby, where you have to be at the right place at the right time, we're trying to democratize it," he notes. "You've now got it open to everyone, everywhere. I see many others coming into this space; I see a world where we have 100 million angel investors."

The European Model

Seedrs does more due diligence on its hosted projects than a traditional crowdfunding site would, Lynn says, including verifying that the firm is a new business and that it is U.K.-registered. "We only let them on the platform if we're happy with that," Lynn notes. "We're not trying to impose our business judgment, but in practice, only about 25% of businesses that come to us end up getting on our platform."

Of those start-ups that make it through the company's oversight process, only about 12% get funded. An average goal is £50,000 (about $75,000), and the company facilitates about £1 million ($1.5 million) of funding a year. After companies participate in one or more rounds of funding at Seedrs or a similar site, Lynn says the firms are more likely to then seek out venture capital and the additional support that comes with it.

Allowing direct investment by investors brings democracy to angel funding, but with it comes the potential for losses, too. At Seedrs, Lynn says that investors have to click on several clearly worded warnings about their potential loss (which, he notes, are more transparent than the long-winded user agreements that accompany most web and software services) and pass a quiz about the policies before they can fork over their money. "We don't want people thinking this is a safe asset and putting their life savings in it. Most people certainly should not do that."

With equity crowdfunding coming to the United States as soon as the SEC issues its regulations, and more entrepreneurs likely to seek financial success through its backing, Mollick says many twists could still come to both the crowdfunding field and the establishments it disrupts.

"Something's happening: There's a lot of money flowing, there's policy and there's promise. It's the culmination of a bunch of things we care about," Mollick notes. "Trends like this have been coming together for a long time now. Is it more democratic? Yes. But quality seems to matter, and that's important and interesting. There are still a whole bunch of interesting questions that we don't have answers to."

Published: May 08, 2013 in Knowledge@Wharton

Meditation and the art of investment

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Tue, 07 May 2013 04:39:00 +0000

Wed Apr 17, 2013 4:29pm EDT

(James Saft is a Reuters columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.)

By James Saft

From: http://www.reuters.com/article/

(Reuters) - From Ray Dalio to Bill Gross, some of the biggest names in money management are practicing meditation.

At a conference last week in Washington, Dalio expounded on how his practice of meditation has helped his investment performance. Georgetown University, at the same conference, announced it would begin to offer a semester-long class on the discipline at its graduate business school. (link.reuters.com/kav47t)

While money managers often joke that clients are the biggest impediment to beating the market because they make emotional mistakes, the truth is that all investors, big and small, share traits which get in the way of making the best choices.

Meditation, which uses breathing and relaxation exercises in an attempt to bring stillness and repose to our usually chaotic minds, may offer some help.

"Meditation more than anything in my life was the biggest ingredient for whatever success I've had," Dalio, founder of $130 billion hedge fund firm Bridgewater Associates, said in an interview at Georgetown in October. "(Meditation) gives me a centeredness, it gives me an ability to look at things without the emotional hijacking, without the ego, in a way that gives me a certain clarity." (Related video: vimeo.com/50999847)

Bond king Bill Gross of Pimco has also said he leaves the trading floor every day for yoga and meditation.

Dalio says the practice has been useful for him, both for generating creative thought, and in evaluating and responding to the huge overload of stimulus which presses upon a money manager every day.

Some money managers who meditate say they believe it helps them to deal with information overload, not just in the sense of remaining calm when events are frantic but also in being able to recognize the most significant bits of data from among the maelstrom.

ZEN, EGO AND BEHAVIOR

The attraction meditation has for some money managers is that it can put them into a frame of mind where they are less liable to fall into costly and self-defeating thinking patterns.

The so-called "confirmation bias," the human tendency to seek out information that confirms your preconceptions while remaining blind to things which don't, is among the most common errors money managers make.

Confirmation bias itself is driven in part by ego, by people's desire to be proven right once they've publicly espoused a position. People become personally identified with their ideas and suppositions, and take too long to relinquish them even when they are plainly shown to be wrong.

One of the claims of meditation, in contrast, is that it allows people to accept reality as it really is. This perhaps reduces the pain of accepting that one may be wrong.

"Meditation helps with bias," said Jason Voss, a former money manager who now works for the CFA Institute and who has written a book about meditation and investment. "You're trying to remove all of the filters off of your thinking so you can see reality as closely as possible."

Philip Yim Kwong Cheng of the Australian Catholic University theorized in a 2010 article in the Journal of Behavioral Finance that unconscious thought, which meditation is intended to facilitate, might help in limiting overconfidence, a trait which is often found among money managers and which is documented to lead to poor financial decisions.

Meditation's results are hard to quantify. For one, many practitioners say that meditation brings about creativity, but this is almost impossible to prove. Creativity is hugely important in a world filled with funds doing more or less the same thing and producing more or less the same results, but demonstrating a direct link between meditation and creativity is a lot more difficult. It may simply be that calm people are more able to be creative than frenzied ones, or it might in turn be that meditators wrongly attribute their good ideas to the practice.

The lack of data is probably the biggest impediment to evaluating the impact of meditation on investment performance. It is also why we are not likely to see it becoming a widespread marketing point for fund managers any time soon.

Meditation is likely to continue spreading among fund managers in the way it has in the rest of society: from hand to hand as something that people do and find helpful.

(At the time of publication James Saft did not own any direct investments in securities mentioned in this article. He may be an owner indirectly as an investor in a fund. You can email him at jamessaft@jamessaft.com and find more columns at blogs.reuters.com/james-saft)

(Editing by Chelsea Emery)

From: http://www.reuters.com/article/

Live chat: thinking like a creative startup

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 18:05:00 +0000

Join us from 12pm on Friday 13 April as we look at startups in the creative industries – what can we learn from them and how might you go about making your startup dream a reality?

Matthew Caines

Guardian Professional, Thursday 12 April 2012 12.33 BST

Article from The Guardian

Social network giant Facebook – once a startup itself – recently purchased Instagram for a reported $1bn.

It took the two founders of Instagram only two years to turn their photo-sharing social app into $1bn – not bad for a company that has 13 employees and doesn't make a single penny. Founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger have made a pretty packet from the app, but more than anything they've shown the world how powerful an entrepreneurial spirit and startup mentality can be in this digital age.

And where culture and the arts are concerned there's certainly reason to start thinking of, or like, a startup. They share a lot more than you might think: the need for outside investment, the focus on collaboration, a strong audience connection and big thinking around small budgets.

With digital innovation evolving so rapidly and with new tools and platforms popping up all over our social, local, mobile and online channels, starting up has never been so accessible. And for those organisations already established or looking at their next project, there's certainly something to learn from a startup mentality.

Anne-Marie Imafidon made a call to arms this week when she explained why arts organisations should act more like startups. "If you make what you do replicable, and empower others to do it, you'll be meeting more than just your own objectives," she said. "If you're providing a service, there's a chance that someone somewhere will pay for it – even if it's not the person receiving the service."

If there's not an opportunity to start something new yourself, there's certainly plenty to learn from those who do. So whether you're looking to realise your creative idea as a new product or take some of that entrepreneurial thought back to the boardroom, join our live chat this Friday 13 April from 12pm to 2pm to share insights, ideas and advice around starting up.

Panel (more to follow)

Estela Oliva, founder & director, Alpha-ville (http://www.alpha-ville.co.uk/)

Estela is a digital entrepreneur currently running her own digital consultancy as well as Alpha-ville, a not for profit startup dedicated to the development of digital culture. The organisation presents a post-digital festival where technology meets art and creativity – she previously worked at Google. @estelaoliva @alphavillefest

Patricia van den Akker, director, The Design Trust (http://www.thedesigntrust.co.uk/)

Patricia has worked for nearly 15 years in creative business development, specialising in design and crafts. She has worked at the Crafts Council, Studio Levien, CIDA and Pembridge & Partners. In 2011 she took over The Design Trust to help people start, run and grow their design and craft businesses. @thedesigntrust

Laura Wellington & James Abbott-Donnelly, directors, Duke Studios (http://www.duke-studios.com/)

Laura and James are co-founders of Duke Studios in Leeds. When not transforming 7,500 square feet into a creative co-working space Laura also runs her own design practice supplying both the UK and international markets. James also runs a photography business. @Dukestudioleeds @laurawelli @jamesadphoto

Marie-Anne Leonard, founder/director, Art on the Street CIC (http://www.maidenheadartmarket.org/)

Founded by four friends in 2009, Art on the Street provides artists with affordable ways to sell their work and develop as independent businesses, creating artspaces where there are none, offering advice and support as well as enabling networking and collaboration opportunities. @artonthestreet

To join this live chat as a panellist, email Matthew Caines (matthew.caines@guardian.co.uk)

Article from The Guardian

Social media a driving force in small business marketing

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Sat, 07 Apr 2012 09:35:00 +0000

Posted: 4/6/2012

By: Mark Nolan

Article from Amsterdam Printing

According to a recent Creative Group survey of 500 advertising and marketing executives, 53 percent said they plan to increase their business advertising efforts by investing in Facebook more this year.

However, other social networks were also viewed as viable recipients of company funds. Forty-three percent expect to increase their budget for Twitter usage, 41 percent for Google+, 38 percent for LinkedIn and 36 percent for YouTube.

On the flip side, no more than 5 percent of recipients expected their investment in any of the social media platforms mentioned above to decrease in 2012.

"Companies recognize the powerful role social media can play in brand building, and they are willing to invest in initiatives that can help them increase customer engagement," said Donna Farrugia, executive director of The Creative Group. "As platforms like Facebook continue to evolve, it's especially important for businesses to keep pace."

The Los Angeles Times reports that Facebook is expected to top a $100 billion valuation after its initial public offering becomes complete. The social network made $3.7 million in revenue from online ads last year, and more brands are buying ads on Facebook than ever before, given its massive user base (845 million).

Social media remains a popular advertising option for small businesses that are limited in terms of budget allocation. According to the sixth annual Staples National Small Business Survey, 67 percent of small business owners only plan to spend around $2,000 on advertising and marketing in 2012. This has led a fair amount of respondents - 35 percent - to increase their reliance on social media over the past year.

What's more, traditional marketing and advertising is becoming a thing of the past, as viral marketing is cheaper and can generally reach a wider audience.

"This is a smart strategy if, like the majority of survey respondents, you don't have a big budget," the Huffington Post explains.

Article from Amsterdam Printing

Creative thinking is boosting Plymouth economy

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 10:13:00 +0000

Wednesday, April 04, 2012

Article from This is Plymouth

PLYMOUTH'S creative industries sector has expanded rapidly into a £250million-a-year success story for the city's economy – with potential for more growth and jobs over the next decade.

An estimated 4,400 people are now employed in what has been targeted by Plymouth City Council as a priority sector for the future, with about half of these creative businesses established in just the past five years.

Plymouth is now seeing young talented creatives and university graduates, who may previously have taken their ideas to Bristol or London, choosing to stay in Plymouth to turn ideas into businesses.

The result is a growing cluster of expertise with a network of support, facilities, office accommodation and research capacity in place.

Much of this now falls within the Growth Acceleration and Investment Network (GAIN), set up by Plymouth University, Plymouth City Council and Tamar Science Park, to accelerate growth and investment in high-quality businesses and ideas to create wealth and jobs in the South West.

With Plymouth University's Faculty of Arts and Plymouth College of Art drawing creative talent to the city, the challenge for has been in capturing this talent and nurturing it to create commercial ventures.

The council's economic development team has been identifying where facilities and support are needed and working with partners to delivering this, including supporting the establishment of the Plymouth Creative Network.

So, alongside well-established creative companies such as Twofour media, Silverstream TV, Bluestone360 and Goss Interactive, new businesses are being established covering areas such as graphic design, marketing, outdoor advertising and mobile phone app design.

The Formation Zone, at Plymouth University, provides space for the development of creative businesses with fully serviced office space and business support for up to two years.

It has produced several creative success stories, including online game and mobile app designers Mutant Labs, digital marketing agency Fuel Communications and marketing and design companies 51 Studio, Altitude and Actuate.

Eleanor Butland, Formation Zone programme manager, said: "We can aid businesses with everything from leadership and management coaching to peer-to-peer support while they focus on growing the business.

"When they are ready to move on, we can help by liaising with other office and studio space providers to find them what they need, whether that's a short-term lease or a location that has the 'wow' factor to impress clients.

"The creative industry is definitely a lot stronger than it was two or three years ago, and Plymouth is now being viewed as a much more viable place to operate.

"In the past, students graduating from Plymouth University often either went to Bristol or London, but now many more are choosing to stay here and create high value jobs through setting up creative businesses."

A focal point for GAIN is ensuring facilities, space and support are available to keep young businesses in Plymouth.

The city has facilities at Tamar Science Park where recent creative additions to its portfolio include start-up software and net development firm Carbon Pixel Ltd and web-casting and software specialists Vualto Ltd.

There is also an emerging "creative corridor" with the development of workspaces at Studio 5-11 on Millbay Road by the Architects Design Group (ADG), and the redevelopment of studio space Residence Two at Royal William Yard, by Urban Splash.

Both are becoming hubs for creative businesses. Residence 2 sprung from work done by the council's economic development team and Plymouth Creative Network members in identifying a pent-up demand for such facilities.

Thanks to links with the Formation Zone, Royal William Yard's first Residence 2 tenants – 51 Studio, Altitude and Actuate – relocated to the Yard in February.

Miles Noble, managing director of Altitude said: "Royal William Yard is an amazing, trendy, creative space. When the opportunity to move there arose it was at just the right time for us."

Nathan Cornish, director at Urban Splash, added: "It's no coincidence the first three businesses to move in all came from the Formation Zone, as the graduates and embryonic businesses currently based there are exactly the type of companies we refurbished Residence 2 for."

Former 1970s social security office Studio 5-11 was given a complete makeover in 2010 by ADG, which now occupies the fifth floor.

Ian Potts, ADG managing director, said: "Tenants instantly become part of a creative, collaborative business community."

GAIN seeks to bring the ability to connect investment opportunities, business support and facilities for creative businesses in Plymouth.

Professor Julian Beer, Pro-Vice Chancellor at Plymouth University, said: "Creative industries is a key sector for Plymouth, and the high growth it is experiencing is a fantastic example of what the infrastructure provided by GAIN and other partners in the city can help achieve.

"With the support framework in place, I have no doubt Plymouth can become one of the leading cities in the UK for creative industries, attracting further outside investment and boosting the economy."

Councillor Ted Fry, the council's Cabinet member for Planning, Strategic Housing and Economic Growth, said: "Our local economic strategy identified the creative sector as one of the city's key strengths. I'm thrilled to see these dynamic companies are doing so well.

"This important sector helps the city retain talent nurtured at the university, and provides exciting job and skills opportunities for young people, in particular.

"Support for sectors such as the creative industries is further enhanced by the work to increase the take-up of super-fast broadband in the city. This is an area we are focusing on."

Article from This is Plymouth

How To Be A Better Quant

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 08:37:00 +0000

By Cam Hui on April 2, 2012
Article from Daily Markets

I have written extensively about what it takes to become a good quantitative analyst. It isn’t just about knowing the right technique or writing a better algorithm, though that is part of the skill set needed. What’s more important is situational awareness – awareness of the investment environment that we live in so that we can deploy the right model to take advantage of the environment.

To illustrate my point, if you are in the New York area on April 16, 2012, I would strongly suggest attending the QWAFAFEW evening with Sam Eisenstadt. Here are the details:

My Life as an Empiricist: a Conversation with Samuel Eisenstadt,The stock market, its information, and the tools available to track and analyze it were far more limited during most of Sam’s 63-year tenure at Value Line than they are today. This conversation, in Q &A format, will explore the development of analytic tools, ranking systems, and indexes with a special focus on the Timeliness Ranking System. Other subjects will include capital market and market data observations over the years and interactions with luminaries such as Louis Rukeyser, Fischer Black, Rex Sinquefeld, Peter Bernstein, and more.

The questions will be posed by Herb Blank – formerly of Value Line, Deutsche Bank Securities, and Rapid Ratings. If you have any questions, you wish Herb to pose to Sam, please e-mail them in advance to hblank@qwafafew.org. (Please note that questions about the management of Value Line and its operations are strictly off limits and will be considered Grounds for Immediate Departure.)

Here is Eienstadt’s biography [emphasis added]:

From 1946 through early 2010, Eisenstadt worked with just one firm – Value Line, publisher of the Value Line Investment Survey. Hired as a proofreader after serving in the European theater during World War II, Sam moved over to research in production in 1948, then became the firm’s Director of Statistics, and eventually ascended to Research Chairman. There he played a major role in developing the Value Line Timeliness Ranking System – referred to by many as the industry’s first practical quantitative model for stock selection – and took charge of its weekly production. In 1971, the late Fischer Black wrote in the Financial Analysts’ Journal that the Timeliness Ranking System was the one provable anomaly to the Efficient Market Hypothesis that he had found to-date. Never satisfied with past accomplishments, Sam continued to work on improving the Timeliness Ranking System while also developing a Technical Ranking System along. Other developmental work included various asset allocation models and indexes. Personal highlights include a debate with Professor Rex Sinquefeld and appearances on Wall Street Week with Louis Ruykeyser. One common thread is that everything Sam developed was data-driven, preferring to let the data speak for themselves rather than super-impose pre-conceived theories upon them. Sam holds a bachelor’s degree in Statistics from the City College of New York.

Eisenstadt is a quantitative pioneers. He was a major force in the implementation of the Value Line Timeliness ranking system – which is used as proof by counterexample that the strong form of EMH does not hold. Yet the title of the talk is “My life as an empiricist”, an illustration that it takes more than just an advanced degree in the hard sciences to be a quant.

If you only have a hammer, then every problem looks like a nail

The real value of a quantitative technique is in its application, but when do you know to apply it? For most quants, who just know about techniques but lack in-depth market experience, the issue becomes one of the carpenter armed with a hammer. Every problem looks like a nail.

Consider, for example, the €conomia game that the Trichet ECB unveiled in late 2010 to explain its approach to monetary policy. Matthew Yglesias explained it this way [emphasis added]:

The game embeds a number of assumptions I would disagree with, but that seem telling. Short-term interest rates are your only policy tool. And their view of the transmission mechanism seems to be that inflation in QN is jointly determined by the change in inflation rate between QN-1 and QN-2 and the level of real output growth in QN-1. But a change in interest rates affects output immediately. So if the inflation rate is rising, whether because of demand-side or supply-side factors, the only way to prevent it from spiraling out of control is to raise rates enough to reduce real output. If inflation is plugging along at your target level, then bad weather causes crop failures and food prices go up and output goes down, you need to raise interest rates. If you don’t raise rates, then what happens is that inflation momentum pushes inflation up further in the next quarter and then the hit to output fades away which further increases inflation. Then since there’s even more inflation built into the system, you need to undertake a bigger rate hike down the road to drive output growth down enough to get inflation under control.

Long story short, the only responsible thing to do is to prophylactically raise rates in the face of adverse supply shocks. It shouldn’t stun us that this is what the game says, since it’s how the ECB behaves in practice. But the consequences have been disastrous in practice and I’m not sure what theoretical support they think they have for this view of how the world works.

I have no doubt that the ECB is full of economists with advanced degrees who are much smarter than I am. But do then have real-life experience?

If your only tool is interest rates, then every inflation shock looks like a nail. The Trichet ECB seemed to view the world through this lens. Here’s Yglesias’ view of the game as reflective of the Trichet ECB’s attitude:

That’s the ECB’s view of the world. Output doesn’t matter. Unemployment doesn’t matter. Having inflation close to 2 percent matters a little. But it matters more to be below 2% than to be close to the target. If forced to choose between full employment and 4.16% inflation and a years-long deflationary recession, choose the recession.

On the other hand, Mario Draghi has been more pragmatic, though his approach is fraught with risks.

Experience + Technique = Creativity and Good Analysis

Canada’s Globe and Mail recently featured an article that addresses this issue entitled How can universities teach students to think creatively? The key is experienced based learning and figuring out how to apply what you learned to a problem [emphasis added]:

How can universities – key players in the process – teach students to think critically and creatively? Arvind Gupta thinks he has the answer.

Dr. Gupta is a computer science professor at the University of British Columbia and chief executive and scientific director of Mitacs, a national government-funded research organization that runs an internship program for Canadian graduate and postdoctoral students. The program brings together companies with students who help the organizations solve their research challenges. Dr. Gupta also sat on the federally-appointed Jenkins task force that recently completed a review of federal spending on research and development programs headed by Open Text Corp. chairman Tom Jenkins.

Dr. Gupta spoke to The Globe and Mail about how universities strive to foster creativity in their students, how Mitacs plays a key role in the process.

Q. Do universities stifle creativity in students, or the opposite?

A. I think there’s lots of challenges in an education system that’s got to be very broad based and has to both train young people for existing jobs and for future jobs. We’re trying to train people to be creative because they have to be very flexible in the kinds of jobs they might take on. We need to think about what the economy of the future will look like and what kinds of skills are easily transferable and there, at least I like to believe, we try very hard at universities to think about those kinds of issues.

Q. How can universities foster creativity and innovative thinking?

A. I’m a big believer in experiential learning. I think that in our university system we should engage society much more in the training of young people. I like co-op programs. I think they help give focus to more theoretical knowledge. At Mitacs we run programs where we get graduate students to go into society and look for emerging research challenges. We get young people talking to companies about what kinds of challenges these companies are seeing.

Q. Can you tell me a bit about how Mitacs does that?

A. For the more junior graduate students, Mitacs has staff that talk to companies about their challenges and then we bring a student and professor in to articulate clearly what the problem is. Then the student spends part of the time at the company. Seeing the problem for yourself is very different from having someone explain it to you. So we get the student to go to the company site, understand the problem first-hand, and then spend time tapping all the creative minds at the university on all the different possible ways to solve it. To me that’s really the best way to stimulate creativity.

In other words, university training isn’t just about talking someone to be book smart. It’s also about teaching someone to be street smart.

When you are only book smart, you get the Trichet ECB. When you are both, you get innovation and creativity. That’s what happened with Sam Eisenstadt.

Cam Hui is a portfolio manager at Qwest Investment Fund Management Ltd. (“Qwest”). This article is prepared by Mr. Hui as an outside business activity. As such, Qwest does not review or approve materials presented herein. The opinions and any recommendations expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not reflect the opinions or recommendations of Qwest.

None of the information or opinions expressed in this blog constitutes a solicitation for the purchase or sale of any security or other instrument. Nothing in this article constitutes investment advice and any recommendations that may be contained herein have not been based upon a consideration of the investment objectives, financial situation or particular needs of any specific recipient. Any purchase or sale activity in any securities or other instrument should be based upon your own analysis and conclusions. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Either Qwest or Mr. Hui may hold or control long or short positions in the securities or instruments mentioned.

Article from Daily Markets

Investing In India: The Demographic Bonus Will Play A Big Role

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 10:51:00 +0000

April 1, 2012
Article from Seeking Alpha

Recently many are suggesting the "I" in BRICS should be replaced by Indonesia. I'm not going to go into that analysis. Instead, I'll focus on India briefly explaining why it is a BRIC, and analyzing whether it can become the next China and if it is time to invest in it.

The BRICS leaders just met in New Delhi for their summit. They have agreed to examine a proposal to create a BRICS development bank, but that is still far from being implemented. Although the BRICS shall represent more than half of the world's growth this year, not much should be expected from this group of countries acting together. Why? Let us first understand what they have in common. If we list the ten largest countries in the world by Population, Land and GDP, only five countries will be in all three lists: USA, Brazil, Russia, India and China. The BRIC are countries which are very large by most standards, however still developing, and therefore expected to grow faster than developed economies and increase their importance on a global basis. The appendix S stands for South Africa, which has similar characteristics but on a more modest scale, since it wouldn't fit any ten largest list based on the mentioned criteria. South Africa's role is more regional and some say it was included in the group for "political correctness."

It would be an overstatement to say that's all in terms of similarities, but let's quickly look at some significant differences. China and India are really huge in terms of population - India is approaching China's population size, which is almost four times the population of Brazil and Russia combined. On the other hand, Brazil and Russia have a per capita GDP (all GDP figures here are dollar equivalent, not PPP) that is more than twice that of China, which itself has a per capita GDP more than three times higher than India's. Brazil was colonized by Europeans, has a western culture, and is more like a less developed US, whereas Russia was until recently a super power leading the Soviet Union, and India and China have their own millenary cultures as well as disputes with each other. China's GDP is greater than that of Brazil, Russia and India combined. I could go on, but the bottom line is that although they may have several interests in common, they might have just as many not in common.

There are several reasons to consider that India could grow faster than China in the next decades. Population wise, yes, it is a matter of time for India to outgrow China. But when that occurs, China's economy will still be growing and its per capita GDP will be much higher than India's. Therefore, if India's economy will ever become greater than that of China, that certainly would still be decades away. I guess the question is not if India's economy will become greater than China's soon, which it won't, but rather if India's economy could grow in absolute terms more than any other country? In other words, could India pick-up China's locomotive role when China slows down?

Although India has grown at very high rates during the last years, China has grown even more. The same is true for India's productivity rates and for its investment level. Some believe that India has a language advantage, but English isn't as widely and fluently spoken in India as some may suppose, and one could also question how substantial would this advantage be, considering that Mandarin is the most spoken language in the world. Others argue that India could be favored by its lower labor cost, but once productivity gets factored in, that advantage doesn't seem to hold so well. The significant difference is demographic.

Although India's population growth is slowing down, according to its 2011 census, it still grew 1.6% p.a. last decade, down from 1.9% p.a. in the 1990s. Population growth has a similar effect on GDP as inflation has on returns, i.e. inflation eats away part of the nominal rates of return once real rates are calculated; the same way that population growth eats away part of GDP growth when GDP per capita is calculated. Population growth also results in a young population, with many people (children) at non-working age, putting a burden on the "few" who can work. However, fertility rate (the expected number of children born per woman in her child-bearing years) is continuously declining in India, from 3.9 in 1990 to currently 2.6 and expected to continue falling. As the fertility rate approaches 2, and children become adults, the proportion of the population in working age increases, which presents many challenges, but is a very powerful ingredient for economic growth. This process is known as demographic bonus or dividend. Among other things, it helps investment rates to go up, since people in productive age are the ones who save, not children. Developed economies went through it when baby boomers became adults and China after the one child policy was implemented. Brazil is currently undergoing this process and India will go through it in the future.

Another important long-term growth factor in India is that it is going through an urbanization process. Urbanization presents many challenges, but is a tremendous growth ingredient, and given that two thirds of the population still lives in rural areas, this process could continue for many years.

On the other hand, India faces huge challenges. One that also applies to China is the imbalance between male and female population. India has 940 females per 1000 males, which results in 37.25 million males without a pair. This situation is even worse in China, but its implications are a matter for a different article.

India has to face the fact that although it is among the countries with the largest number of Engineers, 26% of Indians can't read or write, which leads to estimates that it is home to one third of the world's illiterate population. The 2011 transparency international figures show India among the worst large nations on corruption issues in the world and worsening relative to 2010. Whether corruption is increasing or only becoming more visible with protesters and the press playing their role better is debatable, but nobody questions that it is very high, counter productive for the country's development and one of the reasons for some referring to its democracy as dysfunctional. Likewise India's ranking in the Ease of Doing Business 2012 World Bank report puts it in number 132 among 183 countries, which not only isn't good, but also isn't showing any material progress.

One could go on saying that India is still a very closed economy (in spite of being much more open today than 20 years ago), discussing its infrastructure problems, lack of energy supply and dependence on oil imports, inflation, and extreme poverty. Disputes with neighbor countries, terrorism and internal rebels are also important points of concern. But perhaps for the long term a more important question would be if its culture could curb its economic development. Indians are known for being accommodated and valuing much more enjoying a good life than work. When visiting a factory in India and comparing it with other Asian countries, it's almost as watching a film in slow motion. As Malcolm Gladwell explains in the book Outliers, for thousands of years Chinese, Japanese, Koreans and other Asians who have cultivated rice have worked around 3000 hours a year, while most of the world has worked less than 2000 hours and some as little as 1000 hours per year. Indians don't seem to be at the higher end of working hours. I recall a story I heard decades ago about villages in India where people worked for a daily pay, and everyday on the way back from work setup a net to catch fish. In the next morning, before going to work, they checked the net. If they've caught any fish, that day they wouldn't go to work. I wouldn't be surprised if this still exists in India.

One could argue that with all these problems India isn't prepared for sustained fast growth. I may be naïve, but thinking very long term, I tend to see these problems as a half full glass rather than half empty. In other words, there are lots of opportunities for improvement. And the fact that India is a democracy may slow things down, but makes them more sustainable. Indians are known to be very creative, and a democratic society is normally good soil for creativity. In a matter of time, India can become very successful on a global basis on a lot more than IT services. I believe that with the help of urbanization and its demographic bonus, the Indian people will be able to make things happen, even if at a slower rate and taking longer than several would wish. It is likely that at some point India's growth will be of more relevance to the world's growth than that of any other country.

India's ETFs have had a very bad performance. Wisdom Tree India Earnings (EPI) has had a negative return of 25.9% since its inception in Feb 2008, -23.8% in the last 12 months, and -9.6% in the last 30 days. Power Shares India (PIN) hasn't done much better, with -23.7% since it started trading in March 2008, -16.8% over the last 12 months and -10% in the last 30 days. These ETFs could be a way of participating in the country's potential growth and given the bad performance so far, now could be the right time to start. Check out the Seeking Alpha Indian Stocks Beginning To Look Cheap article for more on India's ETF performance and time to invest. But I prefer private equity companies that invest in new creative companies. I think it's still early to build a large position, but for those who think long term, my recommendation is to gradually start building a position. If you wait until most problems are solved to start investing, you'll lose out on the best part of the party. The demographic bonus will play a big role, so keep an eye on fertility rates, and when they get close to 2.1, increase your position. Also follow the transparency figures and when corruption levels start approaching the developed economies levels, increase your position.

Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.

Article from Seeking Alpha

Africa: Seven Best Practices for Approaching Expansion Into Africa

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 09:36:00 +0000

BY NELLY NYAGAH, 29 MARCH 2012
Article from All Africa

Despite global economic conditions, Africa's growth is escalating and drawing attention from more international investors who are seeking growth in emerging and frontier markets. What must companies take into consideration when developing an approach to leverage investment opportunities in on the continent? Hendrik Malan, the operations director for Africa at Frost & Sullivan offers insight.

What is the size of your canvas?

Understanding the market size and structure before you enter the market is critical to developing a proper approach. To ensure that you do not over-extend yourself or under-invest, you have to match the addressable opportunity with the time frame to take advantage of this; understanding market size and structure is critical. Let the opportunity guide the options for entry and the market resources you are willing to commit to that market. It is all about return on investment. You will be surprised how many companies make entry decisions based on existing relationships, for instance, following their clients. Geographic expansion is an expensive exercise, and you need to invest time and money in the markets that will provide you with the biggest returns in the long run.

Are we there yet?

Plan for a slow ramp up. Given the operational challenges of Africa, gaining access to addressable opportunity typically takes longer than expected; take this into account when calculating the return on investment on your market entry model. Do not go Texas on Africa - she will push back hard and fast. Allow your teams to learn because it takes time in Africa; if your burn rate is too high, you will go down in flames. Also from an evaluation perspective, take a long-term view to the profitability of operations in Africa. We typically recommend 5-10 years. Individual countries can drop off for periods of time. For instance, Kenya's disputed election results a few years ago. It will be business as usual in a couple of years, so do not pull out! However, be prepared to put the business 'on hold' or 'on maintenance mode' for a while.

It's not an arm's length affair

Get boots on the ground. Learning through third parties takes too long and is not an effective market feedback mechanism. You could be growing at 6% (which you will most likely be very happy with) and the market can be growing at 20%.

To compete like a local, you have to be a local

Invest in local talent. Understanding the cultural nuances of management and selling in foreign markets will remain a challenge for expatriates. Follow an aggressive plan to scale-up local talent to take up other operations within three years.

The big G

If you are a significant market player, government involvement is a given. Governments often play a strong role in large deals. They bring a unique ability to coordinate multiple suppliers across industries, secure financing, and strike long-term deals all at once.

We have to do what...?

Be creative in your business model and - entertain non-standard ones for your company and even for your industry. Even though your core value proposition should never change based on the market you enter, the way of delivering it will need to change. One size will definitely not fit all. You might have to look up and/or down the value chain to establish a sustainable business model, which could involve developing new service models and addressing new packaging requirements.

I know people who know people

Relationships are everything. Stress test the strength of partner's and supplier's relationships before entering into any agreement. The wrong partner selection can easily cost you three years' worth of business, and more importantly three years of effective learning. Also know your deal life cycle extremely well - know when, where and by whom the real decisions are made about contract allocations; map decision-makers, influencers and gatekeepers across the deal lifecycle. This will help guide the activity of senior executives in the region, and who and where to spend their time on.

Conclusion

1. There is a significant gap between actual and perceived risk in Africa - this spells opportunity.

2. Despite the low base, the growth experienced by the continent is attractive and it appears to be more sustainable than in the past.

3. This new 'African Story' is driven by consumption, a growing middle class, urbanisation and strong infrastructure needs.

4. The African Renaissance is not yet here, but the writing is on the wall.

5. You will have to be well entrenched by the time this hits to be able to capitalise on it. Generally, there is a strong loyalty to successful 'first movers'.

6. The paradigm is shifting from 'should we invest in Africa' to 'managing risks of not being in Africa'.

Malan has a wealth of experience in designing and implementing growth approaches across Africa for top global companies. He spoke on Wednesday during a Webinar titled "Africa - The new growth frontier?" and hosted by professional services firm, Frost & Sullivan in Cape Town.

Article from All Africa

Developing a Hobby - A Creative Investment For Your Child's Future

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 09:36:00 +0000

By Ajay Narayan
Article from ezine

The concept of nurturing a hobby is fast vanishing now, but its importance has grown even more. A child is born with multiple talents, but he chooses some to carry along for the rest of his life. A hobby comes from an interest within a child to explore, which he likes doing. Of late, academics have totally overshadowed the necessity of hobbies. This, however, blocks many options for a child. Let's explore the importance of hobbies to children:

1. If you cultivate a hobby, you always have something to keep you busy when you have nothing to do. It keeps you away from boredom. A hobby acts like your friend. You can depend on it.

2. Many children, later in life, decide to make a career out of their hobby. You see and hear rock bands? They are successful! Children with an interest in music, learn singing, guitar, drums, and later on decide to make a rock band. They are happy and earn good! It keeps them satisfied because they make their hobby their career. They never get bored of it. A child with writing as his hobby may later become a writer and earn good money and fame.

3. When you have a hobby, you have a lot to experiment with it. You can do anything with it, at your will. There is nothing to stop you, and this is how you learn things different from what is taught. A child with a hobby in machines, can make, break, build again, and try new things with it. When you do a job, you don't have the freedom. A hobby, by your side, helps you become more creative with your interest.

A hobby never keeps you out of work. A child, who has constantly developed a hobby, will never be alone; will be fit and mentally active. If your child has not yet developed a hobby, encourage him to develop one. Give him his fair share of happiness! Besides, never ask a child to give up his hobby for the sake of another seemingly beneficial hobby. It is his interest and children like to express through their hobby. Coming to a graver issue of the society, parents have a great way to bond with their child, through his hobby. Gift him an aero plane remote control model if he likes things that fly. Help him come close to his interest. Your child will realize that you care for him. You never know if he decides to become a commercial or an air-force pilot.

What keeps you away from developing a hobby for yourself or your child?

Ajay Narayan

Head Content Writer

Content Caramel

[http://www.contentcaramel.com]

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ajay_Narayan

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/4269476

Article from ezine

Innovation, creativity and development go hand in hand

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 10:05:00 +0000

Francis Gurry

Special to The Nation March 26, 2012 1:00 am

Article from nationmultimedia.com

Innovation is the space between a problem and its solution.

A balanced intellectual property (IP) system plays a vital role in that space. Working with its 185 member states, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) supports global investment in knowledge creation through the development of a robust and sustainable IP system, one that strikes an appropriate balance between the needs and interests of innovators, investors and society. Such a system fosters further innovation, and its diffusion, in a way that benefits society at large.

IP is an indispensable mechanism for translating knowledge into commercial assets. IP rights create a secure environment for investment in innovation and provide a legal framework for trading in intellectual assets. An investment in knowledge creation, and the maintenance of a robust and balanced IP system should feature prominently in any strategy to ensure sustainable economic growth.

There is of course a need to ensure that the IP system safeguards the interests of all IP stakeholders - including developing countries - and that it continues to serve the public good. Indeed, this is a constant challenge for WIPO and its constituents. The international IP system must be able to deliver tangible benefit to all countries, irrespective of where they fall on the spectrum of technological or economic development. The reality for a global organization like WIPO, with its broad membership, is that it must be fully able to serve all of them.

Key tool

It is important to bear in mind that the IP system is a key tool for stimulating and disseminating innovation and creativity, for countering unfair competition and for contributing to market order. The debates and discussions at WIPO are ultimately about how the system can best serve these underlying principles, from which all countries stand to benefit.

Copyright, which is the central mechanism to ensure that we continue to enjoy a vibrant culture, is in desperate need for reform and alignment with the realities of the digital age. It is clear that there is no single magical answer to the development of a successful policy response to the challenges facing copyright in the digital age: It requires a combination of law, infrastructure, cultural change, institutional collaboration and better business models. It is up to our member states to craft responses to the central questions facing the evolution of copyright policy - above all: how to maintain a balance between availability of cultural works at affordable prices while assuring a dignified economic existence for creators and performers. There is, in any case, no other choice - either the copyright system adapts to the natural advantage that has evolved through the advent of digital technologies or it will perish.

Thai contribution

A member of WIPO since 1989, Thailand continues to make an important and positive contribution to the on-going exploration of how to further improve different aspects of the international IP system and to influence the future evolution of the IP landscape. To encourage creativity, the Royal Government of Thailand launched in August 2008 the Creative Thailand Project. This project is aimed at enhancing the economic contribution by creative industries to the national economy. The rich Thai artistic and aesthetic traditions, coupled with astute use of the copyright system, could enhance the value of Thai products and services.

Thailand is also rich in traditional knowledge, biodiversity and folklore and has a direct stake in improving the interface between IP and these cultural and economic resources. Thailand has enacted national legislation on the protection of traditional medical wisdom and, internationally, is an active and constructive participant in WIPO's negotiations on IP and traditional knowledge, folklore and genetic resources. Thailand’s experts have played leading roles in this process.

The current international system for protecting IP was fashioned during the age of industrialization in the West and developed subsequently in line with the perceived needs of technologically advanced societies. However, in recent years, local communities and governments mainly in developing countries have demanded equivalent protection for folklore and traditional knowledge systems. As for all countries, the challenge for Thailand is to balance the preservation of its wealth of traditional cultures and biodiversity, and respect for its local communities, with the quest for innovation and creativity and resulting technological and economic development.

In 2000, WIPO members established the Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore, and in 2009 they agreed to develop an "international legal instrument" (or instruments) that would give traditional knowledge, genetic resources and traditional cultural expressions (folklore) effective protection. I am pleased that these discussions are advancing and I welcome Thailand’s strong interest in contributing to a balanced and concrete outcome in this process.

His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej is a powerful inspiration for all Thais to create and innovate. In January 2009, I had the pleasure and honor to confer on His Majesty the WIPO Global Leader Award in recognition of his extraordinary commitment to promoting intellectual property and his important contribution to society as a prolific inventor. Through his own creative and innovative endeavor, His Majesty, also known as the "Father of Thai Innovation," has not only demonstrated the power of IP to enrich and enhance the quality of daily life and work but has also encouraged people everywhere to create, respect and protect it.

HM's words

The King of Thailand is an acclaimed artist with a portfolio of over 1,000 works, including paintings, photos, musical and literary works. He is also an accomplished inventor holding over 20 patents and 19 trademarks. Many of the inventions have generated concrete and practical benefits for rural communities in Thailand. His Majesty the King is also a strong advocate of intellectual property rights. In one of his speeches, the King said "Intellectual property has existed for a long time. Patents and copyrights are very important intellectual property rights. In 1957, it was said that imitation of foreign items would provide greater benefits than registration of patents, since we could make use of foreign inventions without paying for patents. Such a saying is wrong and considered an insult to Thai people."

Thailand is an invaluable partner for WIPO and has an important role to play in ensuring that the IP system continues to be of relevance in the 21st century as a mechanism to support all countries, in promoting social, economic and cultural development. In today's economically challenging and highly competitive world, a commitment to research and development, to educational excellence and to innovation is a requirement for securing an advantage in the marketplace.

Francis Gurry is director-general of the World Intellectual Property Organisation.

Article from nationmultimedia.com

Getting More From Every Day: Reigniting Your Creative Fire

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 21:56:00 +0000

Posted: 03/23/2012 6:50 am

Michael Stanclift, N.D.Naturopathic Doctor

Article from Huffington Post

Our creativity as humans is inspiring. When we creatively solve problems or express ourselves in creative ways we spark new life, and ignite ideas in others as well. In my experience with patients and in my personal life, creative outlets have played a pivotal role in mental well-being. Studies show when people are engaging in creative activities they can increase the strength of their immune systems, protect their brain cells and increase their self confidence.[1] Research of children has found "Creative problem solving in math and science are directly related to creativity in the arts."[2]

Unfortunately, in many communities there's this absurd myth that goes around and many of us believe it. The myth is: "Creative pursuits are frivolous and unimportant to everyday life (especially at work)."

The myth was told to me by the premedical community in college and unfortunately, I was amongst the many who subscribed. And believing this myth nearly extinguished my imagination. Thankfully, I had the insight to realize this erroneous belief and have since put in the efforts to keep my creativity alive.

In this article I want to do two things: 1) Tell you my story of how I nearly allowed my creative self to succumb to the crushing forces of a scientific education and 2) Talk about the common obstacles to creative pursuits, and their solutions. My hope is that your imagination and creative expression will either find some inspiration to reignite or continue to burn strong.

The Story:

My inseparable childhood friend came from an astonishingly creative family. His dad was a fine art painter and sculptor, his sister a photographer, and everyone in the family had well-developed artistic skills. By the time we were in middle school my friend's drawings and paintings were so realistic, it was difficult to distinguish them from photographs. I fell in love with art too, though I wasn't nearly as skilled as my friend.

Through junior high and high school I took any art class I could get into and found I had an eye for black-and-white photography. After I won a few awards with my photography I was sure I'd never put my camera down. As a creative soul, I expected I'd eventually work in an artistic field. My interests in the sciences had waned, in favor of the arts. If it weren't for love, I'd never have found myself studying science at all. But then I fell in love with a beautiful, brown-eyed girl, Nicole (whom I'm now married to!).

I begged Nicole's physics teacher to let me into her class during the second semester of my senior year of high school. I convinced him I had a passion for learning physics and I'd excel. He let me in, but not into Nicole's section. His teaching style, combined with my promise to do well, led to the the discovery, "Oh wow, I'm good at physics!" From there, I chose to attend a "regular" university instead of art school. I saw this as a way of hedging my bets against starving as an artist. (I was skinny enough as it was.) I went to college undeclared, believing I'd find my passion there, whatever it was. I knew I could change my major if some sudden realization washed over me that I would need a "real" job.

With this newly-acquired taste for physics, I sought out more science classes in college. The sciences filled me with wonder, and rapidly changed my worldview. What were once ordinary trees became amazingly complex symphonies humming with life. By my second year of college I had only picked up my camera a couple of times. Analytical thinking was starting to make photography a chore. I didn't know how to show the wonder I saw in photos, so I just didn't shoot very many. I declared myself a biology major and enrolled in the premedical program. Although I didn't see it, that was when my creativity's health really began to plummet.

My academic advisors told me medical school would leave me with no life outside of it. I was advised to keep my grades competitive and to prepare for endless studying, where I would always be behind. I bought this story, hook and line and sinker. I stuck to their recommendations. I focused on honing my analytical skills, and completely neglected any creative talents. I did so much schoolwork (memorizing and analyzing) that when I graduated, I was only two classes away from getting a second bachelor's degree. Luckily, my creative thinking had survived long enough to guide me to a school that viewed the practice of medicine as an art as well as a science.

While I was packing for my move to Seattle for naturopathic medical school, I nearly forgot about my camera. I decided to take it with me, in the hopes that one day I'd pick it back up.

Med school got real hard, real quick and it wasn't long before I needed a way to relieve the pressure. It was then that I dug out my old camera. Seattle was so picturesque, I thought it a shame if I didn't photograph the beauty I found there. When I went out with my camera, my mind quieted. I wasn't thinking about being behind in studying for anatomy. I forgot that I was even a med student. I was just there, taking pictures.

I discovered a photography school that rented out their darkrooms to the public. I spent entire weekends in the darkroom, developing my film and tirelessly perfecting prints. I had awoken my creative talents from their college-long coma, and they had the promise of returning to life.

In my third year of med school I chose to extend my program to a five-year course instead of four. It was a difficult choice because of the extra time and added expense, but the option allowed me more time to be Michael, an entire person. I knew in order to live the lifestyle I wanted to promote to patients, I would have to carve out time for the things that contributed to my health. The extra year allowed me to make time for my girlfriend (remember Nicole?), my photography, find mentors for my interests in mind-body medicine, occasionally attend yoga classes and take up rock climbing. Though school and clinic still took up a large portion of my time, I made the choice I wished I had made seven years earlier, to put my well-being before my academic/career ambitions.

Recently I broke a crucial piece of my photography equipment, and may not be able to fix it for several months. At first, I was quite disheartened. I had to get over a few hurdles until I then I saw this as an opportunity. I decided it was time I learn to draw. I went looking and discovered an instructional book that spoke to my interests, Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, written by a psychologist and educator. The premise of the book is that anyone can draw realistically. They just need to learn to see and a few basic drawing skills. And my results thus far have astounded me! Who knew I could draw?

And this newly developing skill is again filling me with wonder and creative ideas, where there had been a lull. Maybe there's a creative talent that you've dreamed of pursuing, or something you left years ago that begs to be woken up.

Roadblocks to Creativity:

When talking with patients, there can be a number of reasons why they put off pursuing their creative interests. Here are the seven most common roadblocks I hear (and sometimes use), and their solutions.

I Don't Have a Creative Space: Certainly it's nice if we can dedicate an entire room to creative expression, but this isn't necessary. It's easy to fall into the notion that our physical space should promote or inspire our creativity, but we only need a space that allows us to practice our creative skills. For example, if your creative expression is yoga, you need a space big enough for the postures; if you want to learn to play the drums, you'll need deaf/no neighbors; if it's drawing you're interested in, paper, a pencil and the kitchen table will do. Over time and practice, we may find a truly inspiring place to act creatively, but it is not a requisite.
I Don't Know What I'd Even Be Interested in: Try reconnecting with a creative talent/skill you've left. Often when we return to practicing skills after a long break, we are renewed with the joy and wonder we had when we first discovered them. It could be months, years or decades later. Our perspectives are constantly growing and changing. What caused us to put it down in the past may be irrelevant now, but we'll only discover this if we attempt to pick it back up.
I Don't Have Any Skill/Equipment for What I Am Interested in: If you're trying something new, accept that you are entry-level, and everyone must start here. When our creative expression requires equipment, we often believe we should get high quality (and high priced) stuff, but this usually puts a barrier between us and our art. If equipment costs are necessarily high, look for it used on Craigslist or eBay, or look for ads where people practice your activity. Start with the very basics. With a low investment we can get started, which is the whole point. As time goes on and the need arises, upgrading is possible. At that point, we may be able to pass on our used equipment to a beginner!
I Won't Ever Master/I Don't Have a Practical Use for My Activity: Creative activities are an end in themselves. You are doing it because you're interested and you enjoy them. You might not become famous for your creative expression, but so what? Let go of ulterior motives like recognition, and accept that an intermediate level of skill would be great! And though the skills might not be transferable to other things in your life, you might find creativity emerge in unsuspecting ways. Let your experience, not your outcomes, be the goal. You're much more likely to enjoy your pursuits if your expectations of where it will lead you are forgotten.
I Wouldn't Know Where to Start: If you're a complete novice, find someone who can teach you the basics. Maybe you have a friend or acquaintance who can show you the ropes. If not, search a bookstore, YouTube or your local community for someone to show you where to start and help you with the basic skills.
I Don't Even Know If I'll Like It Once I Start: Of course you don't! And this is all the more reason to buy low cost/used equipment. One way to continue not knowing is by not giving it a shot. Think of it like an experiment: It's okay if you can't prove your hypothesis, it will help you design your next experiment better.
I Don't Have Time: When we love to do something, we somehow find the time to make it a priority. Get out a scheduler/planner and put down all the important activities you do in a week, with the amount of time they take. Be sure to include time for commuting, eating, grooming, etc. Are there any time openings you can see? Can anything you do be done in less time if you were more focused? Can anything you do be done at a different time? What is the realistic minimum time you could spend doing your activity?

Sources:

[1] Patterson M. Good for the Heart, Good for the Soul: The Creative Arts and Brain Health in Later Life. Generations [serial online]. Summer2011 2011;35(2):27-36. Available from: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, Ipswich, MA. Accessed March 19, 2012.

[2] Geist E. Encouraging Creativity in the Face of Administrative Convenience: How Our Schools Discourage Divergent Thinking. Education [serial online]. Fall2009 2009;130(1):141-150. Available from: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, Ipswich, MA. Accessed March 19, 2012.

Article from Huffington Post

Uncovering New Money Making Ideas Online

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 09:12:00 +0000

By TJ Philpott

Article from ezine

Uncovering new money making ideas is a great way to gain a competitive edge for any internet marketer! The field of internet marketing is very crowded which is understandable when you consider it is global in nature! This as a result is the primary reason any and every internet marketer is always on the lookout for new ways to make money! The only 'drawback' in exploring potential opportunities is the time you need to invest which detracts from the effort needed to maintain any ongoing businesses! The solution for this can be found in the amount of attention to detail an entrepreneur pays while maintaining their current business interests! Done properly it is very possible to discover new ways to make money AS you invest your efforts into any current ventures with which you are involved!

Here are 3 ways prosperous opportunities can inadvertently be uncovered by any internet marketer through the normal course of their current business operations!

Discovery By Incidental Research

Researching is an integral, necessary and ongoing task for any internet marketer trying to stay current in their field! Looking for content or simply trying to keep updated within your industry will require your researching skills which by the way, if you don't have any, develop them! Having said that there's no telling what you may uncover that you can turn into another income earning opportunity! Keep you eyes, ears and mind open at all times since new ways to make money can be found almost anywhere!

Increasing-Learning 'Trade' Skills

Invariably new skills will need to be learned which can and will transition into a whole new field or niche other than the one you currently are working! Perhaps it's the way the skill is carried out that you can make modifications on or even discovering new ways to apply it! Skills are skills, some people have them and some don't but they're always in demand or needed to be learned! If you can find different ways to apply old skills or even make them easier to learn, you may have found some new ways to make money!

Expanded Knowledge Base

As your own knowledge base expands so does your confidence to explore other areas you may have previously not even considered! With new knowledge also comes an expansion of your creative thinking capabilities and when you combine both of these immensely important assets you are also increasing your competitive edge online! No two minds think alike along the lines of creativity and when you combine that with additional knowledge you always have the potential for developing new ways to make money on the internet!

Discovering new money making ideas is like digging up buried treasure since this offers a competitive edge to any internet marketer willing to pursue new income avenues! Being the field of online marketing is such a crowded one, any time you can find new ways to make money should serve to help distance you from the more intense competition! In this way not only will your efforts be less as due to the competitive edge you now have by pioneering a new opportunity' but your income should grow accordingly as well! The 3 ways of uncovering such opportunities, as discussed above, can occur in the normal course of any current business operations provided your creative mind is active, open and receptive! Remember all you need is simply a 'spark' that you can fan into an all out 'blaze' when looking for new ways to make money online!

TJ Philpott is an author and Internet entrepreneur based out of North Carolina.

To learn more about developing money making ideas online and to also receive a free instructional manual that teaches valuable niche research techniques for your online marketing needs simply visit: http://blogbrawn.com/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=TJ_Philpott

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6756105

Article from ezine

Finance in the creative sector

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 22:43:00 +0000

Money for fun

Shunned by investors, creative firms are looking forward to a new tax break

Mar 17th 2012 | from the print edition
Article from The Economist

You spin me right round, baby, right round

BRITAIN’S politicians lament its loss of industrial prowess and cringe at its gift for banking. One kind of enterprise that cheers them is the creative sector, which has grown twice as fast as the rest of the economy over the past decade. Fashion, entertainment, advertising and digital technology are all strengths. Britain was well represented at this year’s South by Southwest, a music and film festival in Texas—where, on March 11th, it was announced that Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia, would join the government as an adviser. George Osborne, the chancellor of the exchequer and a culture vulture, has taken an interest in the sector since his days in opposition.

The creative industries are less popular with investors. Banks and venture capitalists tend to regard the sector as riskier—and less motivated by profit—than more humdrum parts of the economy. “The mindset of a creative entrepreneur and your average investor are poles apart,” says Andy Heath of Beggars Group, an independent record label. A report for the government by Stuart Fraser of Warwick Business School found that creative firms are likelier than other businesses to be discouraged from even applying for finance.

Something of a fightback against the doubting money-men has begun. The sector is increasingly quick to challenge assumptions about its riskiness. Figures unearthed for the Demos think-tank last year by Helen Burrows, a former adviser to Ed Vaizey, the culture minister, showed that the survival rate for creative start-ups is slightly higher than for other young businesses. Survival is not the same as success, of course. But the numbers suggest that creative entrepreneurs are hard-headed about cutting costs during tough times.

The government is trying to help. On April 6th the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) will come into effect. This allows an investor to put up to £100,000 ($157,000) into a small business and claim 50% tax relief. Although it is open to almost all firms, the policy was designed for those which find it hard to raise external finance because investors see them as risky. The music and film sectors are especially excited. But the government expects that technology, including the cluster of internet firms around the Old Street roundabout in London (pictured) will be the main winner. ASCEND, a new seed investment fund specialising in creative businesses, will launch on the same day.

The Treasury usually counsels against fiddly, market-distorting schemes. Civil servants like to say that their ideal budget speech would last ten minutes. Some suspect that Mr Osborne’s announcement in November had a chilling effect on seed investment in the first quarter of this year, as financiers sat on cash until April. But even Nigel Lawson, the chancellor most taken with the Treasury’s doctrine of simplicity, introduced a “business expansion scheme” in 1983 which SEIS resembles. And the hunger for growth means Mr Osborne has to be seen to be doing something beyond macro-economic strategy.

It may be that underlying trends will alleviate the problem. Previously safe investments such as equities and sovereign debt are looking risky. Some investors confess that there is social cachet in being able to tell people that they are involved in fun sectors such as music. And technology has driven down entrance costs, and thus financing needs, in much of the creative sector. If the SEIS only amounts to a nudge, that may be all that is required.

Article from The economist

How to Invest in Water

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 09:14:00 +0000

By: InvestorGuide Staff, dated March 14th, 2012

Article from investorguide.com

Since water is not an actively traded commodity with a listed futures market, such as oil or gold, investors have fewer options available for how to invest in water. As a result,they need to be more creative when discerning how to do so profitably.

Perhaps the most important way of investing in water in the past, and a strategy which is still used by some water investment funds today, was to purchase water rights from a landowner or to buy real estate that came with such water rights.

When investing in water rights or in land with established water rights, the most desirable form of such waterrights are appropriative water rights since they permit the holder to remove water from the property. The less desirable type of water rights is riparian water rights that permit the holder to use water flowing over or collecting on the property, but only on the property itself.

Furthermore, testing the water to assure its suitability for household and/or industrial use would be essential, especially since some water is radioactive or tests high in undesirable elements like mercury, for example. Such water would not be considered healthy to drink without filtration, even if it was sterilized to neutralize bacteria like fecal coliform, which is considered an indicator of the presence of even less desirable bacteria.

Another type of highly desirable water property to invest in would be land with hot springs or mineral springs. Hot springs can be used as a foundation to develop a resort nearby, while potable mineral water can be bottled on site or sold to other mineral water bottlers.

For those interested in how to invest in water without getting their feet wet or wading through the hundreds of stocks issued by companies that derive a substantial portion of their revenue from water, the possibility now exists of purchasing shares in a mutual fund that specializes in holding a diversified water portfolio. Such funds are currently available to investors in both the United States and abroad.

Article from investorguide.com

The Crawl, Walk, Run of Digital Creative

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 21:15:00 +0000

Sarah Lockwood | March 12, 2012
Article from clickz.com

There is no doubt that the past several years have seen significant changes and advancements in online advertising. The creative ad unit, however, has fallen behind, still looking a lot like it did back in 1994 when the first banner for AT&T's "You Will" campaign appeared on HotWired (Figure 1).

Figure 1 - AT&T banner that appeared on HotWire in 1994

In the display media landscape, less than 5 percent of companies specialize in creative optimization, according to LUMA Partners LLC. Yet creative is often the area where the most potential for improvement exists, and where a relatively small investment can yield enormous returns.

Why is the disregard of creative optimization this pervasive? I believe that digital marketers today have become so comfortable in the safe cocoon of Excel spreadsheets that they have largely or completely left what they perceive to be the scary, intuitive creative to others. Both search and display marketers consider the creative a deliverable (a banner to traffic or a URL to link to), not an element with which they should be involved.

We as digital marketers should reconsider this orientation to creative and concern ourselves with the entire user experience. This means participating in creative conversations and seeking ad units and landing pages that push the audience through the consideration cycle. We should approach creative optimization with a test-and-learn attitude, create creative test plans for each of our campaigns, and follow through on them with the same diligence that we apply to other optimization efforts. In the end, we come back to our comfort zone: creative does become objectively measured, and we can drive better and better click-through and conversion for ourselves and our clients.

Creative in Search

The user experience for search begins with the ad copy and even the URL (which we'll call the first creative) and follows through to the search landing page (the second creative). In this case, the first creative must convince users that the landing page will speak directly to their expressed need or search terms. The search landing page has a lot of work to do (more than the display landing page in that it has two audiences - the search engine and the site visitor). It must contain appropriate keywords and support a high quality score, and must provide relevant content based on the search event while driving conversion.

When you are managing search campaigns, you should consider creating specific search landing pages for your most critical ad groups, and perhaps most of your ad groups. If you are guilty of driving a great deal of search traffic to your home page, I'd encourage you to create a test plan and find out if you can wring more conversion from your campaigns by creating specific, conversion-oriented landing pages. It should also be noted that in addition to more conversion, this effort can result in greater spend efficiency in your campaign, by improving quality score.

Creative in Display

The user experience for display begins with the display ad unit (the first creative) and follows through to the display landing page (the second creative). The role of the display creative is to set an expectation with the user and draw the click; the role of the display landing page is to expound on the value propositions and drive the conversion event.

When you are planning campaigns, there is a huge opportunity to build a plan for creative testing and optimization. Simple A/B tests for messaging, calls to action, and imagery are things that we know we should do, but they often fall to the wayside in everyday practice. Setting the expectation, internally or with the client, that there will be multiple display ad creative and landing page iterations rightly demonstrates a full view of optimization.

Where to Start

Step 1: Learn to crawl. It is important to understand that display creative must follow some basic rules; rules that have changed very little since that first banner. You can't go wrong by following the IAB's guidelines for creative development. If you don't conform to these standards, publishers may reject your ads, causing campaign delays or wasted media dollars.

Next, understand the role the first creative has with the second. Studies have shown that if individuals click an ad and do not feel that they have arrived on the site they were expecting, the conversion rate will be much lower. Even worse, many of these clickers will simply abandon your site. Make sure there is consistency in both the message and appearance.

Step 2: Begin to walk. If the size of your campaigns allows the budget, look beyond blanket messaging and understand that each placement on your media plan not only looks different but also speaks to an audience that has a unique intent from the other placements. Take the time to study your placements and develop a first creative that is appropriate for the environment.

If it is a named site buy, take the opportunity to ensure that the first creative will stand out. If it is a behavioral buy where the placements can vary, then ensure the message is offering an appropriate behavior for that audience.

Step 3: Run with it. The term "dynamic creative" is thrown around a lot but often misunderstood. The goal is to present a message that is most relevant to the individual seeing it. Dynamic creative is really multivariate testing. By combining elements of the creative together on an impression-by-impression basis, machine learning allows the best combination of the elements to be served in the ad depending on the individual viewing it. Click-through rates for dynamic creative are significantly higher (Tumri has case studies showing dynamic creative achieving 900 percent increases in click-through rates over static ads). At the same time, costs per action can be significantly decreased.

A number of companies (Tumri, PointRoll, Teracent, and others) provide the infrastructure to do this across a number of buys, and will facilitate very granular optimization using your own creative templates. These companies generally charge on a cost-per-thousand basis. Some are taking it further, coupling search retargeting data with dynamic creative to actually populate the ad unit with the exact search term that the visitor typed into Google. Chango provides such a service, and it includes dynamic creative in its fees.

The Benefits Will Be Significant

Knowing what to test and change can be hard at first, but there are some great resources to help you train your thinking, my favorite being whichtestwon.com. The site shows real A/B tests and asks you to judge the performance (see Figure 3).

Figure 3. Tests from whichtestwon.com

Conclusion

Chances are that you've poured hours and hours of optimization effort into the media side of your buy. Each bit of effort in the same area will have less and less impact. Only by investing effort in creative optimization will you achieve the highest performance from your campaign. Savvy digital marketers will include creative test planning and implementation in all search and display campaigns, as it is clear that thoughtful creative optimization can make top-line differences exceeding anything secondary optimization efforts focused on the media buy can achieve.

Answers:

A. The image of the older man drove 28 percent more form submissions.

B. "Go to Payment Options" drove 87.5 percent more click-throughs.

Attend SES New York March 19-23 to learn the latest in social media marketing, integrated marketing, SEO, PPC, and more.

Article from clickz.com

Young Entrepreneur Uses Creativity to Raise Venture Capital

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Sun, 11 Mar 2012 10:03:00 +0000

Article from PRWEB

Jonathan Gregory, a 23-year old entrepreneur and Internet marketing guru, recently launched a marketing campaign that will attempt to raise $10,000 in only 60 days using an unusual approach to raising capital. The creative strategy for the campaign focuses on exchanging “Internet real estate” with businesses and individuals that make donations towards accomplishing the goal of $10,000 via Kickstarter, the world’s largest funding platform for creative projects.

Greater Detroit, MI (PRWEB) March 10, 2012

Gregory has given himself only 60 days to raise $10,000 in voluntary donations through Kickstarter, using only Internet marketing techniques and careful Google AdWords campaign management to spread the news of the campaign and help attract new donations. When asked why he decided to follow through with such an unconventional campaign, Gregory simply stated, “I wanted to try something different. I’m always seeking new challenges for both myself and my agency.”

Gregory started the innovative fundraising campaign on March 7, 2012 and pledged to devote the following months to publicizing and achieving the goal of raising $10,000 in voluntary donations in only 60 days. “The concept we’re applying is simple,” Gregory states, “a donation buys a portion of our website, The Visual Media Directory Project, and allows you to post a business logo, photo or message that links back to a desired website. Businesses benefit from the sheer amount of impressions and clicks their image will receive over the lifespan of the project. The high return on investment typically justifies the small donation expense.“ When asked to elaborate on the duration of the project, Gregory mentioned that there was no foreseeable conclusion to the hosting of the website itself and that he and his Internet advertising agency, The Third Agency, plan on keeping the website online for a minimum of 50 years, with hopes of accumulating hundreds of thousands of impressions for the businesses and individuals that made significant donations to the fundraising project.

“Although the deadline for achieving the goal is set at the end of 60 days, we will continue to market and promote the website for months, if not years, after the project deadline has passed,” Gregory continued, “the primary goal of the project is to add significant value to the companies and individuals that take time out of their days to make generous donations, actively participate in online communities and invest in their future.

This project will generate quite a bit of attention over the course of a few years. Businesses considering donating to the project will need to ‘have a vision’ of the long-term benefits this project will provide.

Companies that donate can also expect to receive additional future benefits in the form of Internet marketing discounts and exclusive offers on AdWords management and consulting services through The Third Agency. It’s win-win from a business perspective, especially if a company has a large marketing budget. The fundraising project merely acts as a way for our agency to find and give back to the people and businesses that are involved in online communities. We're really trying to give the smaller businesses out there a shot at some big exposure.”

Currently, portions of the Visual Media Directory Project (http://www.vmdp.org) are being sold on Kickstarter for between $100 and $150, depending on the size of the portion of the site that is being purchased. When compared to traditional advertising and marketing costs, the long-term results that a business can expect to see from being involved with a creative project like this are phenomenal and achieved at a fraction of the typical cost of Internet marketing. Not only do the businesses benefit from the additional traffic the website will generate, they also can opt to receive a link to their website from a page that has a high probability of becoming an authoritative site in the future, due to its close relationship with The Third Agency, which can lead to improved online visibility and increased search engine rankings for the websites owned by those who donated to the project. More information on the project and how to give a donation can be found on the official Kickstarter page for the project located here: The Visual Media Directory Project - Kickstarter

Jonathan Gregory is the owner and President of The Third Agency, an international, award-winning Internet marketing agency that specializes in professional Google AdWords campaign management, advertising campaign development and AdWords consulting services, (thethirdagency.com).

The Third Agency

248-247-2402

http://www.thethirdagency.com

Article from PRWEB

Invest In Creativity

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 01:16:00 +0000

Mon, 03/05/2012 - 9:29am Alan Nicol, Executive Member, AlanNicolSolutions

Article from The manufacturing.net

Creativity may be one of the greatest human assets our businesses possess. What have you and your business done to increase your creativity reserve? Here are some thoughts for bolstering creativity at personal, business, and society levels.

I confess that imagination and creativity are human traits that I value to a very great degree. Perhaps I value them so greatly because I perceive that invention, innovation, problem-solving, man-made beauty, progress, and generally making things better all come from our ability to envision something new and better. Maybe I perceive these things because I value creativity so much. Either way, I believe that our ability to invent and solve problems may be one of the greatest human assets to a business.

Considering such a suggestion, what do you do to increase your creative prowess for yourself and for your business? What do you and your business do to improve its overall creative capacity? Have you and your business done anything to ensure that your potential for more creativity in the future is ensured?

Think about it for just a moment. Remove yourself from your own paradigm and consider the businesses or products that you most admire or wish to chase. Is not an element of success for those aspiration examples rooted in some form of creative, inventive, or innovative source?

I’ve been thinking about this a great deal lately. Let me share some thoughts about how to improve creativity at a personal level, for our businesses, and how and why we should invest in our cultural sources.

We don’t need to be artists or sculptors, or have a two-page long list of patents to our names to be creative. Creativity is simply our ability to visualize something that doesn’t yet exist in our own context. When we can take what we visualize and produce it, we have an incredible power. When we can produce a solution that benefits others and ourselves, we have a power to change things for the better.

Whether you consider yourself creative or not, there is no harm in exercising your imagination and creative skills. Even if you perceive that you are highly creative, there is no harm in polishing your skills. A bottom line truth is that whether your creativity is a talent or a hard-earned proficiency, or a limited lucky inspiration, our ability to draw on it, on demand, to solve a problem or invent something great is a skill.

Hone you skills so you can better draw on your creativity when you want or need it. Games and challenges are our most readily available or producible creativity aids. Anything that gives you a challenge and requires your concentration, observation, and visualizations skills to solve it, is a good exercise. Artistic hobbies are also effective. If you enjoy drawing, woodworking, model building, sculpting, or music, set your ego and embarrassment aside and make a habit of free-forming your own art instead of replicating others.

Thought games with your peers or your family are other great ways to stay sharp. Pick a topic of mutual interest and discuss how you might solve a related problem. Ask you children what they would do or where they would go if they had a rocket that could take them anywhere they would like to go. Then it’s your turn. Ask your friends how you might develop a better car or solve a political or economic conundrum.

If you engage in the thought games, keep them games. Don’t turn them into arguments. If a debate over beliefs crops up, simply declare that the group shall assume the belief to be true, for the sake of the game, and proceed to solve the problem. It doesn’t matter if you do. The point is to exercise your ability to observe, learn, collate information, and generate ideas.

If you don’t already enjoy a healthy habit of these kinds of challenges you might be surprised just how effective you can become after a few weeks of practice. With any luck you will become addicted and the practice will, therefore, be automatic.

Now, consider the power at your disposal inside your business if everyone on your team is so practiced. Also, consider the potential of tapping those well honed skills for most or all of your challenges rather than trying to solve them yourself or expecting your lonely “expert” on the subject to solve it, whatever it is.

Use the same thought games, board games, strategy games, brainteasers process to improve the creativity skills of your business team. Don’t force it, but enable and encourage it. Engage your peers and employees in the games and thought exercises. Better yet, make a habit of sharing real business challenges with your whole team. Whether they are real or invented, challenge your team to solve them.

There can be great advantage to challenging your team with real or realistic problems. It compels them to understand the challenge and, therefore, the business. This expands their big-picture perspective and gets them better enabled to help on more challenges. It also keeps them thinking about such challenges and how their own work might relate.

If you have your team members inventing solutions to customer challenges, you might very well end up with innovations or inventions that can be turned into profits. The more they practice, the more likely this might happen.

Sometimes, our businesses need an infusion of expertise or insight or inspiration that must come from outside of our own paradigms or understanding. Don’t balk at the idea of engaging outside innovation or product development teams to add to your creative processes.

Perhaps the most important thing you can do to invest in your business’s creativity pool is to hire carefully. When you bring on new personnel, do you merely run through the checklist of experience and credentials and check for a pulse? I hope not. Build lines of questions for your interviews to gage a candidate’s creativity and problem-solving capabilities.

As much as I ran on about ways to inspire creative practice in the workplace, some people are simply more skilled or talented at creative problem solving. It can be a difficult skill to teach any given individual. Many really creative people are that way from a very early age and have developed their skills over a lifetime.

It is better to hire a candidate that is short a little experience or minus a software program credential, but has exceptional creative problem-solving skills. In the grand scheme, it is much easier to fill in a credential or mentor in a little experience, than it is to suddenly develop creative genius.

Also, I find that those individuals that are highly creative are, coincidentally, fast learners. I believe that this is because problem solving is fundamentally a learning process. I invite you to test that hypothesis against your own observations and experiences. If it’s true, that creative new hire will pick up any missing skills easily.

With that thought, I’d like to step beyond our businesses for a few words and thoughts. If we accept that creativity and problem-solving are indeed very valuable human assets to our businesses, and that hiring that creativity is one of our most powerful mechanisms, we must give some consideration to where that creativity comes from so we can get our hands on it.

Creativity is a collaborative effort between several elements of our mind and our psyche (at the least it is a team effort between our conscious and subconscious, logic and inspiration). This is why it is not easily developed with a single class or exercise. It takes time and effort to develop that teamwork within our minds. It starts, for most of us, as part of our childhood development.

I urge you to give some thought to encouraging, supporting, or otherwise facilitating the continuation of creativity-intensive programs in our schools. Art, music, and shop programs are often the first to get downsized or cut from public school programs. Yet, these programs challenge our creativity as much if not more than the “standard” academics. At least they challenge them in different ways.

I encourage you and your business leaders to consider investing in your business’ future creativity pool, and our culture’s future by investing in art, music, science, and shop programs in the school districts in your local area. As individual business employees, leaders, or owners, we may not have much direct influence over our government investment in such programs, but we can make an impact at a local level.

If a meaningful tax write-off is not in the cards for your business, consider sponsoring a chess club, science club, or brainteaser club at your local elementary school. Send one of your team, on a rotating duty, to the school once a week to teach, mentor, or challenge the students. It’s highly affordable, and incredibly rewarding. It also sends a message and makes a difference. Many schools would be very accommodating if you offered.

Creativity is an asset. The skill to produce real solutions from creative ideas is power. Invest in your own and your business’s creative capabilities and see if it doesn’t improve your overall performance. If you agree with what I have posited in this post, then I encourage you to invest in the creative future of our community by investing in our school programs. It’s something worthwhile to consider.

Stay wise, friends.

If you like what you just read, find more of Alan’s thoughts at www.bizwizwithin.com.

Article from The manufacturing.net

Double Your Money in a 2 Minute Investment

ridodirected@gmail.com (RIDO) — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 02:53:00 +0000

By Terry Hart

Article from Ezine

Wealth creation is quite a simple thing. After all, what is more simple than the concept of finding ways to double our money. It is perplexing how complicated this idea has become as millions of pages have been written about wealth creation and the topic of generating returns, when after all is said and done, there is only one question, the answer of which shall make you rich.

Finding ways to double your money is the goal of building wealth. Starting at $100 dollars you would have over $1 million dollars after 14 such doubling events, now that's compounding at work. An investment need not take 10 years to mature and nor do you need to wait until you start seeing gray hairs before you can sell that investment off for a profit.

Taking profits more often can actually be good for your financial statement. Keeping money moving and circulating has an empowering affect. When you park your entire capital account on a few blue chip shares and buckle in for a good 20 year wait, what happens is not very much except waiting.

Having the power to always be re-investing and taking profits in all manner of alternative and creative investment ideas is the "well spring" of determined wealth production. A 2 minute investment is just as good as a 10 year investment as long as there is a return. Also there is a lot to be said for active "hands on" investing. Too many investors see it as a passive activity, but the true Topguns see their investing as a daily business that requires tending to on a regular basis.

If you need money now, like I mean in the next hour, try what I did. I am making more money now than in my old business and you can too, read about Martin Thomas in the link below. When I joined I was skeptical for just ten seconds before I realized what this was. I was smiling from ear to ear and you will too.

Imagine doubling your money every week with no or little risk! To discover a verified list of Million Dollar Corporations offering you their products at 75% commission to you. Click the link below to learn HOW you will begin compounding your capital towards your first Million Dollars at the easy corporate money program.

http://www.easycorporatemoney.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Terry_Hart

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/1555658

Article from Ezine