1."Whatever you do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius and power and magic in it." - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

2. "There are two mistakes one can make along the road to truth -- not going all the way, and not starting." - Buddha

3. "Be willing to be a beginner every single morning." - Meister Eckhart

4. "All great ideas and all great thoughts have a ridiculous beginning." - Albert Camus

5. "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." - Lao Tzu

Building on the foundation of the well-known BRIC countries -- Brazil, Russia, India and China -- a new set of up-and-coming emerging markets is gaining attention. The so-called "CIVETS" countries -- Colombia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Egypt, Turkey and South Africa -- are now touted as hot markets because they have diverse economies, fast-growing populations, relatively stable political environments and the potential to produce outsized returns in the future.

Far-flung geographically and shaped by vastly different cultural, religious and political structures, the CIVETS show the potential to develop rapidly and reward those willing to take on emerging market risk beyond the more-established BRIC countries, experts say.

I’m back at the blogging desk. I took a break over Christmas to reflect on my previous year’s sum of mind dump in the blogosphere and to try to figure out if I had any impact at all on anyone who may have read one of my musings on business.

It’s not that I think my posts lacked in detail and significant information, just that the responses were limited and the number of people signing onto the blog was less than astronomical. Most importantly, I didn’t get ranked by eCairn in the top 150 Most Influential Bloggers. Geez.

Three Technologies That Changed Our Brains

Worthington, Minn. — Minnesota is lagging behind other states when it comes to creating new high-technology jobs, according to a new report out this week.

The Science and Technology Authority, created by the Legislature last year, issued the report this week. The group also notes that Minnesota actually lost high-tech jobs in 2009, the most recent data available.

Jobs in science and technology are among the best paid in the work force, averaging more than $70,000 a year. But it's a section of the economy where Minnesota lags other parts of the country.

(Honolulu, Hawaii & New York, New York, January 19, 2011) – The Intelligent Community Forum named its 2011 Top Seven Intelligent Communities of the Year today at a luncheon ceremony at the Pacific Telecommunications Council’s annual conference (PTC’11) in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA (13:30 HAST, 18:30 EST, 23:30 GMT). The ICF’s Top Seven are communities that provide a model of economic and social development in the 21st Century using information and communications technology to power growth, address social challenges and preserve and promote culture. The Top Seven announcement is the second stage of ICF’s annual Intelligent Community of the Year awards cycle.

John Roach writes:Nearly 70 percent of Americans aged 16 to 25 view themselves as creative, but only about a third think they're inventive, according a new survey on perceptions about invention and innovation.

"They are checking off all the right boxes. They like science, they like math, they like solving problems for others, they think they are creative," Josh Schuler, the executive director of the Lemelson-MIT Program, told me today. "But they don't, for some reason, take that leap from creative to inventive."

The finding points to a disconnect that threatens to hobble efforts to nurture a new generation of innovators who can help keep American society prosperous and strong.

Good news from the folks at the Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program: We’re already doing something right to create jobs in the region!

Referring here to the program’s new report entitled “Job Creation on a Budget: How Regional Industry Clusters Can Add Jobs, Bolster Entrepreneurship and Spark Innovation.”

The report, released today, says that the best way to create more jobs in any state is to grow them at home rather than trying to steal them from somewhere else. In fact, roughly 95 percent of all job gains each year in an average state comes from the expansion of existing businesses or the creation of new companies, it says.

A proposal is an essential marketing document that helps cultivate an initial professional relationship between an organization and a donor over a project to be implemented. The proposal outlines the plan of the implementing organization about the project, giving extensive information about the intention, for implementing it, the ways to manage it and the results to be delivered from it.

Fred Wilson is no longer the venture-capital blogging king.

The Union Square Ventures partner, whose firm is an investor in many high-profile web companies including Twitter Inc., is known more to some in the start-up community for the valuable insight he shares on his blog than for the deals he actually makes. For the past couple of years, his site, “A VC,” has consistently drawn the most eyeballs among the dozens of blogs manned by venture capitalists.

But data from web analytics firm Compete shows that Wilson’s blog now ranks second in average monthly uniques. The top spot belongs to Paul Graham, who runs seed-capital firm Y Combinator.

Are you finding it difficult to raise money to grow your company? A new online investment service called MicroVentures might be the answer to your credit crunch troubles.

Austin-based MicroVentures matches companies seeking capital with investors looking to invest anywhere from $250 to $5,000 or more. The online investment service gives companies access to investors across the country and to accredited investors who don’t take the large equity stakes venture capitalists typically demand.

If you were in any doubt that technology is now a fundamental part of kids’ lives, these statistics prove it: 69 percent of children aged 2-5 can use a computer mouse, but only 11 percent can tie their own shoelaces. More young children know how to play a computer game (58 percent) than swim (20 percent) or ride a bike (52 percent). There is no gender divide. Boys and girls under the age of 5 were equally adept at using technology.

These are the results of a study commissioned by Internet security company AVG on how children aged 2-5 interact with technology. 2,200 mothers with Internet access in the USA, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Japan, Australia and New Zealand were polled.

Yesterday we posted on micromanaging bosses, a top office pet peeve, and advised those bothered by their boss’s excessive interest in every detail of their work to keep calm and avoid getting emotional. This may be sound advice for this and many other aggravating office situations, but it needs a little elaboration — exactly how do you keep your annoyance from flaring up and getting the best of your intention to act rationally?

When you feel yourself edging closer to losing your cool at the office, Gretchen Rubin, blogger and author of The Happiness Project, suggests you take a moment of self-reflection. But rather than just provide a platitude, she adds six specific questions you can ask yourself to short circuit a temper tantrum.

The EPA and the SBA have announced a collaborative effort known as the Water Technology Innovation Cluster (WTIC), designed to develop and commercialize technologies to solve environmental issues, encourage sustainability, and create jobs.

WTIC will begin efforts in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana, focusing on clean water solutions.

CHICAGO, Jan. 19, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today several leading industry groups announced the creation of the Illinois Technology Alliance (ILTA), a new coalition focused on ensuring innovation and economic growth in Illinois by leveraging existing government affairs efforts. The collaborative effort will work to advance policy initiatives in the 97th General Assembly and beyond that support job creation and economic strength for critical industry sectors, including high tech manufacturing, information technology, biotech, life sciences and venture capital.

Since the economic recession began in 2007, major budget changes have taken place at the state and national level. In many cases this resulted in increased taxes in many states, damaging to success of small businesses.

The Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council recently release its Small Business Survival Index for 2010. The index ranks the climate for small businesses in the 50 states (and D.C.) based on public policy factors that include 38 major government-related, or imposed costs.

We have compiled a list of 100 amazing “degreeless” entrepreneurs who have risen to the top.

Some high-profile entrepreneurs you will recognize immediately, while others you may be discovering for the first time. Many of them didn’t complete elementary school, and still more are considered high school dropouts.

Their backgrounds and industries run the gamut. However, they all have at least two things in common: incredible success and no college degree.

A lot of factors come into buying a home, but sometimes the decision is obvious.

Zillow has identified a set of cities where all indicators point to stagnant or declining prices. Even as home prices drop around the country, these cities have a particularly bad outlook.

Of course we're talking about housing as an financial, not a personal decision. As with all investments, you're welcome to take a contrarian risk.

If I could write a letter to my nine-year-old self, what would it say? Maybe I would have skipped the year in private art school ($30,000 before interest) and opted for a year apprenticeship in Venice (which in theory would have made me money).

More importantly, where would I be? I am 27 and the executive director of a successful non-profit environmental consulting firm. After 5 years of blood, sweat, tears we have a functional board, and have worked with other non-profits throughout Oregon conducting watershed assessments and endangered species habitat restoration planning.

When I asked for recommendations a couple of weeks ago for sites to feature in our "Never Mind the Valley" series, I was overwhelmed with the response. It's quite encouraging, in light of all the reports of global recessions, slumps, and downturns, to hear from so many people saying that their community is a thriving site for entrepreneurship. You can still send me your recommendations, and I'll be working my way through them in the coming weeks and months.

But we'll kick things off with Nashville.