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POLITICIANS WHO FEAR PROPOSING TAX BREAKS FOR R&D INVESTORS should read this report. The tiny sliver (really) of lost taxes can create a mountain of jobs and even more wealth. Short-term stasis and fear of taking a bold step (not so bold because the US, UK, France, Israel and others have already done this) is short-sighted and irresponsible. It is time that the public, energized with the concept of entrepreneuring, pressure these laggards to join the real world, or be remembered as dinosaurs. http://commercialbiotechnology.com/article/view/145 View in LinkedIn

BIG PHARMA CONTINUES TO TRY AND REINVENT ITSELF, with rare diseases, big data, and new ways of doing R&D, in order to avoid extinction. Pain is a spur of creativity, and fear of death an even greater goad. I think we will see some radical solutions emerge, since most of the Hymn Book ones have been tried and failed. http://lnkd.in/F6-rh4 View in LinkedIn

WHACKY SPANISH FIESTAS: the Fiesta of The Dead Sardine is an example of wild and wonderful. In February, before Lent, this fiesta takes on super-theatrical proportions as large processions of mourners with the coffin of the Dead Sardine circuit the streets of towns, with lamentations, and end up with a funeral. First commemorated by a Goya painting, this annual ritual has been preserved as part of Spain's passion for silliness, dressing up, having a thoroughly good time, and generally seeking any excuse to connect and entertain. There is a rich history of Spanish fiestas that lives on today. View in LinkedIn

"HYPOTHETICALLY SPEAKING" is a useful way to ask legal advice about a delicate personal or corporate issue, because it is the modern analogue of "I have a friend who..." strategy. It does not put the lawyer in any compromised position in giving an answer, and is the equivalent of an academic case study. Use this for those sensitive issues. View in LinkedIn

EASTER IN SPAIN IS BIG: on Maunday Thursday, the small Catalan town of Verges held a nighttime spectacular (La Processó de Verges) with processions through town and an ancient play about Christ and Death that had been held every year since the Black Death (1358) decimated the town (and 25 million others). The thousands gathered was somber. Elsewhere across Spain Easter lively celebrations go until the very earlyhours. It is one of the remarkable charms of this country that it can respect an event in the 14th Century and participate at the cutting edge of technology at the same time. View in LinkedIn

ENTREPRENEURS MUST BE ADEPT AT NETWORKING. Shrinking violets need not apply. That said, most people find it understandably tough. This article has some helpful hints. Join Toastmasters if you want a fuller introduction to not being shy. I met a VC recently who went to a standup comic bootcamp to break his phobia. Admittedly, that is a choice that is pretty drastic, but I was informed that it worked a charm, http://lnkd.in/viCjjk View in LinkedIn

THE GENTLE ART OF PERSUASION is a term of art, or a fuddy-duddy old-fashioned way of saying the Art of Pitching. Personally, the sports metaphor grates, and there is a nasty front-of-the-tongue rancid taste of the used car salesman. The ancient Greeks found oration a noble art, full of strategems and lucid use of the language. For them, it was a high art. If you prefer, as I do, to think of persuasion as different from coercion or some type of trickery, you may want to use an older term to describe the life of an entrepreneur. http://lnkd.in/qddjb9 View in LinkedIn

AN EXECUTIVE MBA PROGRAM CAN BE LIFE-CHANGING for busy executives who do not have the time to go back to school. It will challenge you to problem solve by case studies, under pressure in groups, and to think with business logic. Your mind will not be the same after this experience if you have gifted teachers. http://lnkd.in/uUF9RE View in LinkedIn

CAN THIS MAKE GUMBOOTS FOR FROGS? My old chemistry teacher used to pose this nonsense question to jolt young minds. The world's smallest (implantable) chemical detection device that transmits data to a mobile device in real time. Remarkable. What other applications could this brilliant technology have? Acute, real-time chemistry analysis. Of course angina. What about biological and chemical hazards in bioterrorism alerts? Chemical factory leaks? There must be a thousand clever applications. http://lnkd.in/Paxj9a View in LinkedIn

THE WALKABOUT LEADER VS THE BUNKERED LEADER: the leader that makes time in his or her busy life to walk the corridors, have informal chats without an agenda, enquire about the family, will develop trust and really know what is going on. This leader is accessible to all. The shy, paranoid, unsocial, hierarchical, or the disinterested leader will keep the Corner Office door closed, and be quietly distrusted and shunned by his or her staff. It is always worth the time to relate, unless you are in the wrong job. View in LinkedIn