The holiday season is upon us. It may be a slower time in your business, creating bandwidth to think outside the day-to-day. Take advantage of it. It may be one of your busiest times, requiring you to prioritize the last few weeks of the year very carefully. No matter which bucket you fall into, you should dedicate a few minutes on a regular basis to growing knowledge. Knowing is half the battle. Enjoy!

THE LATEST

Trends in Venture Capital, Angel Investments and Crowd Funding. Kauffman Foundation. A concise yet holistic view of entrepreneurial funding across the country. The stats are eye opening and incredibly useful.

Women Entrepreneurs Wish Their Younger Selves Had Been More Fearless. SheKnows. Do what you love, stop worrying, and find the confidence sooner. Straight talk and sound advice – good role model perspectives.

The One Thing That Motivates Employees More Than Money. Fortune. It’s all about recognition not reward. Financial incentives are easy and never enough. Complimenting them with the hard work to truly empower your team is where the magic is. I call it creating a company of owners.

4 Ways Trump’s Presidency Will Affect US Entrepreneurs. Minutehack. The list of unknowns is almost limitless as we enter a new presidential era, and this blog offers the beginnings of some quality conversation.

Sallie Krawcheck: Letter to my Daughter, Post Trump. Fortune. Sallie delivers reasons to be hopeful, and more importantly, tactics for advancing the progress of the rising generation of women. It’s time to get to work.

Family Leave Invests in Our Employees. Deloitte via LinkedIn. Cathy Engelbert, CEO of Deloitte, opens a much needed discussion of family leave policies as smart business.

Women Entrepreneurs Are Key to Accelerating Growth. Kauffman Foundation. Easy and valuable read: Why women make great entrepreneurs, plus ways for accelerating participation. Useful for anyone even remotely related to entrepreneurship.

Sexual Equality: The Call for MBA “Manbassadors.” The Economist. Thanks to the genius of the Forte′ Foundation, MBA programs are implementing efforts to bring parity by engaging women and men. Far greater success can be achieved when we engage 100% of the population instead of only 50%.

FROM MY LIBRARY

From Hobby to Entrepreneurial Endeavor. Tips from the Community Blog. If you have a ‘business on the side,’ taking it to the next level could be the right next step in the new year.

The Next Women’s Movement Is a Man’s Movement. Steph’s Stories Blog. A theme around the importance of including men in the progress of women in entrepreneurship emerged with this issue, so I’m adding my voice with a blog I penned on the subject last year.

A LITTLE DEEPER DIVE

Some of the brightest and most dedicated are uncovering powerful new insights to enhance the evolution of women in entrepreneurship. Their research and findings are difference-making for progress.

Emerging Trends in Entrepreneurial Finance. Kauffman Foundation. A deeper look at the growth of venture capital, the size of angel investment and the emergence of crowdfunding.

Better Decisions Through Diversity. KelloggInsight. The mere presence of diversity on a team leads to better problem solving, and this produces great success.

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