The key to success is in the minds of the people. How do they see the problems and the opportunities in a town.

At first, I thought money invested into revitalizing main streets rather than industrial development was like throwing money down a rat hole. But now many people are moving out of the big cities to escape the rat race. They want to move to small, charming towns that offer a sense of place.

This is the essence of your town. It's the great strength or attribute that distinguishes it from other small towns.

We are going to develop a new model in economic development. We are going to be planting gardens of entrepreneurs in our communities.

Those towns show vitality and maintain a diversity of businesses. There were more examples of these type of communities in Indiana than any other state.

There are always going to be those 'citizens against virtually everything' (CAVEs). But small towns must take chances to grow.

Traditionally, we have looked at economic development as job attraction and job retention.