SmallBusinessNewz

If you've got a video camera, at least 30 spare seconds, and a desire to win $5,000, the National Federation of Independent Business has a new contest involving YouTube that might be just the thing for you.

Prior to May 15th, "Video artists simply need to create a 30-second clip that answers the question 'Why does small business work for America?' and submit the video to NFIB," according to a formal statement.

From there, the video will get put on YouTube for viewers to rate, and "[a] panel of judges will use those ratings to select semifinalists and an overall winner, who will receive a $5,000 cash award and a trip for two to Washington, D.C., including a stay at the Grand Hyatt Hotel for the 2008 National Small Business Summit June 8 - 11."

The contest's rules don't set limits so much as encourage creativity; there's no telling how many entries there'll be, but something unusual will definitely be necessary in order to stand out.

Go ahead and get to brainstorming, then; the barriers to entering this contest are pretty much nonexistent, and opportunities to win $5,000 don't come around too often.