top of page

The Fresh Catch of the Month — Sept. 2020 — issue #17

Finding Flow in the Moment ...


Art by Matt Berro @Unsplash


Insiders Insights

We launched this week the "Find Your Power Pathway-Private Incubator" and here is why this is a contrarian and somewhat controversial initiative 


We invite you to get a taste of how (the process and techniques) actual incubators move their cohorts through iterations to rapid product development and market fit, and test-drive our proprietary "Iteration to Awesome Method".


What is Contrarian : We Adapt incubators' effective frameworks which come from a Silicon-Valley biased, venture capital vision of entrepreneurship to make them relevant to non tech-centric businesses regardless of their geographical location and Infuse our perspective which is based on a method we created integrating various (very) rarely combined fields of knowledge and influences and which we deliver in a very bespoke, customized, made for-you-only manner.

We also spin the incubator concept (which is a group experience by definition) on its head, and although we strongly suggest you do join those ecosystems (groups, clubs, masterminds, chamber of commerce ...) that will support your growth and livelihood what we deliver is a private, individual and highly customized approach.


What is controversial : We are of the opinion that actual incubators generally deliver experiences that are normative and really a numbers game. Incubators put entire cohorts through the standard framework they operate on and take an educated guess on how many will succeed, in line with the typical venture capital model.


With the undeniable valuable learning and connections gained from these experiences, some less positive outcomes often also arise (there are exceptions of course, such as some tech for good initiatives ... etc) and in particular :

  • Group thinking and Formatting Vs.genuine differentiation at granular personal level, which will make you stand out in the noise

  • Tech-centered Vs. Purpose driven ventures that serve the world 

  • Exponential Growth Vs. Sustainability focus

  • Competition Vs. Cooperation

  • Specific similar profiles, cultures and vision of the world Vs. Inclusion and diversity

  • Wining alone and Against others Vs. Expanding the field from an Abundance perspective 

To find out more check our Services section



The Entrepreneurial Journey is filled with challenges and opportunities; at its heart lies an Epic Human Adventure - Mastering Your Inner Game

Among the key traits of successful serial entrepreneurs is their capacity to continuously :

  • Uphold and nurture the vision of what is yet to come into existence ...

  • Find support as well early adopters for that service (or product) which may only be a concept, a simple landing page or a prototype at the moment they start out on on their journey ...

  • Follow through, reach out to and secure the resources needed, against all odds and the nay-Sayers, the haters who will hate ...

  • Surf an ocean of uncertainty, complexity and waves of messy trial and error as they refine their initial idea; confront the "oh so sought-after" and challenging market-fit moment that will make or break them ... to finally (oh no wait, you are actually just only starting this new step ...) reach the sacred implementation phase that needs to be executed successfully ... and pivot their offerings and business model to adapt to evolving market conditions and the global environment ... for ever more

How do you befriend uncertainty and fear, develop resilience, engage partners, establish trust and community to transform a simple idea or concept into a real product or service, which then turns into a family (suite) of products and services that sell and support the formation of an enterprise that thrives and morphs to adapt over time ? Well ... the road is long, hectic and the learning curve rather steep...


In our experience, the entrepreneur's mindset and inner-game are the catalysts that ignite and nourish the spirit powering-up any entrepreneurial journey and venture. Then, the only relevant questions are : Who do you need to become for your next step to unfold and how do you build the inner-skills that support your continuous evolution through the milestones of your entrepreneurial journey?

If this resonates with you, we suggest you take a step back from your business plan, your marketing plan, your product launch ... the Why, Who, What, Where, When, How which are second order considerations compared to what seats at your core and focus inward instead, even for just one hour, on making sure you have your inner-game figured out.

So, take a deep breath ... do you recognize yourself in any of the following situations ?

  • No matter how many trainings, classes and knowledge you have been accumulating, you still lack the confidence to make an ask, expose your offering to the world, reach out to your network ...

  • Each time your are about to take action you let your inner-critic (works with outside critics also) sabotage your every attempt and talk you out of even trying or are harshly critical of any of your achievements when you take action ...

  • Are you always questioning your capacities through your own vivid inner- dialogue, along the lines of :"who do I think I am to teach people about this topic ? there are so many other experts at established companies offering a better product; why would anyone trust me or choose my product

  • Are you questioning your value and whether your product, service (also works with yourself and job remuneration if employed) are really worth the price you are asking for? are you always selling yourself short, not daring to ask for a raise . Are you anxious to talk about money and face a negotiation ? ...

  • Do you come from a non-for profit environment (also applies to any type of unpaid work habits, cultural norms) where the norm is that helping people solve their problems is a moral obligation and obviously free of charge by construct (nature)?

  • Are you caught up in the stressful process of searching for your business (or product or service) market fit or maybe pivoting your positioning or growing your market share?

  • ​Are you trying to find a way to get access to investors you have no connection to and to identify who could be interested in investing in your company and have no clue where to start ? Are you finding the whole process daunting?. Next thing on the line will be to pitch them effectively and convince them to fund you. How do you feel about that? Are you ready to face the many rejections that will undoubtedly arise and still keep pushing through to success while keeping your team motivated and focused ?

  • Do you sometimes feel discouraged or overwhelmed with all the responsibilities and challenges attached to bringing forth a new venture (possibly disrupting a market and its incumbents)? Are you working yourself to exhaustion ?. Do you ever worry about failure ?

If any of the above sound somewhat familiar, then we invite you to join us for a one hour conversation dedicated to :

  • accessing and exploring the many dimensions of your entrepreneurial core

  • understanding what drives your mindset, fuels your inner-game

  • teaching you our proprietary methods so that you can create bespoke, supportive conditions for your entrepreneurial endeavors to manifest and thrive in the material world

  • In this session, we focus exclusively on developing the first order mindsets and sustainable behaviors that will shape your inner-game and inform your inner-journey.

Entrepreneurship is a powerful emotional and energetical commitment, before financial and operational aspects can even be considered.

Our methods draw from the work we have been doing for the last 10 years supporting early-stage and growth founders start-up and scale their businesses as well as our experience with social-technology frameworks which we have adapted to the entrepreneurial context from the fields of Psychology (developmental, cognitive, behavioral, integral and process oriented (pop) psychology to name a few sources of influence) Innovation, Creativity and design thinking; Leadership, Change management, Mindfulness (MBSR**) and Presence based practices as well as coaching Highly Performing Individuals (such as athletes, artists and CEOs) and Teams in Sports, Business and Non-for-Profit/Philanthropy sectors.

The program is available in English and French

The Entrepreneur Inner-Journey is a "soft-skill" focused variant of the Power Conversations package and is part of the EQ* Program

** MBSR - mindfulness-based stress reduction

To find out more, head out to the Services section of our website




💥The Radical Inclusion Initiative💥

We Sponsored 🚀1 Candidate for the

✅ 4 weeks online Entrepreneur Summer School Program run by our partner GeniusU/ Entrepreneurs Institute

Students who attend & engage:

✅ Learn about the 8 key drivers of a digital business & 4 stages of enterprise & work with our 21 expert mentors to transform their business or idea into a viable digital income stream

✅Get their own dedicated facilitator to guide them along the journey & help them to achieve the best results for their future

✅Direct their own personalized learning by selecting the key live topics that their business needs most, right now, to not just survive but positively thrive

✅Receive access to all 21 different modules that cover a wide range of different topics so that they can come back & learn what they need, even after the summer school has finished

✅Earn credits towards their Diploma in Entrepreneurship & take the next step in their lifelong education as an entrepreneur

👉More about the Entrepreneur Summer School program



Resources

Videos, Interviews & Webinars

  • Take a listen to Zero Mass Water Founder and CEO Cody Friesen on This Week in Startups' most recent episode, where they discuss ZMW’s vision, the importance of resiliency during difficult times, along with their distribution strategy to get their hydro panels adapted all over the world.

  • Degreed’s David Blake is fixing lifelong Education & ending Credentialism - This Week in Startups episode

  • Why Your Work Matters: Darwin, Machines, & the Future We’re Building - NfX

  • How VCs Judge Your Startup (on Zoom): 15+ Tactics Behind Successful Fundraises - Nfx


Papers & Articles

  • Report on Gender Equality in the Wake of COVID19, in collaboration with UNDP, highlights projections on poverty by sex and age in a post-pandemic world.

  • The Top Female Founder In Every Country World Map - Business Financing UK

  • This Is the No. 1 Struggle Holding Women Entrepreneurs Back - The Entrepreneur


Follow us for more and Reach Out !

Information about the usual favorite topics of our early-stage entrepreneurs and career-transitioning intra-preneurs is curated on our Facebook and Twitter and Linked In accounts - Follow us ! We diligently scout the most singular and valuable pieces of information & tips from our networks and carefully piece the data together so as to deliver the exclusive insights our members are looking for. Check us out regularly as we put up new relevant and time sensitive content daily. Our ever-green free content is full of insights & opportunities, including the resources located in our Free Library.


Book your Free 30 minute Discovery Session : Go to our Website


Need more support? Contact us !

Comments


Commenting has been turned off.
bottom of page