Starting a
Business:
How to go
from idea
to action?

According to the observations of Carol Gilbert, director of continuing education and business services at Cégep Garneau, the most effective way to successfully put an entrepreneurial idea into practice is to talk about it to the people around us. Simple, but essential.

Carol Gilbert is the individual behind the events for Secondaire en spectacle, which are now in their 15th edition and which take place each year in several secondary schools throughout Québec.

After having launched Événement VIP, Carol chose to put his interest in entrepreneurship to use by going into the field of education.

Today, he heads the new École d'entrepreneuriat de Québec, a project launched following the results of the l'Indice entrepreneurial québécois. Produced by the Fondation de l'entrepreneurship, this report revealed that, in 2014, 25% of Québécois between the ages of 18 and 34 intended to start a business, a very high proportion.

“We hope that by offering several services and professionals in one place, the l'École d'entrepreneuriat de Québec will motivate young people, who often have to go through several organizations to start up their business,” said Carol Gilbert.

If it’s true that more young people in Quebec than elsewhere in Canada plan to start up a business and see entrepreneurship as a career choice , it is also true that more young Canadians outside Quebec take action. Beyond the legal and administrative procedures, what is the first step in going from idea to action?

Putting the idea into practice involves sharing it

If you want to start up a business, Carol strongly advises you to talk about your ideas with people you trust.

“The biggest mistake that a person who wants to start up a business can make is to not share his idea out of fear of having it stolen,” he said.

“An individual’s point of view is extremely limited,” Carol added. “Not only does exposing your idea to others to take into consideration their points of view help to put the idea into practice, but it also allows you find out if similar ideas have been put into practice elsewhere.

Any idea is good if it addresses a problem and meets a need. But initially, all ideas are very abstract. When you expose your idea to different points of view, pieces fall and challenges appear. Paradoxically, rather than discouraging you, this process gives you confidence, because your idea becomes more realistic and therefore stronger. Its core, its essence remains.”

According to Carol, when it comes to starting up a business, the transition from intention to action takes place much more naturally and easily when the business idea is strong, i.e. concrete.

The popularity of entrepreneurship and the reputation of entrepreneurs

Carol has observed that in just 5-10 years, the perception of entrepreneurs has changed a great deal, which may explain the increasing popularity of this path.

“During the initial years of my career path, entrepreneurs were perceived as being dishonest: The cliché of the pot-bellied cigar smoker making money on the backs of poor consumers. Today’s entrepreneurs are seen more as people who have the ability to be independent and the willingness to take charge of their lives,” he said.

“This new perception goes hand in hand with a change in entrepreneurial behaviour,” Carol emphasized. Today, entrepreneurs are much more invested in the social economy and their community than before. Also, according to his observations, entrepreneurs no longer systematically consider another business as a competitor, but more easily as a partner.

“Before, when I was looking for sponsorships, there was always an exclusivity clause. Other businesses were more seen a priori as enemies. Today, this trend is not as strong,” he added.

Coaching the start-up entrepreneur

This spring, the l'École d'entrepreneuriat de Québec welcomed its first group. Carol Gilbert believes that these young people will be able to develop and apply their business model, not only thanks to the resources offered by the school, but also thanks to the important factor that is the exchange of ideas with their peers through co-development. “Fortunately, this step in the business creation process is accessible to all,” he said.