On the third consecutive day walking into the same pizza parlour, I felt embarrassed. Not for indulging in Italy’s finest pie, but because I didn’t know how to order anything else.
I moved to a Spanish-speaking country with no Spanish skills of my own. There were many challenges but eating was the first and largely insurmountable foremost: “pizza” was pretty much the only English cognate I knew.
Those first few days were also quite instructive: they prepared me very well for what Corey and I are hoping to accomplish here with ImPact Canada.
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Language is one of many challenges a newcomer in a new country faces - Corey and I can tell you many stories of our Spanish struggles. We also know that learning a language and building a business mirror each other nicely.
During my pizza indulgence, I was essentially left with two choices:
Become a Costa Rican pizza connoisseur.
Dive in head first and learn Spanish.
For reasons I’ll always be thankful for, I chose path B. That represents the how of achievement, not simply the what.
Many people have goals or ideas - the what which are rather simple to list. The nitty-gritty of executing those ideas is the how - and where many (myself & Corey included) get stuck.
This entry is more personal lesson than anything else; Corey and I want to balance what we publish on our Substack. When you teach a language as I do, you don’t want your students to talk “about the language” but rather “in the language.”
We want to do the same here: we’ve talked a lot about what we want to accomplish with ImPact, but here I want to start diving into the concept.
The parallels of language acquisition and business cultivation are much closer than meet the eye and I hope they help you take steps towards your new business in Canada.
Accelerate to Fail
I often say that you can read a book called “How to speak Spanish,” but the only way to do it is to, well, do it.
A business is similar in many ways.
Many become paralyzed by waiting for:
The perfect idea
The perfect time
The perfect execution plan
In reality, that is a lot like Waiting for Godot. Instead, everyone should embrace a learn by doing philosophy, much of which we’re using here in the early days of ImPact.
Before he was a shark on Shark Tank, Robert Herjavec was a Dragon on Canada’s Dragon’s Den. When advising entrepreneurs, he often relayed this chestnut: Accelerate to Fail.
In essence, would you rather discover your idea has or doesn’t have merit after three months or three years?
Accelerating to fail is the “learn by doing” of entrepreneurship - a principle we likely need a bit more of in Canada.
This country doesn’t have a thriving entrepreneurial culture like our southern neighbo(u)r. We’re much more comfortable having a job. But without entrepreneurs, there wouldn't be many jobs to be had.
Helping others to launch and grow businesses that serve the founders also serves their local communities. If you’re wanting to get the wheels of your new Canadian business in motion, here are some ways you can accelerate to fail starting today.
Core Principles at ImPact
We’re certainly in workshop mode, but these are what we’ve come up with so far.
Learning by Doing: Immersion Beats Theory
Language: You don’t learn fluency from grammar books. You learn it from speaking.
Business: You don’t learn entrepreneurship from guides. You learn it from building, testing, failing.
Actionable takeaway: Prioritize doing over studying.
Trial and Error: Mistakes Are the Curriculum
Language: Mispronouncing words or using the wrong tense is part of the journey.
Business: Failed launches, wrong pricing, or awkward pitches teach you faster than any MBA.
Takeaway: Every “error” is data, not defeat.
Feedback Loops: Progress Depends on Response
Language: You improve when teachers or peers give you feedback.
Business: Customer feedback, market response, and mentor advice shape your next move.
Takeaway: Seek feedback early, and act on it relentlessly.
Tolerance for Ambiguity: Thriving Without All the Answers
Language: Learners must operate with partial understanding and still communicate.
Business: Founders must act with incomplete data and uncertainty.
Takeaway: Progress comes from moving forward while still confused.
Working Less: Redefining Success in Business
Language: Learners knowing more words doesn’t always mean better communication; clarity often comes from fewer, well-chosen words.
Business: Founders can thrive by working less, focusing on essentials, and avoiding endless growth.
Takeaway: Success isn’t about scale but about sustainability, balance, and freedom.
Quantifying Progress
With entrepreneurs I coach, I often recommend small wins. It sounds cliché and many roll their eyes, but it’s helpful for one main reason:
It quantifies progress.
When starting, many of us create goals that are too lofty:
I want to be fluent in Spanish
I want to scale my business
I want to create a business that supports my life
There’s nothing inherently wrong with any of those, but how does one know when they’ve achieved it?
What does fluent mean?
What does scale refer to and when is enough, enough?
What kind of life do we actually desire and what happens if those goal posts shift?
I like small wins because it helps us cast paralysis aside and move the business forward. If we only focus on the big goals, it’s easy to punt them down the road. With small goals, we take action right away.
And these compound over time - which is what every business needs.
It would have been very easy for me to eat pizza for weeks on end. Or to simply interact in English forever.
I chose to dive in and make more mistakes, faster.
Here at ImPact Canada, Corey and I hope to help you do the same, one mistake at a time. This is the beginning of the conversation, not the end of a lecture.
We want to learn with you and hope this is a space to cultivate a new community around entrepreneurship, new beginnings, and balance.
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P.S Have 3 minutes?
We’re building this with you and would love to learn more about you.
If you can spare 3 minutes, tell us what you want to see here by clicking here.