One of the key challenges for innovation and entrepreneurship in Canada is that so much of the economy is 'derivative', and especially dependent on innovation and entrepreneurship that took place elsewhere and has now been imported into Canada. Many Canadians…
Among the many challenges facing entrepreneurs and innovators in Canada is the lack of role models. People who have 'been there and done that' are a huge source of motivation and inspiration for others. In Ottawa in the mid 1990s,…
Caveat Investor With OSC hearings underway for the Sino-Forest fiasco, I thought it time to think about the lessons it and similar investor frauds teach us. Curious what one of these frauds looks like? Read this press release and ask…
Good public infrastructure and good public policy are crucial for entrepreneurs. The overly simplistic notion that all government needs to do is "just get out of the way" grossly fails to capture the myriad important things government must do in…
Bad policy is bad policy. Don't call it a 'hidden tax'. Even though no one ever lost an election because of their policy on copyright law reform, good governance is about doing a lot of little things right, whether the…
It is not secret that Canada has good research and researchers, and yet has a very low rate of commercialization of this R&D. Compared to what happens in countries like the United States, UK, Israel, and Sweden, little of our…
There is a common myth that 'all start ups are good', followed closely by the implication that "all" or "most" start ups succeed. In my experience, founders universally assume that their start up will be a blazing success. Accordingly, if…
Milton's First Law of Angel Investing: Most Start-ups Are Terrible Investments. Start-ups start small, weak, and of no real value, and they either die fast or they stumble along small, weak and of dubious value for years, and this has…
Angel investing cannot be charity investing. Angels need to earn a return on their investment commensurate with the risk that they take, if angel investing is to be sustainable. If they do not earn sufficient return, then they will run…
I am no angel, but I know a thing or two about losing money as an angel investor. Hopefully I have learned something along the way. There is a very dangerous myth afoot that small investors are being held back…