What could a legendary UFC fighter and an e-commerce entrepreneur have in common? The scale of their ambition and a lifelong struggle of mental preparation, according to Shopify president Harley Finkelstein and hall of fame fighter Georges St-Pierre.
The news: To kick off Day 1 of Startupfest, the annual Montréal tech conference, Finkelstein sat down with St-Pierre. The fireside chat focused on the similarities between how elite fighters and entrepreneurs train and prepare—whether that’s for an earnings call, in Finkelstein’s case, or a fight in the octagon. The two men shared how overcoming pre-performance anxiety is a lifelong journey and how it doesn’t necessarily get easier with more success.
From the source: “The way you raise your level of confidence is with preparation,” St-Pierre said of his fighting bouts. “Being confident is not the absence of fear; it’s knowing that you have what you need in order to succeed. There’s a big difference.”
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Following the thread: Being a tech founder is a stressful job, multiple surveys have shown, given compounding responsibilities and the intense nature of startups. According to the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC), 36 percent of business owners report that mental health challenges interfered with their ability to work at least once a week, and that among entrepreneurs under 40, that number was 60 percent.
St-Pierre, who has previously opened up about his struggles with obsessive-compulsive disorder, advised the founders in the room to lean into their fear and use that to be more prepared.
Final thought: After retiring from professional fighting in 2019, St-Pierre has himself pivoted into entrepreneurship, with Canadian business ventures including a Montréal-based clothing brand and a custom vodka with the Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation. He explained that he’ll likely never get the same “high” he got from winning a UFC championship, so he felt it was important to reorient his goals toward another pursuit.
Disclosure: BetaKit majority owner Good Future is the family office of two former Shopify leaders, Arati Sharma and Satish Kanwar.
Feature image courtesy Georges St-Pierre via X.