Here are 5 Reasons Why You Should Apply to the Labs Accelerator!

Having ideas is great, but learning how to form them into a startup is difficult. Life doesn’t stop, it is hard to know what to focus on with endless startup resources available and little time. There is a vulnerability when it comes to sharing your ideas with others and asking for guidance. You want your idea to succeed more than anything, so you protect it at all costs while overanalyzing your next step. So how do you deal with the excitement of trying to make your dream into a reality while also feeling overwhelmed? You join the League of Innovators. 

The League of Innovators is a national Canadian charity supporting young entrepreneurs through a suite of accessible programs.We focus on developing you as a founder so you can succeed at building any venture!

Labs is the League of Innovators’ 12-week accelerator program empowering young entrepreneurs all across Canada. The Labs program is delivered virtually with workshops, Ask Me Anything Sessions (AMAs), mentorship, coaching, and an ongoing support network for young people to succeed!

It is our mission at the League of Innovators to shorten your path to success and fuel the fire of the next generation of Canada's entrepreneurs, changemakers, and innovators. With that, here are five reasons why young entrepreneurs across Canada should apply to the Labs accelerator program.

• Focus: Building a startup is counterintuitive. In the media, you often see others succeeding by offering customers beautiful-looking products. This causes founders like yourself to skip very important steps to validate your idea before spending thousands on a product or service no one wants. Each week in our Labs program there is a different theme: business basics, the customer, the problem, etc. where we teach you what you need to know and when. 

• Support: The best way to succeed is to be open about your ideas. It’s scary to say what you are thinking for multiple reasons. A big one is: what if people think what I am doing doesn't make sense? Our team is here to support you. During the program and after. We will give you honest feedback to help guide you and not discourage you.  

• Connection: It takes a village to raise a startup. You will be placed in a cohort with other like-minded entrepreneurs. No one else truly understands what you are going through like another founder. Through our AMAs you will hear from and be able to connect with very successful founders for guidance. 

• Growth: The best entrepreneurs make the most bets. Maybe the idea you are working on right now is not the idea that will become what you had originally envisioned. That is completely ok. Again, we want to give you the tools to succeed with any idea you pursue such as empathy, complex problem-solving, leadership, communication, creativity, and resiliency. 

• Free: Last but certainly not least the Labs program is: No Fees. No Equity. You can be anywhere in Canada with an internet connection building any type of startup business, emerging non-profit or social enterprise in any industry. Diversity creates the conditions for innovation to happen. We also give our founders a venture package which has over 1 million dollars in perks and discounts for services your business may need. 

To date, The League of Innovators has worked with over 700 young entrepreneurs across Canada who have become Forbes Top 30 Under 30, Peter Thiel Fellows, Fast Company World Changing Ideas, and yes have scaled their startups to wildly successful businesses. 

Are you ready to accelerate your startup? Fuel your fire by applying to the Labs accelerator for youth-led startups! You can access the application here. Applications are open until January 15th and Batch X of the 12-week Labs national virtual program starts at the end of February. 

Have questions after all that? Want to say hi or partner with us? Reach out to our Assistant Acceleration Program Manager Erin at erin@theleagueofinnovators.com