Meet Nicole Troster, Entrepreneurship Coach
With 11 years of experience working with entrepreneurs and organizations that support them, it comes as no surprise to have Nicole Troster on our team of Concept Entrepreneurship Coaches. Nicole has worked at the Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses as a lobbyist, working with governments to produce better outcomes for small and medium sized businesses. She was later recruited into provincial government to run a project that was crowdsourcing ideas from businesses about how to improve regulatory environment and reduce business costs. Following that, Nicole’s desire to work more closely with entrepreneurs led her to move to Waterloo. She completed her Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology while simultaneously working on her own venture, Metanoya Events and advising other ventures.
When Nicole moved back to Toronto, she managed iBoost, a tech incubator at Ryerson University. Currently Nicole is a manager at ELLA, Ontario’s first accelerator focused on supporting women-led product and service-based businesses which she built at York University. ELLA is open to women-identifying entrepreneurs at different intersections, across Southern Ontario.
As a Concept Coach, Nicole thrives on working with students at the very beginning stages of their entrepreneurial journey.
“All of the entrepreneurs that I work with through Concept are incredible human beings. They are ambitious and have amazing ideas to solve big, important problems. I love the enthusiasm and inspiration I get from them.”
Advice for Student Entrepreneurs
Q: How can students balance entrepreneurship life with their studies?
A: “In school and in life, there is no perfect balance, so do what you can. Entrepreneurship can provide you with amazing opportunities after you leave school, so it’s worth the investment of time and learning the concepts. You never know where your journey will take you.”
Q: What should students focus on when it comes to their startups?
A: “A lot of times, students skip customer interviews and doing market research. Make sure you spend time in these areas to understand the competition and how you can solve the problem in a different way that will make you stand out. It can mean the difference between a failed venture or one that has incredible potential to change people’s lives.”
Q: How can student entrepreneurs set themselves up for success?
A: “Entrepreneurship is best learned by doing. Concept provides the resources and coaching you need to start your journey. The most important thing to focus on during your journey is being open to learning from the experts at Concept, from other entrepreneurs and from the people that are impacted by the problem you are trying to solve. They will empower you to find the best solution.”
Nicole is an active coach in our network and is always excited to speak to new folks and teams!
Do you have an innovate idea or entrepreneurial question of your own? Book a 1:1 Coaching session with Nicole or any of our other amazing coaches, here and learn from their experiences as they help guide you on your entrepreneurial journey.
