The MAIN 2026 Summit: what we learned (and what we want to transform together)
Published on February 20, 2026
The MAIN 2026 Summit was a rare space; a place where performance does not overshadow human experience and where one can talk about pressure, loneliness, fatigue... without judgment.
We want to keep this spirit alive, so we have prepared a collection of six key pieces of content, which you will find below. We invite you to use and share them freely, give your opinion, and add your own thoughts on what you took away from the event.
content bank:
We often talk about performance, trajectories, and "growth."
At the MAIN Summit, what stood out most was something else: the people behind innovation.
When you create a safe space, people feel free to speak up. And you realize that mental health is not a side issue; it is a factor that affects our ability to take action, make decisions, and persevere.
"Even when we talk about the health of teams or companies, we come back to people; the foundation is the health of the individual." This message from Etienne St-Jean and Ismail Elalaoui was demonstrated to us during the presentation of their research findings on the health of entrepreneurs.
What the Summit highlighted is that we don't just need good programs, we need a safety net!
"Let go."
That's the phrase that sticks in our minds—and concludes—the testimony of Félix-Antoine Huard, co-founder of Rum&Code and Vice President of Digital Services at bakofis.
His point, in a nutshell: the ecosystem makes many things possible... but it does not guarantee success. And at some point, the company must "stand on its own two feet."
For us, this raises a question of stance:
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Where is the line between supporting and controlling?
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How can we remain at the service of humanity without taking ownership of the project?
You don't need to travel 835 km to get some perspective. But you do need a framework.
Daniel Valois's talk during CreativeMornings Trois-Rivières was not a talk focused on growth. It was a story of disruption, rebuilding, and a return to values.
Two very useful ideas for support professionals:
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voluntarily giving yourself a way to step back (this could be walking, meditation, a challenge, or establishing a ritual)
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Distinguish between the entrepreneur and the company: the company must become itself (like a child).
What "simple" tool could we use (or recommend) to help an entrepreneur regain clarity?
You don't "manage" an ecosystem like an organizational chart.
The MAIN Summit put into words a tension that we all experience: in times of uncertainty, we want to be in control. And yet, the more complex the system, the more control undermines cooperation.
At the Summit, Claudia Loutfi proposed the following:
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Control makes us feel good in a simple system.
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But in complex systems (with interdependent variables), wanting to control everything mainly leads to... competition and survival.
The conclusion is clear: value increases when we leave with something "transferable" and a sense of belonging to a community that recognizes and acknowledges us.
What participants at the MAIN 2026 Summit expect from their community:
more time in small groups
as many answers as questions
at least as many examples of best practices as there are examples of failure
more shared and transferable assets
more tools
no more "us"
And that is what MAIN is committed to delivering for the community of professionals who support entrepreneurs.
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