I don’t know how many times I’ve heard “Move to the Valley!”, when I tell people my 3-5 year goal is to follow my passion for entrepreneurship. I agree that Silicon Valley is booming again, yet I find it hard to believe the crazy valuations on companies that have yet to make a dollar are going to continue. Didn’t we learn our lesson in 2000? Having said that, if an opportunity were to arise in the Valley, I’d be lying if I said I wouldn’t take it in a heartbeat. However, I would argue that Canada is a force to be reckoned with.

In a recent article by TechCrunch, Mark Zuckerberg gave his view on the Valley. Asked about what he would have done differently if he could go back in time, Zuckerberg responded that he would have stayed in Boston rather than moving to the Valley “where everyone feels they need to be”. Zuckerberg argues that the Valley is too short-term focused and that there is a culture where people don’t want to commit to doing things. Amazon CEO/Founder Jeff Bezos agrees and thinks people in the Valley don’t know what they are passionate about yet. He goes on to say, “You need to do stuff you are passionate about. The companies that work are the ones that people really care about and have a vision for the world so do something you like.”

Canada’s startup landscape is showing evidence that other countries are taking notice. A growing number of large, US Venture Capital firms are starting to invest north of the border.. Shopify raised $15 million, Wave Accounting $5 million, Achievers.com $24 million, to name a few. As there are few Canadian VCs willing to make large investments, this is a good thing. As well, Canadian startups seem to have more reasonable valuations, providing US investors with interesting investment opportunities.

Ryan Holmes, the founder of the local success story Hootsuite, is a great example of the different mindset. In an interview with the Globe & Mail, Holmes talks about his passion to grow his company and create a legacy. “Amazon.com’s Jeff Bezos, Google’s Sergey Brin and Larry Page, and Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg – whose companies have a collective value of at least $350-billion – did not dream of selling out to the first bidder.”

For a Canadian entrepreneur, this is exciting! Sure, the Valley is the center of the universe, but us Vancouverites are used to that kind of attitude.