The Failure of Startups: Exceptionally inspiring or being just a flop?

It’s unarguable that stories of startup failures often retold time and again in conversations among startup buffs are captivating and motivating at the same time.

However, on the other side of the coin, one question has been raised: Do we really need to retell -and overrate- these stories of flameouts to the point that many startup enthusiasts deem failure a key to success?

An intriguing study by Harvard Business School revealed that a startup is deemed successful only when it can draw investors and get funded. Researchers also found that first-time entrepreneurs are likely to have 21% chance of success while those who had already made false steps are prone to do well in their new business by 22% chance. On the contrary, seasoned and accomplished entrepreneurs are inclined to continuously succeed.

Reading up to this point, many people may no longer yearn for failure. But we have to admit one thing:  No one is perfect. We all have made mistakes. The key question is: Did we learn from those mistakes? Are there anyone who have interest in learning from our slip-ups? If the answer is ‘no’, that means our stories of failures we are about to share aren’t simply that great or exceptional.

Researchers at University of Michigan have delved into this subject and found that our own mentality and mindset, on the other hand, play a crucial role in helping us learn from our mistakes. A person with right mindset believes that he or she can develop skills and excel at something by actually doing it. Failure, indeed, is a chance for learning and making an improvement. In contrast, for those with wrong mindset, failure can be the total indicator of incompetency.

Undoubtedly, many entrepreneurs start rejecting failure and, in turn, prefer having small wins bit by bit until those successes turn into the bigger one. The wrong attitude toward failure can lead entrepreneurs into vulnerable zone: An anti-failure. Furthermore, by revealing our failure stories in the past, many of us might have false impression that we are as bright and brilliant as gurus of entrepreneurship- which, in fact, we maybe not.

Here comes a conclusion: Everything has pros and cons.  We might opt for small successes a little bit at a time just to be trapped in our comfort zones, thinking we are on the right track. Or we can long for failure experiences, hoping to tell others how we get through the lowest point as an entrepreneur and impressively project an entrepreneurial image.

Reference: Techinasia.com