Readit Newsdavidechen commented on Become a better entrepreneur by failing completely dechen.posterous.com/beco... · Posted by u/davidechen
A true entrepreneur never permits himself alibis to fail.
Excuse yourself by falling back on the theorem that failing is good,
and you will never have the determination to push through those moments where success seems impossible.
Forget this notion that failure is good. Only remember it after you have, in fact, failed. Not before.
By true entrepreneur, do you mean someone born to be an entrepreneur? Are all successful self-made business owners true entrepreneurs?
davidechen commented on Become a better entrepreneur by failing completely dechen.posterous.com/beco... · Posted by u/davidechen
It's like surfing. You have to paddle like hell to get to where the wave is going to be, then be standing on the board at just the right time. Once you've missed a few waves, you have a better idea of the timing.
There's a lot of things that have to line up to make a startup successful: vision, market, funding, and talent. Believe it or not, the market and the funding are likely to be more forgiving of previous failure than the talent.
I like that.
davidechen commented on Become a better entrepreneur by failing completely dechen.posterous.com/beco... · Posted by u/davidechen
According to research cited in 37 Signals' Rework entrepreneurs that have failed previously are no more likely to succeed again than first-time entrepreneurs.
I think far too much business and start-up advice is nothing more than anecdotes and personal experience, none of it backed by hard numbers. (Rework is no exception.) Are there any books out there where people did actual research to back up their advice?
Here's a Harvard Business School research paper that suggests that in certain kinds of venture-backed startups, those who have failed before have a slightly higher rate of success.
davidechen commented on Become a better entrepreneur by failing completely dechen.posterous.com/beco... · Posted by u/davidechen
Failing as a characteristic of entrepreneurial success is way overrated in my opinion. I've failed, but that has only helped me becoming a better person, not a better entrepreneur.
Interesting opinion.
I guess I make an assumption here that becoming a better person by developing credibility & confidence helps you as an entrepreneur. Would you agree this may be the case for some young entrepreneurs?
davidechen commented on Become a better entrepreneur by failing completely dechen.posterous.com/beco... · Posted by u/davidechen
If you've started a "practice startup" before your real startup... What was it and how did it help you?
This is a tricky one. Have you thoroughly discussed your concerns with the management? Sometimes there is rational reasoning behind things that seem unfair. I believe that being able to communicate about things like this openly and establishing trust can be quite important in determining your success in resolving this concern.
If you've got a 10% chance of making it each time, just keep trying 22 times and you'll success 90% of the time.