How to recover from business failure & regain focus?

No one ever said that running a business was easy. In fact, it can be downright tough sometimes – especially when you fail.

80% of businesses fail overall. The numbers are higher when it comes to startups. And with only 1% of venture capital money going to startups, it’s really hard to build a business.

Business failure can happen to even the most successful entrepreneurs, and it’s important to know how to pick yourself up and move on after something like this happens.

Here are four tips for doing just that:

1. Take some time for yourself after a business failure.

This is probably one of the most important things you can do. You need to take a step back, assess what went wrong, and figure out how you can prevent it from happening again in the future. Additionally, it’s important to give yourself some time to grieve. This is a major setback, and it’s okay to feel sad and frustrated. Just don’t dwell on it for too long.

2. Assess your goals and what went wrong during the business venture.

Once you’ve taken some time for yourself, it’s time to start reassessing your goals. What did you want to achieve with your business? And what went wrong that caused it to fail? It’s important to be honest with yourself here. Unless you can identify the problems, you’re likely to make the same mistakes again in the future.

3. Learn from your mistakes and plan for a better future.

This ties in closely with the previous point. Once you know what went wrong, you can start making plans to prevent it from happening again. This might mean changing your business model, reassessing your goals, or even taking some time to learn new skills. Whatever it is, make sure that you have a solid plan in place before you start moving forward.

4. Get back up and start again with renewed focus and determination.

Finally, once you’ve taken some time for yourself, assessed your goals, and learned from your mistakes, it’s time to get back up and try again. This time, though, you’ll be armed with the knowledge of what went wrong before. So don’t give up – keep moving forward and chase your dreams.

What to do next?

Don’t think of your first business failure as a personal failure, and don’t let it stop you from trying again. There is no shame in trying and failing. In fact, it can be a great learning experience that will help you be more successful in the future.

Many entrepreneurs have to go through a lot of failures before they find success.

1. Find support from friends, family & mentors

If you have failed at anything, it is important to have the support of your family and friends. You should stay close to people who motivate you and help you feel good about yourself. Don’t spend time with someone who criticizes you for your failure and tries to make you feel guilty about your decision.

You should find a mentor who can help you prepare for the next time. No one is successful in life if they never failed. Experienced entrepreneurs and mentors have already been where you are, so seek their guidance and mental support.

 2. Think about source of Income

It is very important to be careful when starting your own business. If it doesn’t work out, you can lose a lot of money and time. Make sure that you are not in debt and also have a lot of stress because of your unsuccessful startup.

You should figure out how long you can survive on your savings. It would be great if you already have a secondary source of income or can spend some time creating a source of income by freelancing or consulting work. I did the same to survive until I got clarity about my next startup move.

3. Survival Plan

Make a plan that will help you survive. Founders of startups are very good at planning and execution. I revisit my plans every month and change the way I execute based on the resources and situation I have at the moment.

After my second startup failed, I created an excel sheet. On one side of the sheet, I wrote down all my skills. On the other side of the sheet, I wrote down how much money I could make from each skill. This exercise helped me get a lot of clarity about what I could do to make money in the next six months.

4. Wait for the right time

Don’t make any important decisions quickly. I waited for six months before I decided to join a startup as the head of content marketing. In that waiting period, I improved my skills in content marketing and made connections with the right people.

Good opportunities don’t come along very often. I would rather wait for a few months and get the right job than join the wrong job. You should take your time and make a decision that can change the direction of your life.

5. The right attitude

In order to revive from a failure, you need to take the right action with the right attitude. You might have to say no to poor opportunities even if you don’t have a great opportunity at your fingertips.

Taking risks can be scary, but it often turns out well in the end. I took similar risks when I graduated from college, looked for a job, and started my own business.

I am asking you to take the action and be responsible for your own actions (karma). If you do this, great things will happen to you.