VC in DC : Why do start ups fail?

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Why do start ups fail?

English: Sir Winston Churchill. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It's not enough that we do our best; sometimes we have to do what's required

Sir Winston Churchill

The often posed question is why do start ups fail? One often hears that of undercapitalization, market conditions or events beyond the control of the team.

In my experience, the simple answer is that management is unwilling or unable to make them succeed. And that of those two, the more common is that management is unwilling rather than unable to make the business succeed. It can be a fair trade for someone to be unwilling to work 20 hours a day, seven days a week for something likely to fail. It can also simply be more than someone wants to do.

I would acknowledge that sometimes that unwillingness may have its roots in a lack of adequate investor support.

But the fundamental truth is that the weakening of investor support can often be sourced to doubts about management's commitment to succeed in spite of the odds. Many a successful entrepreneur can point to an entreprise that succeeded upon their "will power" -- a business that might have otherwise failed if it weren't for the simple refusal of the entrepreneur to accept that outcome.

English: Sir Winston Churchill signature (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The power of will is one of the entrepreneurs most intrinsic assets. It can create success out of a situation where success is neither likely or expected, ---will can be the basis and foundation of any start up's progression. But managment's has to be "all in" because you can fake a lot of things in life but will power isn't one of them.