What happens when your startup isn’t catching fire? When something you care so much about, and would make the world such better a better place, isn’t working? When you’ve paid for everything out of your own savings and dedicated every moment to bringing this idea to life? When you finally accept that there isn’t enough growth to go on?
Told in the poignant and compelling storytelling-style of The Moth podcast, Mark Gavagan shares with us the story of his failed startup. Mark’s brutal honesty about the personal anguish, what bothered him most about failing, and his advice will resonate with any entrepreneur. Find out what he learned about the importance of supporting others around you—and about starting over.
Listen to Mark Gavagan on Startup Failure:
Timestamp – Topic:
0:32 – The crash
1:33 – The launch
2:24 – We needed to catch fire
2:32 – Sheer force of will
2:59 – Death is the default state of every startup
3:45 – The one thing that really bothered me
4:26 – Humiliation
4:45 – Facing insecurities
5:16 – You are not your startup
5:58 – Going to Propelify
6:54 – One of many
7:05 – Mark’s advice
Mark Gavagan “served a four-and-a-half year sentence” in corporate America, at a traditional Fortune 100 company, in downtown Manhattan. It wasn’t for him. He is now founder of Enlightened Jobs, which matches high performers in fields like technology, design & finance with life-friendly jobs, where your exceptional skills and results are rewarded with life-friendly hours, location and culture. He also does pitch and presentation consulting at Explainitstudios.com and has a new podcast at Insidethelaw.co.
