What should I do if my startup Fails?

90% of Startups fail every year...

You should never loose hope....

Move on and get started again.... Bla..... Bla.... Bla!!!

Dude it was my startup, more than the stats class and cannot be compared with a breakup. Keep quite and get lost!!!!

The day when I closed my first startup, I was feeling heavy, unworthy and I didn't wanted to see a human face.

I closed myself in room for few days and told my parents not to disturb me. They agreed because anyway I was talking rude with them so it was better to avoid me.

I was sitting in my room, staring at the coffee mug on my reading table. Suddenly I started reading the text written on the mug, "Ask Yourself Every Day What Is The Next Challenge?"

I don't remember how many times I read this line still unconsciously but I remember one thing, with every repetition I gained some energy to stand up and think again.

I asked myself,

Okay, so this startup failed, what are the other options that can still try?

This question actually every entrepreneur should ask themselves. But the best answer is not to think about it, be optimist, make a sincere attempt and do whatever is in your control. And if you are in middle of building your startup, I request you to stop reading this article and go back to work. Do not even bookmark it!

Startups are risky and the fact remains that most of them shut down. It happened with me and it happens with entrepreneurs everyday.

While I was looking for options back then, I didn't get many opportunities. No one respected my 2.5 years of entrepreneurial experience the way I wanted to, nor many people were there who can tell me what are the best options available. So I took this initiative to help RIP startup’s founders and network with running startups to hire these guys.

I named the initiative - Hiring Decoder and ran successfully for 1.5 years and with 60+ ex-founders. Later my theater bug got married with my entrepreneurial bug and I started a new venture called Stagephod.com - a market place to create digital videos which is doing decent now.

But while doing the Hiring Decoder, I learned a lot about failed Entreprenuers and today I decided to pour it out for you. In my journey I came across these 3 options which ex-founders are keen on taking up:

Join another existing startup

Majority of entrepreneurs do not want to go back to corporate jobs. Corporate also don’t do justice with their attitude. At the same time, startups need people who have entrepreneurial experience. If there is a role which is entrepreneurial in nature rather than just sales/operations/ product, it is worth taking in.

Cons - Though the role is entrepreneurial in nature, you will still be working on someone else’s idea and you have to adjust your working style with that of the founders.

Pros - You get company of other entrepreneurs who are already executing well and it gives you a chance to learn few things/skills which you might be lacking

Get associated with a seed funded startup at CXO level.

There are few initiatives of the kind of Rocket Internet where investors incubate companies with their own idea, appoint people at CXO level, invest a seed capital and ask them to run the show. All guys draw salary from day one. Another aspect here is that if you are planning to shut down your startup, you can approach these investors, if they like the concept they will buy it from you.

Cons - Mostly the ideas are pre-decided and you might not relate with the problem

Pros - This is actually an entrepreneurial role. You are running the show and at the same time do not have to think about your monthly survival.

Develop a skill and take quality work as an independent service provider/ freelancer

This option works for those people who primarily aim to be independent and work only on their ideas/things/activities which they relate to. If you have worked sincerely in your startup for 2-3 years, you will definitely develop the insights about a particular domain and some skills like Content writing, designing, presentation making, hiring etc. You can polish one particular skill and offer it to other people who need it and can pay for it. Within 3-6 months your survival amount will be sorted.You can later hire interns and train them. You can automate this venture to get monthly/yearly revenue and be free to do another startup, or can fulfill your other dreams.

Cons - It is more of a freelancing activity and could take 3-6 months to build your credibility and get money. At the same time it does not guarantee a monthly fixed income.

Pros - You are completely independent to do things matter to you and can live an intuitive life.

There are no right or wrong option here. You can choose any option as per your situation and thought process. Only one thing that you should keep in mind is that failure definitely makes you a better person.