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Individual Reflection: Blog Analysis Assessment

Student
Instructor
Course
Date
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Part A: Why do ventures fail, and how do entrepreneurs deal with failure?

Identification of the five important insights from the analysis of the blog plot concerning

the venture creation.

Over the decades, the corporate world has experienced several entrepreneurial ventures

failing due to low market recognition and lack of relevancy to many customer segments. In the

current reflection paper, I will analyze some set blogs that present insights into why ventures fail

during and after creation. The first blog I will analyze is about the failure of Homejoy, which

was devoted to providing customers with quality and convenient access to home cleaning. There

are numerous reasons why Homejoy ventures failed as a supplier of home cleaning and homer-

service verticals (Madden, 2015).

I think when creating a venture, it is essential to have a clear plan of operations and goals,

which is lacking in Homejoy. Homejoy was affected by employees' misclassification, which

landed them in lawsuits. They embraced middlemen service taking 25% of the profit, which

introduced platform leakage, and their decision to position themselves to global operation was

not timed. I think Homejoy Company failed due to a lack of lean startup and design thinking

methodologies that could help them decide some of their operation decisions (Madden, 2015).

Despite the business opportunity in the market, the business needs to evaluate its strengths and

weaknesses. Homejoy ignored and expanded to Europe and Canada too fast, affecting its capital

stability.

The other blog post that I will analyze is the IoT startup by Yash Kotak, which left them

under a condition they never imagined due to some mistakes during the startup (Kotak, 2015).

The company was devoted to coming up with a device that could automate all the household
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appliances. However, the venture did not take long due to some mistakes they committed during

the startup stages. I think before entering into any venture, it is essential to have experience about

the product you want to offer, the cost, the market segment, and the business model to use. When

starting up a venture, like introducing a new product in the market, there are several

considerations that an entrepreneur must consider to avoid some failure, like preparing a market

analysis based on both reality and assumptions on product positioning, market competition, and

market size (Smithmier, 2015). Also, one has to analyze the cost and returns expected from the

venture. Failure may result from a slight mistake committed during the venture's initial stages,

like failing to a clear focus of the target customers since one cannot sell to everyone.

A startup failure blog presented by Adam Zerner clearly shows that there are core factors

and procedures that one must consider before starting any venture (Zerner, 2015). I think most

ventures fail due to overstating issues when entering into a business opportunity, like convincing

your mind that people will defiantly like or buy your products or services. Before entering any

venture business model, analysis is essential to master how the products will be positioned in the

market and the opportunities of making the idea a success. I have also experienced behavior

entrepreneurs overestimating the customer's desire and the investors towards the product or

service one is providing. However, since not all startup ends up in disappointment, some

successful startup calls for vision carriers to take adequate time reaching on the startup

principles, which are usually based on effectuation designing, and lean startup for it to be

successful. I think the failure of the website venture was attached to the lack of value proposition

and business opportunity since not all ideas that seem relevant to the owner is as good as it may

seem to the public.

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Further, many startups are failing today due to minor mistakes like failing to understand

the worth of the services and products to customers. The analysis of Judah's blog on his startup

of radio station failure is a piece of clear evidence that many ventures are shutting due to slight

mistakes, which are associated with unclear goals and lack of business model (Gabriel, 2015).

During startup, I think it is essential always to have clear goals and objectives which can

determine the amount of money to charge on the products or services because, at the end of the

day, the main purpose of the venture is to make a profit. It also brought insight into technology

that is affecting many upcoming ventures. Therefore, all ventures need to be well designed with

clear objectives and room for technological adoption, which will enhance service delivery and

good networking between the company and the customers.

How most successful entrepreneurs perceive and deal with failure

Business failure during the initial or developed level is natural and a right passage for all

entrepreneurs (Cooper, 2013). Entrepreneurs sometimes feel stigmatized, have low self-esteem,

and lose social identity when failure in business occurs. When successful people fail in business,

the more significant number views that as a learning experience and a new activation for greater

returns. Beyond the failure to successful people comes a great chance of reevaluating the

underlying situation by asking themselves what went wrong, the feeling of loss, and the steps

that follow. Although no one expects to become a failure in business, successful people usually

establish some strategies of coping up with condition if it occurs, such as avoiding emotional

decisions, being prepared for it, having a backup to regain the position, maintaining a strong

support network, and constant evaluation of the underlying situations (Chan, 2020).

I perceive failure as a pathway to success if it has occurred while trying and within the

right track. However, some types of failure occur due to personal failure during the startup and
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recurring mistakes during operations. Most when faced with failure, I usually find a way of

regaining the lost opportunities like returning to the drawing table and starting afresh. Also, I

have learned to give things enough time during the planning, screening the potential market,

designing the product, and coming up with the most influential business model. Although this

perception does not have a significant difference with how successful people deal with failure, it

is clear when a small business fails during the startup stages, the entrepreneur takes a long time

to regain energy back compared to successful people who have several ventures. Therefore, my

perception of failure is due to a lack of proper planning and inadequate market analysis. At the

same time, successful people take failure as a natural occurrence caused by economic and

competitive factors.

Part B: My entrepreneurial journey in TIMS7301

The understanding of new venture opportunity validation experience in both highlights

and challenging times.

When I think about new venture opportunity, I perceive entrepreneurial validation as an

action that starts with identifying and recognizing potential customers or clients who need to

change their behavior or demand on a particular product to focus on what one is about to offer.

As an entrepreneur, I perceive people to have a significant opportunity to change what they used

to do and begin doing something different due to a new service or product introduced in the

market. I have learned that entrepreneurs are obligated to take advantage of the innovations to

foster people's supply and consumer behavior as a way of fueling societal progress and the global

economy. Moreover, I have come to understand that entrepreneur faces both good and
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challenging times during startup and running a new business. Difficulties may result from the

economic crisis, competition in the target market, poor product positioning, and the wrong

business model. However, it always feels good when an entrepreneur starts a venture and

prospers into an extensive and successful business that requires proper opportunity analysis and

market segmentation.

When starting a new venture, one should always be ready to face some setbacks and also

unlimited benefits when it picks up well. In my further venture, opportunity validation has

encountered several challenges such as lack of capital, financial management, budgeting,

segmenting the market, stiff competition, and means of attracting customers. These challenges

acted as a block to the validation of the venture since they always reminded me about failure.

However, the insight that I gained from the entrepreneurial journey helped me come up with the

best solutions for the challenges. I think in hindsight, I could not have approached the business

model-building journey differently, like attaching emotional feelings to the business success,

overestimating the market condition, replacing reality with assumptions, and basing business

success on the hope that people with receiving the product positively.

Decision on investing in my team’s business opportunity

As an investor, there are several things that I must consider before deciding on whether or

not to take that business idea. Beyond the course discussion, I have learned that as an

entrepreneur, it is essential to do a thorough market and customer analysis before making any

investment decision. Some businesses fail during the startup stage due to minor mistakes, which

to some investors are meaningless, but by the time they realize the business is down. Therefore,

before taking the idea, I have to develop a clear plan and budget from which I will make a

decision. The plan must contain the market and demand of the product, capital and finance
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needed, staff, location, and market competition from which profit will be calculated. According

to my analysis, the idea is good, and I can invest in it as it presents a great opportunity and well-

analyzed market with many customers.

Furthermore, with the idea of the entrepreneurial journey, I can ensure all the steps which

need to be followed, like estimating the business opportunity in terms of customers and market

condition, value positioning in the market, business model, and the design of critical thinking

methodologies. With these ideas, I can ensure the business idea becomes a successful venture

which will attract more customers and impose competition in the market. However, the business

plan needs some clarification on the issue of payback period, value positioning, sources of

capital, and long-term goals. This will help me avoid failure that new ventures face due to a lack

of a clear plan and defined operation goals.

Overall Course Experience

The course has presented significant knowledge concerning new ventures or self-

employment. It is believed that when the economy and job market are perfect, entrepreneurs are

safe in coming up with new ventures and starting up companies to provide people with goods

and services. It explores key ideas in starting a running business based on several theories like

entrepreneurial group theory, social change theory, innovation theory, behavioral theory, and

cultural theory. It has also presented a well-elaborated stage that an investor must follow to

implement a new venture: inspiration, preparation, assessment, exploring resources, business

plan, navigating, and last the launch. Through course, I was able to understand that

entrepreneurship is a journey that one explores to discover whether the venture will be beneficial

or it will fail. However, I think there are some advancements that need to be done on the course

it includes the aspect of technological advances and how they impact the new ventures.
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Future reflection based on the knowledge and experience gained from the course

Over the decades, self-employment has been the dream of many students and people of

great minds who perceive employment as a wastage of time and slavery. The idea of an

entrepreneurial journey is essential for both current and future people with a vision of becoming

their bosses. The knowledge I have gained from the course is enough to propel me towards

making my dreams true of becoming self-employed. I have been admiring people with big

companies or organizations by imagining the millions of money they are earning daily, a desire

which has been made a reality through learning about the entrepreneur journey. I dream of

becoming an entrepreneur in the future, and I have gained knowledge of starting with a small

venture and growing into a successful entrepreneur. Through the knowledge I have learned from

the course, I can boldly say that soon am becoming an entrepreneur.

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References
Chan., J. (2020). What These 4 Startup Case Studies Can Teach You About Failure . Retrieved

from: https://foundr.com/articles/leadership/personal-growth/4-startup-case-studies-

failure

Cooper. B., B. (2013). The 13 Biggest Failures from Successful Entrepreneurs and What

They’ve Learned From Them. Retrieved from: https://buffer.com/resources/failure-

entrepreneur-12-successful-entrepreneurs-tell-us-the-biggest-lessons-theyve-learned/

Gabriel, J. (2015). BitShuva Radio. Retrieved from:

https://debuggerdotbreak.wordpress.com/2015/05/21/my-startups-dead-5-things-i-

learned/

Kotak, Y. (2015). Lumos. Retrieved From: https://medium.com/@yashpkotak/5-reasons-why-

my-iot-startup-failed-19c5537e61e1

Madden, S. (2015). Home Joy. Retrieved From: https://backchannel.com/why-homejoy-failed-

bb0ab39d901a#.gyv7ttga9

Smithmier, D. (2015). The idea is dead. Kinley. Retrieved from: https://medium.com/gokart-

labs/the-idea-is-dead-long-live-the-idea-b9bc132d6f50

Zerner. A. (2015). Case Study of a Failed Startup, College Inside Review. Retrieved from:

https://medium.com/startup-autopsies/case-study-of-a-failed-startup-37db342df2bf