BUS 362 WEEK 3 STARTUP MISTAKES

In a study conducted by Entrepreneur Weekly, Bradley University and University of Tennessee, the failure rate for startup companies was 44% by the end of the third year in business. Meaning, almost one in two startups failed after three years. There are a variety of reasons for this low success rate among entrepreneurs – from poor market research, to accelerated growth, to lack of cash flow planning, to many others. Review the article “Biggest Startup Mistakes and How to Avoid Them,” and discuss the following:

• Select the mistake described in the article that you think would have the greatest impact on a newly formed company.  
• Why do you think this mistake is so common with entrepreneurs?  
• If you were the owner of a company, what you would you do to avoid that particular mistake?