There are lots of daunting statistics in the business world about the percentage of new businesses that will fail within their first few years. When I started my small import business in 1985, I was told that *"only one of seven startups make it past their 5th anniversary.*"

As it turned out, we stayed in business for 13 years. But did that mean we had *"success,"* or merely that we had managed to defy a depressing statistic?

![1015-Sailboat.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmVHtjsssttHKTRA3comwxgHZD2FSeaiN6ipUz42j4AaM9/1015-Sailboat.jpg)
*Where is your ship sailing to?*

## *Spectacular Flops are not so Common!*

It's easy enough to detect a spectacular failure, in which some idea just totally *bombs* and some product or service intended to reach *millions* ends up reaching only *thousands* and there are overstuffed warehouses and massive layoffs at the founding company.

Those also tend to be the ones we most often hear and read about in the news, because their demises are so *"impressive"* that they are newsworthy.

And yet?

They are actually not that common, in the greater scheme of things.

![0937-DesertRocks.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmPvAk3KNGSYREgkU7eKSryCDMkU46f4qUekjugygwHnnN/0937-DesertRocks.jpg)
*Desert rocks and moon*

## *Slow Death, With a Whimper...*

Far more common is what happened when you marry a very long slow stagnation with very patient and determined management. 

You end up with a *"marginally unsuccessful"* venture that gets caught in a loop that can best be characterized by the statement

***"Too good to quit, too bad to continue."***

You site there and *"run the numbers"* and realize that *"if we just increase sales by 5% next year, we'll be better off!"* Then sales actually increase *3%* and you're not exactly *better* off, but you're not exactly *worse* off, either... so you end up back at the point of *"if we just increase sales by 5% next year, we'll be better off!"*

Lather, rinse, repeat...

Or perhaps you *do* finally end up *"doing better"* at a rate that means you're *finally* going to break free of the doldrums... and *then a very expensive piece of equipment breaks and has to be replaced,* and that immediately erases all your gains. 

So then you rationalize *"Yeah, but at least we have a new piece of gear that will last 10 years!"* and move forward... through more seasons of *"not QUITE as good as we had hoped for, but not terrible either."*

![0975-Island.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmP1SjTdvA1Zn9Vv2esL4NcKXrPgUsTC2Mp7mDifW9sPpY/0975-Island.jpg)
*Stranded?*

## *Waning Enthusiasm...*

Much of what ends up happening is psychological. 

*"Indifferent"* results in ventures we undertake have a way of psychologically wearing us down more than *"clear success"* or *"clear failure."*

This is perhaps an easier bridge to cross for those who are impulsive and impatient; they quickly grow bored and *"declare the end"* whether it's warranted, or not. 

More patient and determined individuals — those who see *"glimmers of hope"* and act on them — often are at risk of *getting stuck,* wavering between their loyalty to projects they had hoped would make a difference in the world and their own growing disillusion and waning enthusiasm. 

And then — one day after maybe 13 years (like me!) — you reach that point where you just decide to turn the lights off, with little fanfare or announcement, because you just can't *bear* getting up, going to work, and tending to a long dried-up vision you once had.

Thanks for reading!

*(Another **#creativecoin** creative non-fiction post)*

***Comments, feedback and other interaction is invited and welcomed! Because — after all — SOCIAL content is about interacting, right? Leave a comment-- share your experiences-- be part of the conversation!***

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*(As usual, all text and images by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is original content, created expressly for this platform.)
Created at 20200107 10:10 PST*
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