My startup failed, now what?

Ask yourself: was the startup a failure due to macroeconomic conditions or something else outside your control, or did it fail because of internal mistakes and lack of experience?

I fear too many people get into the startup world and end up cosplaying as executives, when in reality they haven't put in the hard work to earn that position. If this feels uncomfortably close to home, I suggest focusing on a "normal" job in a corporate environment, and being humble about what your experience really counts for when it comes to levelling expectations.

"I'm a business/product/xyz co-founder and good with product/people/business/pre-sales. In our prior Startup, I took the product team from a person of one to XYZ and sustained the company's growth for two years. Unfortunately, we had to shut down our company. I'm looking for a founding or early-founding team role in a seed/or-something funded Startup taxing on its runway. I can do this/that to achieve that/that/and-that/. I don't consider myself technical but can understand and translate the technologies to meaningful business outcomes and sell it externally to customers or the internal stakeholder."

Now, change/edit/enhance that narrative and approach Startups with cash in their bank. This is if you still want to fight it out and become an experienced founder. Your third attempt, if you have to, might have a much better story and outcome.

If you want to go to a big corporation, then I believe you have many choices.

There are plenty of Product jobs out there. Product Manager is a direct application of the same skills. They love ex-startup founders as opposed to someone who worked in some corporation and did focus groups and week-long UI/UX workshops, but never talk to users.

Believe in yourself and try to build cash flowing systems. Or... Lots of existing companies that are very scrappy are constantly looking for 'bolt-on' mad men builder types that can get things done. Perhaps looks for companies that have the shortest distance between your actions and revenue generation for the business. ie: sales has 3 leaps. Contact, chit chat, sale. Opposed to a position that commoditizes your time. The latter is a negative option because the supply of available talent familiar with the internet jungle has just multiplied not to mention its been saturated with international talent for atleast the last 5 years.

It’s failure if you didn’t learn anything from it that you can’t transfer.

What skills and lessons can you transfer and build on? There surely are some. That’s the part of your story you can write next.

If it’s product, no one gets good at it by doing it once or only doing it right.

Lean product is finding your way to do as many build, message, learn iterations possible to learn most efficiently.

If you’re looking to get in touch with the creator and product side in you, you might like the book the war of art, or revisiting it.

Good luck and for those who might find this later , post an update sometime.

I write resumes for a living and give career consultations. Maybe 5% of my clients come to me with similar issues - they have accomplishments and work history, but really struggle to identify direction for their next move. During the writing process, I ask questions about things they did, and I've typically found that the things people talk about the most (or in the most detail) tend to be the things they are best suited for.

Start writing about what you did at your startup - things you were ultimately responsible for, things you are comfortable 'taking credit' for, etc. When you've done that, look back and see if you can identify any themes in there.

Don't worry about the startup failing, there are literally millions of people with similar stories of being part of a failed startup or even several. Look ahead while also thinking about what you learned during the process - what would you do the same way, what would you do differently.

You have many options. Joining another startup seems like an easy fix. If you want to go corporate why not join a bootcamp to level up your skills. General Assembly has a good product management program.

Everybody fails at many things multiple times in their lives. Just try to manage failure gracefully and get things in order before trying again.

Are you good at sales? Are you based in the USA? Do you mind working on straight commission? (50% - 70%) Would you like to have input on expanding products ? If so please DM me

Starting a company and having it fail can be a difficult and emotionally challenging experience. However, it's important to remember that failure is a natural part of the startup process, and many successful entrepreneurs have failed multiple times before achieving success.

First, it is important to take some time to process and reflect on what you learned from your startup experience. Reflect on what went well, what didn't, and what you would do differently if you were to start again. This will help you learn from your experiences, which will be valuable for your future endeavors.

As you start to look for your next job, it's important to remember that you have valuable skills and experience that can be applied to a variety of roles in the tech industry. The fact that you have experience working in a hard tech startup is an asset and should be highlighted in your resume and in interviews. You can also consider focusing on roles that align with your interests such as Business Development and product development roles.

You can also reach out to your professional network, such as former colleagues, classmates, and mentors, to let them know you are looking for a job and ask for their advice or if they know of any job openings that would be a good fit for you.

It's also important to remember that you don't need to have the perfect job right away or have everything figured out. It's okay to take some time to explore different opportunities and find something that is a good fit for you. Be open to different types of roles and companies, and don't be afraid to take a step back if you need to in order to gain more experience or skills.

Finally, you can consider going back to school or pursuing additional education if you think that would be beneficial to you, but make sure you weigh the cost of the education against the potential benefit before making the decision.