[zende]

> the expectations of the people who made a bet on us either with their money or their hard work that we feel we've let down, even as we know that most startups do not achieve this goal.

I'm sorry to hear that you feel like you've let people down. That's a terrible way to feel and live your life. Investors and advisors back you early on because they believe in you. Embracing that philosophy is liberating, and actually, allows you to take more risks and become more success (and happy) from my experience.

I'm sure they'll be supportive of your next venture.

Thank you for sharing your experience with everyone. I'm sure this wasn't an easy blog post to write.

[wpietri]

I think it's healthy to worry that you've let people down after something like this. However much you give people the warning about risk, you all want the thing to succeed, and you're all disappointed when it doesn't work.

I agree it would be bad to worry about this indefinitely, but early on I think it's normal and reasonable. If I were one of their employees, I'd certainly want to see them express that, so that a) I know they're decent human beings, and b) I can absolve them of their guilt on my account. Their being concerned allows me to be generous, which helps both of us.