Starting a new business is exciting. You have a passion for your product or service, you think you’ve identified the market for it, and you dive in after doing your research. But the statistics are harsh: a full 50% of small businesses fail within the first five years of operation. By year ten, this number skyrockets to a full 70%! And according to the US Small Business Administration, this number can vary so much that the failure rate can be as high as 95% by year five. (more…)