There are many ways for a startup to fail. Some factors, like regulatory changes or input cost increases, are beyond the founder’s control. However, there are three significant actions that entrepreneurs are often guilty of that can kill your company as fast as anything.

There are many motives to start a business. In a market system at its simplest form, the purpose of a business is to make money. However, you must never forget your “raison d’être,” your company’s real reason for being.

How do we get there? Remember that your organization’s vision is the destination.

Advisory Board compensation is an important consideration. How much is right? Does this change over time? Is there a vesting period?

Average and Marginal costs are both important concepts. However, pricing your product according to these costs mechanisms can lead to dramatically different results. Understanding what this means for your business is critical to your success.

You are going to fail! This is the dirty little truth about being an entrepreneur.

Ultimately, the fit is as important to the advisory board candidate as it is to the entrepreneurs and the company. If it is learned that the fit doesn’t exist after the advisor has been on-boarded, it will likely turn out to be a waste of time for everyone.

If you’re not careful, it is easy to focus on avoiding onerous rules or minimizing tax consequences at the expense or your core business operations. These are certainly important factors, but they take a clear second place to meeting the market demand-solving the consumer’s problem.

Stephanie Vozza has spoken of the six lessons gleaned from entrepreneurs’ experience (Fast Company). It was illuminating to evaluate how our startup company (FundingSage) and its founders dealt with these business improvement issues.

Starting a scalable company is a daunting task. This will challenge even the most experienced management team. The team’s success requires a complete understanding of the issues and risks it faces in its quest to succeed.