Entrepreneurship doesn’t always work out.

Here’s why that’s OK.

Last fall, I heard from a reader named Kaitlyn Allen. She’d been building a company called MendIt, which helped people find specialists to mend and repair clothing. The idea was to reduce waste and save people money. But it wasn’t succeeding.

“I’m closing MendIt,” she wrote to me. “The purported demand for innovation in the fashion/apparel industry is just not there in a meaningful way, at least for repair. But at least I gave it my all, and I’m so glad I did, because I would have always wondered.”

I love that attitude. Kaitlyn was sad, but she wasn’t bitter or regretful. She was grateful.

Why? Let’s consider it — because once you understand Kaitlyn’s way of thinking, you will become bolder, try new things more easily, and be less afraid to fail. And if you want to be a successful entrepreneur, you need all those traits in abundance.

Related: This Police Psychologist’s Simple Framework Changed How I Handle Failure

So here’s the thinking.

When we try something new, we often treat the outcome as validation. Our logic goes like this:

→ If it succeeds, then we’re smart and the idea was worth doing.

→ If it fails, then we were foolish and wasted our time.

→ Therefore, if our idea fails, we fail.

In that way, failure becomes a reflection of our worth. But that’s not fair! We can’t control outcomes; we can only control our own actions. That’s why Kaitlyn’s mindset was so important — because she shifted what counts as an accomplishment. 

Most people would say that “building a successful company” is an accomplishment. Kaitlyn decided that “answering her nagging question” was a meaningful accomplishment too.

And she’s right! Most people never act on their big idea. They never pursue a burning desire. They never satisfy an aching curiosity. They never know.

But Kaitlyn did. And now she knows. And knowing is better than wondering.

That is a powerful and freeing way to think. It lowers pressure. It reduces the stakes. Accomplishment becomes firmly within our control.

Related: I Teach Aspiring Entrepreneurs Why It’s Good to Fail — Here’s How to Turn That Failure Into Success

This aligns with one of my favorite pieces of advice, which came from behavioral scientist Katy Milkman. I’d asked her how to make a hard decision, and her answer was simple and beautiful:

Treat it like an experiment.

We often avoid new things because they feel like commitments. We think: If I don’t like this, I’ll be stuck with it for a long time. So we never try it at all.

But when we frame something as an experiment instead, we remove the pressure. Consider it: When a scientist runs an experiment, do they expect it to succeed? No! The goal is to simply find out what happens.

If those are the stakes, then the path forward becomes clearer. You’re not committing to a new life; you’re testing a hypothesis. You’re not risking everything on one outcome; you’re gathering data.

Every action becomes worthwhile.

When Kaitlyn’s company didn’t work out, that didn’t mean she was a bad entrepreneur. It just meant the market wasn’t ready for her solution, or the timing wasn’t right, or the business model needed adjustment. None of this was a personal failing; it was just market feedback.

And that feedback is incredibly valuable.

Kaitlyn now knows more about the industry than she did before. She built a network that respects her. Years from now, she’ll likely look back at MendIt as the moment she learned something critical, which informed the great thing she does next.

Related: Why Failure Is Crucial in Finding Your True Purpose

In other words: Kaitlyn did more than just shift the accomplishment. She also set herself up for future accomplishments.

That’s because we are not the sum of our achievements. We are the sum of our actions.

We grow based on what we do, not based on what we win.

Which means all you need to do is…do.

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