Thread by @laurenikay

1/ Here’s something we need to normalize: talking about failure.

My @ycombinator startup failed 6 years ago. I stayed silent.

And because of that silence, other startup founders—going through the exact same thing as me—felt alone in their shame too.

I want to break that trend.

2/ Any time someone brought up startups, I’d feel nauseous and change the subject.

I tried to reinvent myself, pretend that part of my life never happened.

But it’s been six years. I’m done hiding from my shame.

entrepreneurshandbook.co/my-startup-fai…

3/ >99% of news stories are about the Coinbases, which makes us failed founders feel even worse.

In reality, over 90% of startups fail.

Mine was one of them.

It’s taken me years to publicly admit that, but better late than never.

4/ Hi, I’m Lauren, and my startup failed.

But that doesn’t make me—or my startup—a failure.

5/ As one of the first all-female founded YC companies, it was even harder to talk about my failure.

I felt like I was letting women everywhere down.

There were a number of factors—including sexist treatment by some male investors—that led to this 6 year break from startup life

6/ My company also received an ungodly amount of press attention, which made the fall feel even further, only amplifying the imposter syndrome I felt.

Now that I’ve ‘gone public’ with my story, I’ve connected with dozens of others w/ similar stories.

7/ I’ve realized I’m part of a group of ambitious, hardworking & brave people—people who fought hard to turn their passions into reality.

It’s a club I’m honored to be a part of.