It goes without saying that starting your own business takes a lot of work. Roughly 50 percent of new U.S. businesses fail in the first five years. It can be very intimidating and scary to start a business， knowing there’s no guarantee it’ll work out.

众所周知，创办自己的企业需要做大量的工作。大约一半的美国新创企业不到五年就会倒闭。创业会令人们感到非常胆怯和畏惧，因为你清楚无法担保这件事会成功。

Over the years， I’ve had the privilege of working with entrepreneurs and startups at various stages of growth. Some of these businesses have gone on to great successes， while others， unfortunately， not so much.

多年以来，我有幸与处于不同成长阶段的企业家和初创公司共事。一些企业经营得非常成功；然而另一些企业，很不幸，就不太成功了。

But there are lessons to be learned from success stories and failed attempts alike. If half of businesses fail in the first five years， what are the other half doing right and what can entrepreneurs learn from them？ Below are tips， tricks and words of wisdom to consider when kicking off a new venture.

但是，从成功的故事和失败的尝试当中，我们都可以吸取一些经验教训。如果有一半的企业不到五年就倒闭了，那么另外一半企业又做对了什么？企业家可以从成功的例子中学到什么？当你开办一家新的企业时，不妨参考以下这些建议、技巧和箴言。

1. Bend before you break

1. 不屈则易折

As a business owner， and especially as an entrepreneur， you must be adaptable. When leading a business during the early stages of the unknown， you’ve got to master the craft of working well during times of constant change. If something can go wrong， it likely will， but if you’re able to be fluid， you and your company will avoid wasting time backpedaling and scrambling.

作为一名企业主，尤其是一名初创企业家，你必须得有适应能力。要领导一个发展未知、正处于早期阶段的企业，你要掌握对不断变化的事态应对裕如的本领。如果事情有可能出错，那也许最终就会出错，但是如果你能灵活应变，你和你的公司就不会浪费时间手忙脚乱地朝令夕改。

Robert Kiyosaki， author of Rich Dad Poor Dad， simply explains this notion： “When times are bad is when the real entrepreneurs emerge.”

罗伯特·清崎，即《富爸爸，穷爸爸》一书的作者，简明地解释了这样一个观点：“当形势不好的时候，就是真正企业家浮现的时候。