Entrepreneurship is an emotional rollercoaster, and the difference between entrepreneurs who thrive and those who burn out often comes down to resilience. Cultivating emotional resilience can become an entrepreneur’s strongest asset during uncertain times. Taking inspiration from research and real-life examples, let’s explore how resilience (i.e., the ability to bounce back from setbacks, adapt, and keep going) is not an innate trait but a learnable skill linked to entrepreneurial success.
Every entrepreneur knows the highs and lows of building a business from scratch. One week, a founder might be celebrating a big win, while the next, the startup might be struggling with a major setback. During this uncertainty, emotional resilience, meaning the capacity to withstand stress and recover from failures, can be a founder’s superpower (Nautiyal & Pathak 2024). Resilience is extremely important in life in general, and even more so in the entrepreneurial world when trying to commercialize innovations. Resilience is what keeps some pushing forward when others throw in the towel (Corner et al. 2017). Researchers describe entrepreneurial resilience as a mix of consciousness, determination, perseverance, and self-belief that helps some entrepreneurs achieve better results than their less resilient peers (De Vries & Shields 2006). In practical terms, entrepreneurial resilience is the determination to hear “NO” 100 times and still find a reason to try once more.
The resilience–success connection
Does resilience truly give entrepreneurs an advantage? Researchers have identified three dimensions of resilience (hardiness, resourcefulness, and optimism) and found that these traits can predict entrepreneurial success. They observed that optimism (e.g., staying positive despite the outcomes) boosts performance (Ayala & Manzano 2014). Resilient founders are also more likely to bounce back quicker from failure (Ayala & Manzano 2014; Purnomo et al. 2021). If their first venture does not work out, they learn from their previous mistakes (Sachdev 2023). Entrepreneurs who start a second business after an initial failure are significantly more likely to succeed in subsequent attempts thanks to their previous learnings and employing new strategies (Lafuente et al. 2019).
History gives us plenty of reminders from previous generations pushing past obstacles to achieve what they dreamed of. We all know the famous story of Thomas Alva Edison, who tested thousands of unsuccessful prototypes before finally creating a functioning light bulb.
Sir James Dyson had to go through 5,127 failed prototypes before finally inventing a marketable bagless vacuum. J.K. Rowling received a dozen rejection letters from publishers before one took a chance on Harry Potter (Tredgold 2017). Although these stories have different contexts, there is a common theme… Persistence in the face of repeated “failures”. Some of the world’s greatest innovations have been built on persistence, not perfection. Setbacks are just a way to learn what does not work and how to do it better next time. We are all one “no” away from that life-changing “yes.”
The best part? Resilience is not a fixed trait you either have or do not have. Harvard Business Review (2011) reports that resilience can be developed through experience and conscious practice. Entrepreneurs build resilience every time they face adversity, they become tougher and more adaptable with each challenge.
LAB’s NOKKA project
The NOKKA project supports SMEs in developing capabilities that strengthen growth, competitiveness, and innovation readiness (LAB 2025). Emotional resilience is a core part of this process. RDI and commercialization of innovations involve huge amounts of uncertainty, slow progress, and iterative experimentation. Not every idea succeeds the first time, whether in product development, collaboration with HEIs, or applying for innovation funding. Resilience helps SMEs stay committed, learn from previous struggles, and try again with better insights.
In NOKKA, resilience is not only a personal skill but also a strategic advantage that enables companies to engage in research-driven innovation without fear of failure. The best way to learn how to become more emotionally resilient against setbacks is to be exposed to “failure” early and often, and remember “there is no rejection, just redirection”.
Author
Sofia Ramos works as an RDI Specialist at LAB University of Applied Sciences, helping SMEs navigate innovation, commercialization, and growth. She focuses on building bridges between companies and the academic world. She is passionate about making research practical and useful for entrepreneurs.
References
Ayala, J. C., & Manzano, G. 2014. The resilience of the entrepreneur. Influence on the success of the business. A longitudinal analysis. Journal of economic psychology, 42, 126-135.
Corner, P. D., Singh, S., & Pavlovich, K. 2017. Entrepreneurial resilience and venture failure. International Small Business Journal, 35(6), 687-708.
De Vries, H., & Shields, M. 2006. Towards a theory of entrepreneurial resilience: A case study analysis of New Zealand SME owner operators. New Zealand Journal of Applied Business Research, 5(1), 33-43.
Harvard Business Review. 2011. Building Resilience. Cited 9 Dec 2025. Available at https://hbr.org/2011/04/building-resilience
LAB. 2025. NOKKA – Rapid commercial development of companies’ innovation activities with the help of research results project. LAB University of Applied Sciences. Cited 9 Dec 2025. Available at https://lab.fi/fi/projekti/NOKKA
Lafuente, E., Vaillant, Y., Vendrell‐Herrero, F., & Gomes, E. 2019. Bouncing back from failure: Entrepreneurial resilience and the internationalisation of subsequent ventures created by serial entrepreneurs. Applied Psychology, 68(4), 658-694.
Nautiyal, S., & Pathak, P. 2024. A resilient path to prosperity: Understanding the impact of entrepreneurial resilience on SMEs. Journal of Global Entrepreneurship Research, 14(1), 8.
Purnomo, B. R., Adiguna, R., Widodo, W., Suyatna, H., & Nusantoro, B. P. 2021. Entrepreneurial resilience during the Covid-19 pandemic: navigating survival, continuity and growth. Journal of Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies, 13(4), 497-524.
Sachdev, N. 2023. Entrepreneurial Resilience: What Makes Entrepreneur Start Another Business After Failure.Asian Journal of Economics, Business and Accounting, 23(18), 46-58.
Tredgold, G. 2017. 4 reasons why resilience is an entrepreneur’s greatest quality. Cited 9 Dec 2025. Available at https://www.inc.com/gordon-tredgold/4-reasons-why-entrepreneurs-need-to-be-resilient.html
