Why negativity can motivate founders: Study links doubts to greater persistence

• A new study finds entrepreneurs become more committed to their business ventures when they are told they will fail, increasing their efforts to make those businesses successful. • “Most entrepreneurs-people who start their own businesses-actually identify with the business they’re running,” says Tim Michaelis, an assistant professor of psychology at North Carolina State University and corresponding author of a paper on the work published in the Journal of Business Venturing.

Article Summaries:

• A new study finds entrepreneurs become more committed to their business ventures when they are told they will fail, increasing their efforts to make those businesses successful. “Most entrepreneurs-people who start their own businesses-actually identify with the business they’re running,” says Tim Michaelis, an assistant professor of psychology at North Carolina State University and corresponding author of a paper on the work published in the Journal of Business Venturing.

Sources:

• https://phys.org/news/2026-02-negativity-founders-links-greater-persistence.html