The burn rate of a startup is far greater than you can imagine. Combine that with the market volatility and competition, you got an easy recipe for failure. There are 4 vital parameters to your business which could help survive the turmoil. Book definition of these 4 vitals and practical understanding you get from running a business for couple of years is entirely different though. You have to get a sound grip on these 4 vitals even before you incorporate your company.