No matter what stage you're at in your career or where you're working, the startup world is one of extraordinary promise: getting in on the ground floor, making an impact, putting your stamp on the business, being free of corporate structure and politics, and just maybe getting a huge payday a few years down the road.

While this all sounds incredibly exciting and exhilarating, startup situations, by nature, have big risks attached to them. The statistics on success versus failure are pretty profound toward the latter.