Also I think there has to be an understanding, whether it is learned in this process or learned beforehand, that every business fails in the beginning. Every business runs out of money. Every business has to fight to figure out how to keep going. If you are able to be successful, this is a step along the way towards success.
My business, which has been going on for 8 years, is starting slowly to shift from self-employment mode to startup mode (that transition may take the rest of the year). I have run out of money a couple times, had to go up against inlaws who said I wasn't cut out to be in business for myself, etc. There are times when I am so grateful for all the crap I have had to put up with in life (being physically bullied in public school, and much more I don't want to go into here) because these things, more than anything else have given me the confidence and ability to persevere regardless of what everybody else thinks.
But embarrassment has never been a reason I kept going. I kept going because I wanted to succeed eventually, or because I didn't want to go back to a standard job, or because of loyalty to my customers. And of course for me is part of it is plain old-fashioned stubbornness.
Telling people is a great psychological hack. Once you declare what you're doing, failing is a lot harder. If you keep it under your hat, quitting is easy.
