Mindee Hardin reframes the mommy wars for an entrepreneurial generation.

On Wednesday I attended the annual Oregon Entrepreneurial Summit, where nine business owners shared "True Grit" stories about failure and success during the entrepreneurial journey.

Once the guacamole was gone and everyone had a tamale or two on their plate, the crowd of more than 175 was ready for a night of entertaining anecdotes from aspiring and arriving business owners who struggled, failed — and persevered.

Here are five takeaways from the event: