Innovation wins in the market but loses in the contracts. Research shows 55.6 percent of venture-backed CEOs are replaced by year four - not for business failure, but through contractual mechanisms they never anticipated. Most founders lose their ventures to structural vulnerabilities: investor conflicts, governance gaps, contractual exposures. After 20 years as a finance lawyer and a decade as partner at White & Case, Ropes & Gray, and Jones Day, Jonathan Bloom founded an advisory firm serving sophisticated capital. As founder and Chief Executive, he built a firm shortlisted for multiple industry awards. When institutional dynamics he had not protected against converged, he exited the firm and documented the systematic patterns - backed by academic research on venture capital conflicts and organizational behavior under pressure. BLINDSPOTS reveals 18 systematic lessons across four parts on hidden risks that separate ventures that scale safely from those that stumble. With a Foreword by Tejune Kang (Harvard Business School Alumnus, Former NASDAQ-Listed Company Founder, YPO Member) What You Will Learn: Part I: Building Without Armor (Lessons 1-6) - Foundation protections before pressure hits: contractual safeguards, governance structures, and legal frameworks that create operational freedom. Part II: Navigating Institutional Dynamics (Lessons 7-10) - Understanding how institutional forces converge: investor incentive shifts, board dynamics, and platform risks. Part III: Managing Compound Challenges (Lessons 11-13) - Navigating when pressure becomes crisis: decision-making under constraint and protecting what matters most when dynamics converge. Part IV: Personal Transformation (Lessons 14-18) - Rebuilding after loss: processing failure, extracting wisdom, and preparing for what comes next. Plus: Three-tier implementation frameworks ($0-5K to $25K+), protection checklists, and practical tools organized by budget and timeline. This book is for founders raising institutional capital, entrepreneurs scaling ventures, investors who want to understand the founder perspective, executives managing complex stakeholder environments, advisors supporting high-stakes transitions, and anyone building something meaningful who wants to prepare wisely and build with confidence. "This is a book I wish had been published when I was starting my entrepreneurial journey. It is the truth beneath the veneer, the sherpa's guide to climbing the mountain." - Dan Honeywell, CEO, Naya Health "Every entrepreneur should read this before taking money. As the old proverb goes: prepare for the divorce, not the marriage." - Oskar Sköldberg, Serial Entrepreneur and Investor "Jonathan's book is essential reading for anyone building a venture. The patterns he reveals are exactly what founders need to see before it's too late." - James Wyatt, Partner, Baker McKenzie "A rare combination of legal insight and hard-won founder experience. This book fills a critical gap in the entrepreneurship literature." - Jason Edel, General Counsel, Financial Services Jonathan Bloom practiced finance law for 20 years - including a decade as partner at White & Case, Ropes & Gray, and Jones Day - advising sophisticated capital on complex transactions.After his partnership tenure, he founded an advisory firm where he served as Chief Executive. The firm was shortlisted for multiple industry awards. When institutional dynamics he failed to anticipate converged during crisis, he exited the firm and documented the systematic patterns that destroy ventures during vulnerability - drawing from his experience, backed by academic research on venture capital conflicts, founder-investor misalignments, and organizational behavior.Blindspots is his first book. He holds a JD from University of Maryland School of Law and a BA (with honors) from Northwestern University. He is admitted to the Bar of the State of New York and lives in London with his partner Lauren.