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Perhaps you read a magazine headline today mentioning the latest hot startup. Or you might have watched an interview or TV show saying a popular new product. Even more likely is the chance you used your favorite app on your phone to connect with friends or family.
All of these media experiences have one thing in common: Entrepreneurs!
Entrepreneurs who launch a business and stay with it long often enough bring valuable, practical experiences and commodities into the world. Many of us are mesmerized by successful entrepreneurs, wondering how they do it.
It’s not always apparent how a person got from point A to point B. Everyone loves success stories, but few know about the grueling stepping stones involved in the sacrifice. Whether a young professional or a seasoned entrepreneur, these stories below will inspire you to remain humble and persistent in your businesses!
Read on to discover 12 little-known facts about famous entrepreneurs.
1. Colonel Sanders
The great Colonel Sanders, the iconic founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC), began pursuing his fried chicken dream only after age 65. On top of that, Sanders was rejected 1,009 times before his recipe was accepted by a restaurant willing to franchise. Talk about persistence!
2. Gary Vaynerchuk
The legendary Gary Vaynerchuk is the man who built Wine Library–and now owns VaynerMedia. Before diving deeply into his father’s existing wine business, Vaynerchuk encountered several tear-filled moments with himself while deciding whether or not he wanted to be involved in the family business. He decided to commit, and now Vaynerchuk is widely respected as one of the most influential and savvy marketers alive.
3. Bill Gates
The Microsoft giant has experienced more than the average individual’s share of success. But the personal computing juggernaut has also been arrested. In 1977, young Gates was arrested for driving without a license and ignoring a red light. Not to fear, though; Gates’ life has been a lawful one since!
4. Josh Tetrick
The relatively young founder of Hampton Creek Foods studied law at the University of Michigan before starting his startup. Since then, the company has seen great investments from some of the world’s wealthiest and most prominent tech figures (such as Bill Gates). Hampton Creek Foods attempts to disrupt the traditional egg industry by building sustainable, vegan alternatives.
5. Steve Jobs
Before Apple, Steve Jobs worked with Steve Wozniak on a game called Breakout for Atari. Atari gave jobs $5,000 to develop the game and lied to Wozniak about the total funding. Jobs claimed the company only provided $700, with Wozniak pocketing $350.
What did Steve Jobs need the extra cash for? Perhaps he wanted most of the funding to use as he saw fit on the project. In any case, Jobs was willing to truly push the boundaries of everyday life to achieve his vision of success.
6. Larry Ellison
In addition to being a college dropout like Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, Larry Ellison has been heavily involved in the advancement of technology since 1977. If you were to ask a few dozen people on the street who conceived the tablet idea, most folks might think it was Apple. Surprisingly enough, Ellison’s company Oracle was the first to bring a tablet product to market. The Network Computer, a small device capable of basic computing tasks (such as email and Internet browsing), failed to impact consumers due to the lower cost and higher convenience of personal computers.
7. Robert Kiyosaki
Presently, Robert Kiyosaki is known as one of the world’s most prominent personal finance authors. His books have sold millions of copies, and his name is often mentioned by Tony Robbins, Dale Carnegie, and Zig Ziglar. What few people know is the exhausting climb Kiyosaki had before lasting success. In the early 1980s, Kiyosaki noticed that heavy metal bands were the new trend, and he subsequently started a business that licensed t-shirts to such bands. As the decade progressed and heavy metal’s heyday waned, the company fell out, and its profits collapsed.
8. Tony Robbins
Tony Robbins, virtually the most acclaimed self-development magnate of all time, failed his way to success over and over again.[1] Most of his followers know the stories he shares about his journey. Even cooler (and more surprising!) are facts about his personal life. For example, not only does Robbins listen to different styles of music, some of his favorite artists are P. Diddy and Tupac!
9. Rowland Macy
The massively successful department store founder, Rowland Macy, was a serial entrepreneur. Before becoming successful with Macy’s, however, he failed at seven previous business ventures.
10. Joe Fernandez
Fernandez created Klout for people to develop more influence on social media platforms. Funnily enough, Fernandez has have been observed to have a low Klout score!
11. Amancio Ortega
Once the wealthiest man in the world for a few hours in October 2015, Ortega is best known for being the founder of the Inditex fashion group, a firm that operates clothing lines and retail stores. Ortega began his foray into the clothing industry when he was just a teen, delivering shirts for another company.
12. Warren Buffett
In a similar fashion to Kiyosaki at times, Warren Buffett has pushed through various challenges and setbacks on his path to becoming a highly influential investor. Perhaps most impressive is that he still lives in the same house he bought over 50 years ago. His home is not gated; he drives with no security staff and does not use a cell phone.
