Young Millionaires: How These Entrepreneurs Under 30 Are Changing the World

Young people today don't just sit around and think about changing the world to suit their purposes--they do it. They may be inexperienced, but they're fearless when it comes to tackling long-stagnant business models and technologies with fresh new approaches-- ones that align with their internet upbringing and their expectation that commodities and information be transparent and easily shared. What might seem naive or reckless to the old-school regime is simply business as usual to big-dreaming upstarts who've been raised on the belief that they can accomplish anything they set their minds to.

5 Things Successful Entrepreneurs Do Daily

There is a saying that there are only three types of people in the world: those who watch what happened, those who wonder what happened and those who make things happen.

Entrepreneurs fall into the last category, of course. They are change agents, people who don't see the world as it is but as it could be. Entrepreneurs don't sit on the sidelines and wish for a better world. Rather they go out and create it. They don't wait for things to be different. They are the difference.

Don't Just Start a Business, Solve A Problem

As long as consumers have problems, they will always search for solutions. People will always look for better, faster and smarter ways to accomplish everyday tasks. And fortunately for entrepreneurs, there are still lots of rooms for improvements in existing products. That said, the biggest issue for most founders is finding these painful problems and matching them with the best solutions possible.

Here are a couple pieces of insight to get you started.

5 Essential Reads for Startup Entrepreneurs

For entrepreneurs to stay afloat in the startup world, they have to be able to learn on the fly. Otherwise, they will just sink.

While I believe the best lessons come from actual experience, founders can also learn a great deal from listening to experienced entrepreneurs, talking to mentors and simply picking up a book.

Here are a handful of reads I’ve found that perfectly encapsulate the woes of scaling a business and provide a great blueprint for helping founders through certain startup phases.

The 7 Elements Investors Look for in Your Funding Pitch

Q: How can we work to land a successful investment?

-- Shaba Shams

Here’s the short answer: start with a great pitch deck. The pitch deck is arguably the most important single document you will generate in the life of your company. It is the opening salvo and “the hook” by which you will (or will not) capture the attention and imagination of a potential investor.

5 Warning Signs a Startup Is a Bad Investment

A company that’s not growing is dying. This is an unpleasant reality that comes with the capitalist system, and it’s especially harsh for smaller or newer companies. Between concerns over debt, resource acquisition and client maintenance, plenty can go horrifically wrong. It’s no wonder that 80% of small businesses fail.

2 Sure Ways to Tell Whether Your Startup Can Win, If You Avert Clouded Judgment

When the head of a new venture sets sights on a fresh market opportunity, success is hardly guaranteed. But most entrepreneurs have thick skins, a strong belief in themselves and an overpowering vision.

The question is whether they can listen to reason and be talked out of moving into a market that they might have scarcely a chance of winning. The two key questions that entrepreneurs must ask themselves are the following:

50 Signs You Need to Start Your Own Business

An entrepreneurial type reads the signals and suddenly realizes it's time to make the leap and ready a launch.

If you’re sitting at your desk, daydreaming about starting your own business, this is the article for you.

You already know that launching a company can be an intimidating process requiring tons of hard work. But the question has been lingering with you day and night. Maybe you're just unhappy with your current position. Perhaps you've always dreamed of opening your own shop or consulting firm. Or maybe you just need a drastic change in you life.

9 Lessons You Won't Learn in Business School

More and more in Silicon Valley, we’re seeing less and less of an interest in pursuing MBA programs. It seems every week a new story highlights the opportunity costs of these programs, the unemployment rates for its graduates (though less than 5 percent of Harvard's class of 2012 was unemployed three months after graduating) and the celebrated entrepreneurs who didn’t finish college let alone a graduate program (Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Richard Branson, Mark Zuckerberg).

Build Your Personal Brand on Social Media, Moment by Moment

Many people have questioned the sudden rise of “personal branding.” Why do we care so much now and why the emphasis on the topic?

While in some cases we can thank reality television for turning ordinary people into authors, product developers, spokespeople and marketers, the truth is that the concept of selling yourself has been around for decades.

Tight Budget Launch Dilemma - Outsource or DIY?

As a self-funded entrepreneur, you start off as little more than a freelancer but, eventually, you are unable to do everything. You can’t design and manufacture a product from beginning to end while building a media company to promote yourself and a stylish, intuitive ecommerce platform.

A self-funded entrepreneur almost always must come up with the product idea and its unique selling proposition, then define your unique position in media space. Beyond that, it all depends on what your particular skills are. You should outsource some of the following:

How to Find the Absolute Right Mentor to Steer You to Startup Success

When I started out in business I had bravado, a visage of courage and a swagger like I knew what I was doing.

I soon found out that I had virtually no idea what I was doing and that I was either going to stick with the "fake it till you make it" mentality or I would adopt the "know it to grow it" approach.

Well, I went with the second option and I'm thankful every day for having had the courage to check my ego at the door and ask for some help, insight and guidance.

4 Tips for Attracting That Bit of Luck Every Entrepreneur Needs

Sometimes, as the adage advises sagely, a little luck is the best plan. Here are four things you can do to increase the likelihood that good things will come your way. Each one is designed to put you in a better position to advance toward whatever is your goal

Turning Crisis Into Opportunity: 5 Ways to Deal With Hardship

Entrepreneurs face obstacles from the moment they wake up in the morning, whether they're trying to satisfy investors, struggling to meet payroll, dealing with unexpected complications or delivering a new product to market.

Of course, not everyone is cut out for these rough seas. But some individuals stand out as being particularly well-suited for dealing with what investor and advisor Ben Horowitz calls the “hard things.”