Not everyone is blessed into riches, or has luck on their side 24/7, because life gets in the way. Sometimes we compare ourselves to the entrepreneurs and other people’s success and see everything that they have. 

Some may define George Soros as an investor more than an entrepreneur, but he’s certainly worked his way from the bottom to the top. In 1947, he fled Nazi persecution to start a new life in England. Moving alone, he had little money to support him, though attended the London School of Economics. It was his admirable determination to educate himself that earned his desire to succeed. Just short of four years later, he moved to the United States and become an investment manager of numerous major firms and began to build his own company.

When you think of Steve Jobs, you recall the early generation of Apple starting in a garage. This infamous story has inspired millions of entrepreneurs to pursue their dreams, no matter the location of technology available. After developing prototype models, he felt confident in his hard work and capabilities. Self-belief and hard work encouraged him to find a co-signer to obtain a bank loan of a quarter of a million dollars to generate Apple.

An inspiration and motivator to generations across the globe, Oprah Winfrey didn’t have it easy in the beginning. Born into an extremely poor family in Mississippi and suffering countless tragedies as a young girl, she never let her lifestyle hold her back. At the young age of 19, she was the first African-American television correspondent in her state. At the age of 32, she was a millionaire, and now, she’s a multi-billionaire.

Do Won Chang didn’t have millions in the bank to fund his dream of owning a fashion company. Instead, he worked as a janitor, barista, and gas station employee to support himself and his wife in their home in America, after immigrating from Korea. In 1984, four years later, the couple had enough savings to open up a small clothing store in the area. That small clothing store is formally known as Forever 21. So many entrepreneurial immigrants are hoping that they can also turn their dreams into reality.

This list certainly isn’t exhaustive of the admirable entrepreneurs who have turned pennies into millions. No-one has it easy, and even when you’ve ‘made it’, there will be unpleasant surprises trying to stop you succeeding. The one thing all of these entrepreneurs have in common? They were extremely passionate about their ideas, and that motivated them to work hard and believe in themselves.

Who is missing from the list that’s inspired you? Let us know in the comments below.