All it takes is a spark, a moment of inspiration for a great idea to take shape in your mind. Artists, scientists, and of course, entrepreneurs are always on the lookout for these rare special moments. These magical moments cannot really be explained, but these seemingly “insignificant” nanoseconds have so much energy that they can completely alter the way we live.
As an entrepreneur, you must always be open to various sources for new and innovative ideas because you never know where you may find your next inspiration. It may be a song or a TV program, or maybe a place you recently visited that could fill your mind with great ideas and inspiration to do something out of the league.
Talking about different sources, YouTube can be a great place to start if you are a start-up founder or an entrepreneur looking for inspiration. Here is a list of eleven YouTube channels every start-up founder should follow.
TED
Founded in 1984 by Richard Saul Wurman and Harry Marks, TED is known for sharing great ideas and inspiration via their conferences which are presented in the form of videos.
Ted, in its early days, drew inspiration from Silicon Valley and focused on technology. However, TED has now diversified to include talks from various fields. From scientific to humanitarian to cultural, TED talks focus on bringing you the perspective of the best minds from diverse fields.
Speakers in TED are given 18 minutes to share their ideas in the best way possible. Some past speakers include Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Stephen Hawking, and Bill Clinton.
Ted’s official YouTube channel has all the conferences in the form of videos that can prove beneficial for a start-up founder or an entrepreneur looking for great ideas. With over 20 million subscribers, this YouTube channel is filled with deep thoughts from the best minds in the world.
HubSpot
Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah founded HubSpot in 2006. The company focuses on developing and marketing software products related to customer service, inbound marketing, CRM, SEO, SEM, content management, and live chat.
An article published in the Harvard Business Review in 2010 mentioned that the free online tools that HubSpot offered were among its best products.
HubSpot CRM Free was launched in 2014 and offers stunning features such as revenue forecast and measuring sales team productivity.
HubSpot is also known for its annual conference called “INBOUND.” The first INBOUND conference was held in 2012, and since then, the annual meet has only gotten bigger. Noted Speakers such as Michelle Obama and Issa Rae have been a part of the annual event.
The vibrant YouTube channel of HubSpot provides useful information for start-up founders and entrepreneurs. From global tech and business trends to social media strategies for businesses, HubSpot’s videos provide useful insights that can easily turn into inspirations for your new next big project.
Google Business
A neighborhood tailor in Hong Kong decided to go global, which led them to start a YouTube channel. Little did they know that they would grow leaps and bound amid the pandemic: from answering questions to gaining new customers, Mark Cho and his team used the power of videos to grow their small business.
The official Google Small Business YouTube channel features many similar stories that can inspire young entrepreneurs. The channel also creates videos on starting small businesses on YouTube, working successfully from home, and various other inspirational videos.
The videos featured on the channel show how entrepreneurs and start-up founders use Google tools to tackle everyday challenges at the workplace. Google Business is among the best YouTube channels that every start-up founder should follow.
Entrepreneur
First published in 1977, the Entrepreneur magazine focuses on news about businesses, entrepreneurship, and business management. Entrepreneur’s YouTube channel is the vibrant counterpart of the magazine.
From podcasts to videos to tips for businesses, the Entrepreneur’s channel has everything that could get a start-up founder excited easily.
One explainer video talks about three ways to maximize CRM and points out the following:
- Manage key items in one place
- Customer relations are key
- Organization and automation will set you free
Another video points out “three things that can make digital marketing widely more efficient.”
The kind of videos available on the channel can help any entrepreneur face daily challenges with ease. The channel provides a mix of business tips and solutions, expert advice, and growth strategies.
Marie Forleo
Business owners, start-up founders, and entrepreneurs are all watching Marie Forleo. But why are so many people watching her? The answer is simple—Marie Forleo videos are simple. Her videos always find a way to deliver complex messages in the simplest ways possible.
Forleo has a charming and funny way of making her videos. She is an expert when it comes to providing life and work advice that people can use. With over 410,000 followers, Forleo is quickly becoming a powerful force.
Following Forleo will allow you to gain a different perspective of various problems. From building a business to facing daily obstacles, Forleo’s video deals with multi-layered business issues. Her mission statement, “to create a business and life you love,” lets the viewers know what they can expect from her videos.
Roberto Blake
For a creative entrepreneur, Roberto Blake’s videos come as a blessing. If you are a creative start-up, founder, or an entrepreneur looking to monetize your work, then Blake’s videos are what you need.
Blake’s channel, “Always Be Creating,” also serves as his mission statement. His videos focus primarily on income ideas, graphic designing, photography, social media, vlogs, and other related areas.
Mentorship, according to Blake, is crucial for success. He believes, “Being a Creative Entrepreneur is different; you have to balance your art and craft with the challenges of running a business. I help enable people by helping reinforce or introduce technical skills, creative thinking, but also practical ways to approach business and deal with clients and customers as a creative. The channel covers everything from tech, tools, techniques, and tactics while also offering encouragement and advice.”
Stanford Graduate School of Business
Moving ahead in life sometimes means looking back! Yes, that is true. Do you remember the lessons from your school or college? If your answer is no, then you should look back, and maybe you could gain the inspiration to do something new.
Stanford Graduate School of Business provides all the information you require as a start-up founder. From class takeaways to inspirational talks, Stanford’s YouTube channel features videos with insights from industry leaders.
Apart from its focus on business, the channel also focuses on social issues. Topics such as “What is Wrong with US Democracy and What Should Reform Look Like?” and “Business + Earth, Energy, and Environmental Sciences: Power Grid Stability and Renewable Energy” will help you build a business with values that are essential in the world today.
Robin Sharma
Bestselling author of “The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari,” Robin Sharma began his career as a litigation lawyer. At the age of 25, Robin published his first book and thus began his journey as a leadership expert. From NASA to Nike, Robin’s “leadership Methods” are used by the biggest companies “to drive real growth + top performance.”
Robin Sharma’s YouTube channel offers the best leadership advice for entrepreneurs and start-up founders. Robin inspires and encourages leaders and entrepreneurs to find their passion and keep their nose to the grindstone. With 831K subscribers, Robin Sharma’s YouTube channel is truly resonating with the people.
Gary Vaynerchuk
Belarusian-American entrepreneur and Internet personality, Gary Vaynerchuk, is known as a business guru whose videos on YouTube provide deep insights from his personal entrepreneurial experiences.
Gary started his career by extending his family’s wine business. He initially came to the limelight as a wine critic, but later, he became a prominent Internet figure known for digital marketing and social media.
His channel on YouTube, “The Garyvee Video Experience,” provides social media and marketing strategies and advice that can prove helpful for entrepreneurs.
Gary’s calm and composed style of presenting videos and podcasts has hit a chord with audiences from all over the world.
Chase Jarvis
Entrepreneur, photographer, artist, and director, Chase Jarvis is known for creating inspirational videos on YouTube. His videos primarily focus on discovering your own calling and doing the things that make you happy.
“I spent years of my life and tens of thousands of dollars chasing everyone else’s dream for what I was supposed to become rather than chasing my own. It was when I finally quit that path and pursued my own calling to become a photographer and an entrepreneur that I really felt alive.”
His videos are about career, creativity, and living according to your terms. From live shows to creativity to Q&As, Chase’s YouTube videos are filled with wisdom, which can help you as a start-up founder to live the life of your dreams.
Bryan Elliott
Bryan Elliott is “an active writer, director, producer, speaker, teacher & host.” He is also a guest lecturer in UCLA, UCI, USC, and other top universities across the country.
Bryan’s YouTube Channel, Behind the Brand, features video interviews of entrepreneurs, YouTube gurus, social media influencers, and start-up founders. The videos also offer valuable insights from important people in business, which you can use as a start-up founder to face everyday challenges.
Following these channels will ensure that you, as a start-up founder, are always ahead of your peers. Every channel in the list is unique and provides a different perspective of facing hurdles. These channels can also inspire entrepreneurs to begin something new.
Bonus: 5 Tips For Start-Up Founders To Identify Growth Opportunities
When you are a part of a big corporate structure, you can expect to find professional development and help from your superiors. However, things change when you decide to become a founder. As a start-up founder, you have to figure things out on your own, along with identifying opportunities to take your start-up to the next level. Here are five tips for start-up founders to identify growth opportunities.
Get a mentor
Never be afraid of learning! While it is true that entrepreneurs learn from their mistakes, having a coach goes a long way in minimizing those miscalculations and inaccuracies you make during your journey as an entrepreneur.
Mentors can guide you in identifying opportunities, reducing mistakes, and increasing productivity. A learned mentor who you can trust can completely alter your outlook towards your business; however, a coach you find difficult to connect with will only make things difficult for you.
Feedback is essential
Feedbacks are not only essential in carrying your business forward but helps you in identifying new opportunities. There are two ways you can get feedback: first, someone giving you their feedback without you asking, and second, you ask for someone’s feedback.
The problem with the first kind is that it tends to be vague. These types of feedback can be great if you ask the person giving you the feedback to be specific.
For the second type, you can create questionnaires with specific questions so that you have actionable insights.
Build a group of advisors
Your journey as a start-up founder is both unique and lonesome. Every start-up is different; the idea behind building your brand is different. So, it will be difficult for a single person to address every issue you face in your journey as a start-up founder. Building a group of advisors can prove to be fruitful for you.
Grow your network
As a founder, it is advisable to look at the larger picture as opposed to concentrating only on different components of your business. Concentrating on the overall vision, along with the various smaller elements of your business, will help you identify opportunities to take your start-up to the next level. Creating a network of industry experts, mentors, investors, and fellow founders will help you accomplish your vision.
Build the right workforce
You cannot do everything alone; therefore, you need the right workforce to accomplish your remarkable vision. The top four in the list are about identifying opportunities effectively, but building the right workforce will enable you to work successfully on the identified opportunity.
In Conclusion
As a start-up founder, it pays to be open to ideas. There are growth opportunities everywhere; all you need is to recognize these opportunities. Following the above YouTube channels will enable you to take your business to unimaginable heights.
PJ has a background in management consulting and software development. At DesignBro, he combines both. Personal favorite brand of PJ is Jeep.
