Inspiration from Top Entrepreneurs

Intelligence alone is not enough to achieve success. It takes a lot of hard work, dedication, and most importantly, inspiration. Everyone needs a source of motivation to keep going when times get tough. With 1 billion monthly active users, Instagram has become one of the most popular social media platforms today.

It is a great source of inspiration and motivation for entrepreneurs. From Tony Robbins to Sara Blakely, here are 5 Instagram accounts of today's top entrepreneurs that will help you stay inspired and motivated.

Tony Robbins

- Entrepreneur, bestselling author, life coach and thought leader Tony Robbins seeks to empower people to achieve their dreams. His Instagram account is packed with motivational quotes, videos and moving stories. With more than 4 million followers, he is one of the most popular entrepreneurs on Instagram.

Sara Blakely

- As Mother of Four and Billionaire Businesswoman Behind Spanx, Sara Blakely Reveals You Can Really Do It All.

Her Instagram account is full of great business tips for new mothers, women entrepreneurs, and anyone looking for some inspiration.

Gary Vaynerchuk

- Followed by more than 330,000 Instagram users, Gary Vaynerchuk shares what he is doing, inspirational videos and motivating quotes.

Brene Brown

- Brene Brown, academic author and one of the most popular Ted Talk speakers of all time, uses her teacher training to inspire and educate not only her students but the general public. Her 1.6 million Instagram followers are inspired by her motivational messages and get a glimpse into her own life with photos and videos showing how she lives a balanced and healthy life.

Marie Kondo

- Diagnosed with ADHD at a young age and dropped out of school as a result, Sophia Amoruso spent her formative years working odd jobs in the likes of Subway. After his parents' divorce, he moved to Sacramento, California, where he claims to have survived by hitchhiking, shoplifting and stealing from garbage cans. After spending most of his 20 years hovering between various software development jobs, Paris-born Pierre Omidyar began working on a simple buyer-to-buyer auction website in 1995. Kondi went on to share her tips in the best-selling book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up (paid link), which was first released in Japan and later published in more than 30 countries.

He wrote his first book, Entertaining, in 1982, which led to more than 77 lifestyle books and a popular magazine, Martha Stewart Living. Its success led to many television appearances, eventually landing its own television show. Stewart started her company, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, in 1996, which offers lifestyle advice on all platforms to people around the world. No list of startup inspiration stories would be complete without the inclusion of Richard Branson, who has apparently (and successfully) tried his luck in every possible line of investment over the past 40 years. Not bad for a man who performed poorly in school, was diagnosed with dyslexia and then awarded him the unfortunate title of Virgin in his first company (supposedly due to his then-status as a 'virgin in business').

When it comes to taking a clue, few can match Jack Ma's stubbornness. After graduating in 1988 (a process for which he was initially rejected four times), the Hangzhou native struggled to find work, being rejected by more than 30 companies (including KFC), before seeing the 10 graduate applications for Harvard Business School unceremoniously rejected. Being able to share her extensive sales knowledge is what inspired Leah Neaderthal to start her own business. In addition to keeping up with friends and family, Instagram is an excellent source for aspiring entrepreneurs and business leaders. Her love for ordering was inspired by her mother's lifestyle magazines and her grandmother's respect for her home. Lisa and her faculty of experienced matchmakers and coaches teach passionate businessmen and aspiring matchmakers to play cupid and grow successful businesses.

Anger was the driving force behind Benjamin Berman's foray into entrepreneurship, prompting him to start Optimize For Growth, a business management tool. CO recently interviewed a panel of entrepreneurs from different industries to find out exactly why they started their companies. I met up with an old friend for coffee last Saturday. Upon entering I knew that I would like to catch up with someone I hadn't seen in a decade but I didn't expect to leave with two entrepreneurship lessons. So if you're ready to take the plunge and want to get started look no further here are 10 stories of successful entrepreneurs that will inspire you: Tony Robbins; Sara Blakely; Gary Vaynerchuk; Brene Brown; Marie Kondo; Richard Branson; Jack Ma; Leah Neaderthal; Lisa Clampitt; Benjamin Berman.