I started my first business out of my college dorm room - DJ Connection - and grew it to more than 4,000 events per year. Sounds easy, but while doing that, I made every mistake in the book.

Because most startups are lean and scrappy organizations consisting of a limited number of people and supported by an even smaller number of resources, startups cannot afford to have any slackers on board. When you fail, you cause an 'epic failure,' and when you win, everyone in the company knows about it.

Big successful corporations have established their own culture by the time you come along, so you have as high of a chance of changing their overall culture as you have of convincing the U.S. Marines to adopt the 'long-haired look' as their standard military haircut.

With the help of personal introductions by Andrew Carnegie, diligence and an absolute burning desire to teach the world how to become successful, Napoleon Hill devoted nearly his entire adult lifetime creating practical content entrepreneurs need to become successful.

As leaders, we must remember that effectively executing business plans involves a consistent engagement in activities that would typically create animosity in every other non-business relationship.

It is important to let every employee know where he or she stands throughout his or her time in your business; I would suggest every quarter of the fiscal year. By being honest and open with each team member and their performance, you create value in their efforts.

Startup culture fosters laughter, debate, and a passionate, non-politically-correct focus on getting things done. And this startup of culture is something entrepreneurs struggle to maintain as the business grows. To ensure this environment continues, create a strong foundation and ensure everyone is on board.

Overdeliver on promises and deadlines. Show up early, deliver your product early, and deliver more than you promised. Overdeliver now, and in the future, you will be overpaid.

The problem for most self-starting leaders who do not have a mentor begins when they measure the results and find themselves fully aware of the data and the analytics, but are completely unaware of what to do.

To be a proactive person, you must learn to say no to most ideas and opportunities so you have the mental and physical bandwidth to execute the realistic business plans you have already mapped out.