9: Ashkan Karbasfrooshan

If you're an avid watcher of YouTube you may not be familiar with Ash, but there's a chance you've seen some of the content made by his company. Ashkan Karbasfrooshan is the CEO and co-founder of Watch Mojo. The Channel has more than 24 million subscribers - it's the 10th largest channel on YouTube and the most successful media brand on the platform. Mostly, they do countdown videos - like Top 10 Video Game Glitches or Top 10 Coolest Celebrity Mums. Any topic you have an interest in, there will be a video for it. It's based in Montreal, Canada with around 50 full time staff members and more than 100 freelancers writers and video editors from all over the world. Ash is a winner of the 2015 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in the media category for Quebec, he's also the author of the book 'The 10-Year Overnight Success: An Entrepreneurship’s Manifesto' which lays out the long road it took to get the company up and running. He says the first 5 to 6 years of building it were really tough, and he tells entreprenuers all the time that there is now quick way to success. During this interview he talks openly and candidly about the hard parts, including an excellent story about being sued by News Corp where he represented himself in court and won. If entreprenuership is in any way your thing you have to hear this interview, Ash talks about learning hard lessons, looking after your mental health and staying focused.