The entrepreneurial spirit involves taking risks and building something from nothing; it requires an ambitious soul who has the ability to think outside the box while still being grounded enough to have a real understanding of people's wants and needs. Being a successful entrepreneur requires the ability to combine those aspects, without overextending oneself; in other words, one must be able to "start small but think big," according to Brandon Frere, CEO and talented entrepreneur.

"This idea of starting small but thinking big isn't a new concept," says Frere. "In fact, most successful entrepreneurs have embraced this to some degree, which is why they have gone on to develop incredibly lucrative businesses that have true staying power."

Many small business owners have hopes and dreams of their passion project becoming something grander: the next Amazon or the next Netflix. Two things that some of the most successful companies have in common is that they focused on a niche and they started small-scale. While new businesses may want to diversify to cast a wider net of potential customers, starting small and focusing on execution at the start may bring them much more success. Jeff Bezos of Amazon started his business selling only books; today, one would be hard-pressed to find something the online retail giant doesn't sell. Instead of seeing larger businesses as competition, smaller business owners should also ask themselves what makes them stand out and embrace that.

"The key is, whatever you choose to focus on, whatever it is you do, make sure you're the best," states Frere. "Customer loyalty and success isn't achieved by the status quo; it's achieved by the extraordinary. Build it, build it well and they will come."

Despite starting small, it's important to always keep an eye on the prize; continued innovation and planning for growth allows a company to be agile enough to handle growth and changes in the industry. Developing a business roadmap is a helpful way for start-ups to outline where their company is and where they'd like it to go. Having these goals laid out not only gives entrepreneurs something to strive for, but also allows them to plan accordingly to make their dreams a reality.

"Never be afraid to plan big," warns Frere. "Always have your eye on the big picture - the potential of what your business could be. Limiting yourself and your business goals is a bigger risk than actually starting a business."