One characteristic is the presence of a protagonist who starts in a very difficult and poor situation. For example, like Cinderella who was at the mercy of her step - family.
One of the most well - known is 'Cinderella'. She starts as a poor, mistreated girl and through a magical encounter at the ball, she marries the prince and becomes a princess, achieving great wealth and status.
Vision and innovation play a big role. Take Steve Jobs. He had a vision for user - friendly and beautifully designed technology products. His ideas, like the graphical user interface for the Mac, were innovative at the time and set Apple apart from its competitors. This kind of forward - thinking allowed him to build Apple into a huge success.
Hard work is crucial. Most of these individuals put in countless hours to achieve their goals. For example, Andrew Carnegie worked his way up from a poor immigrant boy to a steel magnate through long hours in the steel industry.
Typically, they end with the main character achieving great wealth and a high social status. For example, like in 'The Little Match Girl' if it had a rags to riches twist, she might end up in a warm, rich home instead of freezing to death.
Steve Jobs. He was adopted into a middle - class family. He started Apple in a garage with his friend. Despite facing setbacks like being ousted from his own company at one point, he returned and led Apple to become one of the most valuable companies in the world, revolutionizing the technology industry with products like the iPhone, iPad, and Mac.
Howard Schultz. He grew up in a housing project. He joined Starbucks when it was just a small coffee chain. Through his vision of creating a 'third place' between home and work, he expanded Starbucks globally, turning it into a multi - billion - dollar company.
In 'Oliver Twist' by Charles Dickens, Oliver was born into poverty and faced many hardships in the workhouse and on the streets. But in the end, he was revealed to be of noble birth, which lifted him out of his rags - like existence into a life of relative comfort and wealth.
Oprah Winfrey's story is one. She was born into poverty in Mississippi but through her talent and hard work in media, she became a billionaire. Another is J.K. Rowling. She was a single mother on welfare when she wrote the first 'Harry Potter' book, and now she's extremely wealthy. Also, Colonel Sanders. He started with very little and through his Kentucky Fried Chicken recipe, built a global empire.