Here's How Much Money Elon Musk, Jack Dorsey & Other Billionaires Make In Their Sleep Every Night (Infographic) Build a company, and you'll monetize every last moment.
By Nick Wolny Edited by Jessica Thomas
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
According to some quick math from the folks over at People Who Sleep, billionaires rake in the cash even when they're off in dreamland. Based on net worth counts from December 15, 2020:
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey makes $5.6 million during one night of sleep,
Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett pulls in $2.9 million a night, and
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos' wild 2020 funneled an insane $62.1 million into his pockets whenever he slept.
And thanks to Tesla stock's absolutely bonkers year, the award for highest earnings-per-minute in 2020 goes to Elon Musk, who raked in an astonishing $88.3 million. Every night.
Here's a look at how the leaders stack up.
The numbers are eye-popping and even a little demoralizing at first glance. But they also bring up a good point: It's hard to make it into big bucks territory unless you build up a team that can grow at scale. According to data from Fundera, 86.3% of small business owners make less than $100,000 per year in revenue, making the millions above feel like a pipe dream.
It doesn't have to be that way. But you do need to work smarter and not harder if you want to move toward making money around the clock. To grow your company and reach your income goals, the time is now to start thinking about your team.
Related: 17 Passive Income Ideas for Increasing Your Cash Flow
Build a team that can take you higher
According to the Small Business Administration, 80% of small businesses in the U.S. are "nonemployers," meaning that they have an employee count of zero. If you're just getting started in business and don't have the cash to put someone on salary, that doesn't mean you should continue to wear all the hats yourself. Remember that money is a renewable resource, whereas time is not.
Virtual assistants, personal assistants and administrative support are common first hires for entrepreneurs, and the time you free up by outsourcing tasks can help to grow your earning potential. Calculate how valuable your time is per hour, then look at your schedule; if anything on your to-do list could be outsourced for less than your hourly rate, it's time to delegate.
Related: How to Delegate With Confidence
How to grow your business
In addition to asking for help, it helps to keep the overall big picture in mind. So here are a few other tips you'll want to take into consideration as you build out your money machine.
Know when to hire employees versus contractors. Splurge on employees who will care about your company and contribute to internal culture. Outsource to contractors when you have a specific task that requires a specialized tradesperson. Most successful entrepreneurs leverage both workforces.
Sell. A lot. According to the National Federation Of Small Business, 82% of businesses that fail cite cash flow as their primary reason for shuttering. Let sales lead operations, and everything else can fall into place from there.
Keep your mind sharp. CEOs sleep, and you should too. Despite hustle culture's prevalence in entrepreneurship, most of the CEOs listed still swing seven or eight hours a night of sleep in order to make the best decisions they can under pressure.
Related: 10 Ways to Make Money While You Sleep
"Make money while you sleep" is a favorite tagline for passive income entrepreneurs. But to do so, you'll need to go beyond trading dollars for hours and think bigger. Assemble your dream team, offer a product that can be delivered without you and you'll be well on your way to making sales even while you snooze.
