Billionaires Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg Have 3 Habits for Success in Common — But Very Different Routines. Which One Resembles Yours? See what it takes to make your first billion — or just improve your health.
By Amanda Breen Edited by Dan Bova
Key Takeaways
- Billionaires like Buffett, Gates, Bezos and Zuckerberg didn't get to where they are today without being consistent.
- Here's what you always wanted to know about their sleeping schedules, exercise regimens and more.
Billionaires — they're just like us…sort of. These ultra-high-net-worth individuals all have the same 24 hours in a day that we do, so it's natural to wonder how they're using their time to reach such extreme levels of wealth and success — and if you might learn a thing or two from their habits and routines.
First, some important semantics. What's the difference between a habit and routine, exactly? Generally speaking, a habit is "the impulse to do a behavior with little or no conscious thought" while a routine is "a series of behaviors frequently repeated," behavioral design expert Nir Eyal told CNBC Make It.
Some routines have the potential to become a habit, but it's not a guarantee. In any case, it's safe to say that billionaire leaders like Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg didn't get to where they are today — boasting net worths of $136 billion, $134 billion, $206 billion and $179 billion, respectively, per Forbes — without being consistent.
Related: I Spent a Day Living Like Billionaire Warren Buffett. Here's What Happened.
Image Credit: Spencer Platt | Getty Images. Bill Gates, left; Warren Buffett, right.
It also probably comes as no surprise that Buffett, Gates, Bezos and Zuckerberg have several habits in common that helped them along their roads to success.
Read on to learn more about which habits the billionaire businessmen share and how they serve as building blocks for each leader's unique routine. Maybe you'll see similarities to your own — or be inspired to make some changes.
1. Wake up early — but get enough sleep
Setting an early morning alarm might help ensure enough time in the day to get everything done, but if the habit comes at the expense of total hours slept, it could do more harm than good. It's important to establish a healthy sleep routine, as getting enough rest impacts mental and physical performance, emotional wellbeing and more, according to UC Davis Health.
That's why Buffett, Gates, Bezos and Zuckerberg strive to strike the balance between waking up early and getting enough sleep, albeit with some key differences in their sleep schedules, per data from GOBankingRates.
Buffett tries to get eight hours of sleep a night; he heads to bed at 10:45 p.m. and wakes up at 6:45 a.m. "If you don't find a way to make money while you sleep, you will work until you die," the Berkshire Hathaway co-founder, chairman and CEO has famously said.
Related: Want to Become a Millionaire? Follow Warren Buffett's 4 Rules.
These days, Gates sleeps from 12 a.m. to 7 a.m. for a total of seven hours of shuteye, but the Microsoft co-founder wasn't always so diligent. Up until his 30s and 40s, Gates, now 68, equated sleep with lack of productivity and "would compete with peers to see who got the least rest," CNBC Make It reported.
Bezos boasts the earliest wake-up time at 5 a.m., but the Amazon and Blue Origins founder also turns in early at 9 p.m., securing eight hours of sleep to improve the way he leads. "I think better. I have more energy. My mood is better," Bezos said in a discussion at the Economic Club of Washington in 2018.
Finally, Zuckerberg clocks seven hours of rest, sleeping from 1 a.m. to 8 a.m. The Meta Platforms chairman and CEO told Forbes that he also uses an Oura ring to track his rest; the device "tells you [your] level of deep sleep, and what your heart rate is when you're sleeping."
Related: Regaining Control of Your Sleep Life...From a (Recovering) Insomniac BIZ Experiences
2. Make exercise part of your routine
Moving on a regular basis, whether it's hitting the gym or strolling outside, is in your best interest. Exercise comes with a host of benefits, from physical ones including improved strength, increased energy and disease prevention, to emotional ones like reduced feelings of depression and stress, per the National Institute on Aging.
Buffett, Gates, Bezos and Zuckerberg all make exercise a habit, though their specific routines vary considerably.
Buffett's known to enjoy a steady diet of Coca-Cola and McDonald's, so when his doctor told him he had to eat better or exercise more, he opted for the latter, calling it "the lesser of two evils." The Oracle of Omaha might not have a tried-and-true workout regimen like his fellow billionaires (at least not one that's become public knowledge), but whatever he does appears to be working, as he's on track to celebrate his 94th birthday in a couple of months.
Related: How Do Your Exercise Habits Compare to Elon Musk's, Mark Zuckerberg's and Sheryl Sandberg's?
Gates is partial to morning treadmill workouts, during which he'll watch DVDs to pass the time, he told The New York Times. Additionally, the philanthropist enjoys golf and was an early adopter of pickleball, playing for five decades before the sport became the fastest-growing for two years straight, per CNET.
Bezos takes his workout routine seriously and has been known to work with the celebrity trainer Wes Okerson, who also boasts Tom Cruise and Gerard Butler as clients, per Body and Soul. According to the Australian lifestyle outlet, Okerson recommends low-impact, high-resistance exercises like rowing and weight training as well as outdoor activities such as hill running, kayaking and paddleboarding.
Related: The Habits of Self-Made Billionaires (Infographic)
Bezos also works out with his fiancée Lauren Sánchez — but they don't do the same exercises. "He's on a whole different level than I am," Sánchez told Vogue. "He is a monster in the gym."
Zuckerberg likes a good fight — just ask his billionaire rival Elon Musk. Zuckerberg started training in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu, a type of martial art, during the pandemic. He also practices MMA fighting and told computer scientist and podcaster Lex Fridman that three to four of his weekly workouts focus on fighting, with a combination of cardio, strength and mobility training in the rotation too.
3. Read a lot
Grab a book — or your Kindle — if you're ready to level up. Reading books comes with a range of rewards: strengthening your brain, increasing your ability to empathize, reducing stress and building your vocabulary, among others, according to Healthline.
All of the billionaire leaders on this list have made reading a habit, incorporating a variety of titles into their reading routines, from investment guides to novels and more.
Image Credit: Mario Tama | Getty Images. Jeff Bezos.
Buffett reportedly spends about 80% of his working hours reading, and in a 2000 address to a group of MBA students at Columbia Business School, he recommended they read 500 pages a day: "That's how knowledge works. It builds up, like compound interest. All of you can do it, but I guarantee not very many of you will do it."
Poor Charlie's Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger edited by Peter D. Kaufman and The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham are just a couple he's mentioned in his annual shareholder letters.
Related: How Do Your Reading Habits Compare to Elon Musk's, Mark Zuckberg's and Warren Buffett's?
Gates is a voracious reader, reviewing books on his blog Gates Notes and releasing annual summer reading lists. "You don't really start getting old until you stop learning," Gates told TIME. "Every book teaches me something new or helps me see things differently. I was lucky to have parents who encouraged me to read. Reading fuels a sense of curiosity about the world, which I think helped drive me forward in my career and in the work that I do now with my foundation."
Some of Gates' picks this year include The Women by Kristin Hannah, Infectious Generosity by TED Talk curator Chris Anderson, Brave New Words by Khan Academy founder Sal Khan and How to Know a Person by David Brooks.
Books helped Bezos become the multimillionaire businessman he is today, as Amazon initially launched as an online book retailer. However, the founder has a serious reading habit too — and it's helped shape his leadership, CNBC Make It reported. In his biography The Everything Store, author Brad Stone shares the "Jeff's Reading List" for Amazon employees; it includes The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro, Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies by Jim Collins, Creation: Life and How to Make It by Steve Grand and nine other titles.
Zuckerberg also values the written word: In 2015, his New Year's Resolution was to read two books every month, and he even ran an online book club, featuring Q&As with authors on Facebook Live. "I've found reading books very intellectually fulfilling," Zuckerberg said at the time. "Books allow you to fully explore a topic and immerse yourself in a deeper way than most media today. I'm looking forward to shifting more of my media diet towards reading books."
The Beginning of Infinity by David Deutsch, World Order by Henry Kissinger and The Three-body Problem by Cixin Liu were among the billionaire's year-long book club picks.
Rising early after a good night's sleep, getting regular exercise and reading extensively might sound like simple everyday habits, but Buffett, Gates, Bezos and Zuckerberg know they lay the foundation for success — and even if it's not quite enough to get you to your first billion, you'll no doubt notice some improvements in your mental and physical health.
