You can be on Entrepreneur’s cover!

The Simple Morning Routine Shark Tank Star Kevin O'Leary Follows to Supercharge His Productivity 'Mr. Wonderful' religiously takes this simple step to crush his daily goals.

By Kim Lachance Shandrow

entrepreneur daily

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

ABC | Bob D’Amico
Kevin O'Leary

As you can imagine, Shark Tank star Kevin O'Leary is beyond busy. The multi-millionaire mutual funds mogul says his phone rings "just about every 30 seconds" and his email inbox is overflowing, but he doesn't care.

"Not until I achieve the three daily goals that I set for myself the night before," he recently told Entrepreneur from the Culver City, Calif. set of Shark Tank. "Each has to be accomplished before I take any inbound calls or send any emails, and I strictly follow that simple process daily, without fail."

And without exception, barring a catastrophic emergency, as the 61-year-old entrepreneur put it. "Whether it's family or business or something personal, I work on nothing else, whatever it may be," he says. "My attitude is, until those three goals are done, nobody gets my time or attention."

Related: Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary: Having Dyslexia Is a 'Superpower' in Business

There's a reason O'Leary, , a.k.a. "Mr Wonderful," strips his morning to-dos down to three preset priorities: Like a fresh jolt of caffeine, it energizes him and supercharges his productivity. "I find it makes me very, very productive," he says. "I just avoid all the noise, check off the three tasks and move on with my day."

He cautions that while it's tempting to take on more than a trio of must-do tasks each morning, doing so often sets people up for failure. "Be realistic. Don't overwhelm yourself," he says. "Three is enough."

For more of O'Leary's success tips, check out Shark Tank's Season Eight premiere on your local ABC station. It airs on Sept. 23 at 9 p.m. ET.

Kim Lachance Shandrow

Former West Coast Editor

Kim Lachance Shandrow is the former West Coast editor at Entrepreneur.com. Previously, she was a commerce columnist at Los Angeles CityBeat, a news producer at MSNBC and KNBC in Los Angeles and a frequent contributor to the Los Angeles Times. She has also written for Government Technology magazine, LA Yoga magazine, the Lowell Sun newspaper, HealthCentral.com, PsychCentral.com and the former U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. C. Everett Coop. Follow her on Twitter at @Lashandrow. You can also follow her on Facebook here

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Making a Change

Learn to Play Guitar Even if You Have No Previous Training for Just $20

Start with the beginner's crash course and learn how to play guitar in no time.

Business Ideas

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.

Business News

This Fan-Favorite Masters 2024 Item Is Still $1.50 as Tournament Menu Appears Unscathed by Inflation

The pimento cheese sandwich is a tradition almost as big as the tournament itself.

Business News

Here's One Thing Americans Would Take a Pay Cut For — Besides Remote Work

An Empower survey found a high percentage of respondents would take a pay cut for better retirement benefits and remote work options.

Marketing

Save Big and Get This Pro Collage App for $39.99

Edit, adjust, and create collages in seconds.

Business Ideas

7 Link-Building Tactics You Need to Know to Skyrocket Your Website's Rankings

An essential component of SEO, link building is not just a 'Set them and forget them' proposition, but a dance of skills and strategies.