You can be on Entrepreneur’s cover!

6 Secrets to Surviving on Little or No Sleep Entrepreneurs' work schedules tend to go far beyond the standard 40-hour workweek, causing many to forgo catching some z's for more hours working on their startup. Here is how to survive this crazy lifestyle.

By Jason Lucash

entrepreneur daily

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Shutterstock

Regardless of the industry or size of the company, every entrepreneur will face a fight against a tired mind and body.

Founders often justify burning the midnight oil, as this is their time to create something meaningful and sleep is something that can come later in life – after these valuable years of innovation are behind them. But this thought process isn't necessarily beneficial to the company, as lack of sleep can cause people not to think (or function) properly. I should know.

I started OrigAudio, a portable audio products company, with co-founder Mike Szymczak while working a 9-to-5 job as a marketing coordinator for JanSport. As soon as the "workday" was over, I began plugging away on OrigAudio until about 4 in the morning, only to wake up at 7 to get ready for work. I often caught myself emailing the wrong people, ordering too much inventory and passing out while working on the couch more frequently than sleeping in my bed. This continued for nearly a year before I was able to put the "safe job" behind me to focus on OrigAudio around the clock.

Related: 5 Ways to Make the Most of Your Sick Days

During my journey, I've learned several lessons to help battle through the long hours and endless days that are part of the life of an entrepreneur.

1. Get your catnaps in. A catnap, or a quick 20 to 30 minute nap, can be an entrepreneur's best friend. I wouldn't recommend revolving your sleep schedule around this sort of Polyphasic sleep pattern but occasional 15-minute power naps can give you a boost in energy and help you to power through another few hours.

2. Delegate tasks to others. We want to do it all on our own, and we often do, but conquering the world takes a team. Utilize co-workers, friends, and even family members (if you are in a tough spot). As we've built our team at OrigAudio, I've been able to rely on my staff to complete tasks that I would otherwise be pulling an all-nighter to finish. Learning how to let go of certain tasks is a key to growth and to allow you to focus on more important matters.

Related: Entrepreneurs, Say Goodbye to Sleepless Nights

3. Never drop cash after midnight. Making decisions that involve purchases after midnight will wreak havoc on your business. Also, try to avoid make purchasing decisions when you are struggling to stay awake, and double check important decisions before submitting them. Save vital decisions for your peak times of the day.

4. Prioritize your responsibilities. You can't work 24 hours a day. Prioritize what you have to do when you are getting to the point of exhaustion. Focus on things that need to get done, and wait to answer non-urgent emails until the next day.

5. Determine the minimum amount of sleep needed to function. The smallest amount of sleep I can get while still being productive is three hours. If I can't get at least three hours of sleep, my time is better spent powering up with a meal and working through the night. Know what the minimum amount of sleep you can still function with is and make an effort to allow yourself that time.

6. Utilize travel time. Travel is a big part of my job. While other entrepreneurs use travel time to sleep, I use it to work. Utilize flight and transit time by taking care of non-Internet related tasks. For instance, I will turn Outlook email in offline mode and get through my entire list of emails in order to send them when I get to the hotel and then go to sleep.

Those tough nights of two to three hours of sleep are now far behind me. I now get to enjoy the luxury of 5 hours of beauty sleep a day -- well, most days that is. While these tips have served me well over the past five years, find what works for you.

Related: 5 Things To Do Before Bed That Will Jump Start Tomorrow

Jason Lucash

Co-founder of OrigAudio

Jason Lucash launched his first business as a third-grader in the San Francisco suburb of Danville, California and has had the same entrepreneurial spirit since then. Most recently Jason launched OrigAudio which makes unique portable audio products in 2009 and has received numerous accolades and awards such as Entrepreneur Magazine's "Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year", Time Magazine's "50 Best Inventions of the Year", and Season 2 winner of ABC's hit show "Shark Tank".

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

Editor's Pick

Growing a Business

To Achieve Sustainable Success, You Need to Stop Focusing on Disruption. Here's Why — and What You Must Focus on Instead.

Instead of zeroing in solely on disruptive innovation, embrace a pragmatic approach to innovation, recognizing and leveraging the potential within ongoing industry shifts.

Business News

Mark Zuckerberg Says This CEO Is the 'Taylor Swift' of Tech

Meta's CEO posed with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang on Instagram Wednesday.

Real Estate

3 Emerging Trends Shaping the Future of Real Estate

These three innovations are reshaping the real estate industry — discover tips for effectively covering these trends.

Leadership

What We Have to Gain By Talking About Grief and Loss At Work

I lost my husband to cancer during Covid — here's how it changed how I lead at work.

Side Hustle

This Mom Started a Side Hustle After a 'Shocking' Realization in the Toy Aisle. Her Product Was in Macy's Within the Year — Seeing Nearly $350,000 in Sales.

Elenor Mak, now founder of Jilly Bing, didn't plan to start a business — but the search for a doll that looked like her daughter inspired her to do just that.

Fundraising

Avoid These 9 Pitch Deck Mistakes When Asking Others For Money

Crafting an efficient pitch deck requires serious effort, but at least it's not wandering in the dark since certain rules are shaped by decades of relationships between startups and investors.