[Infographic] Are you a Serial Entrepreneur?

Entrepreneurs are known for being able to focus on one thing to the point of making it a reality. Entrepreneurs are also known for their ability to recognize business opportunities when they come. These two qualities can be at odds with each other: focusing on one thing while looking around for more opportunities contradicts itself.

For many new entrepreneurs there is a real dilemma here. Should you start a lot of companies, or should you focus your whole life on one, like Zuckerberg?

A quick look at billionaire entrepreneurs reveals that most of them are serial entrepreneurs.

serial-entrepreneurs-how-to-pursue-multiple-opportunities-infographic

Our friends at Funders and Founders came up with this great infographic.

Some interesting facts that came forward from the study:

[arrow_list]

  • This year, there are 1426 billionaires in the world, according to Forbes.
  • 960 of them are self-made, while the rest inherited their wealth.
  • 830 of them made money from more than one business, while 130 derive their wealth from one business.
  • Sheldon Adelson became a billionaire after building a casino in Macau, China, and taking the company public. This transaction alone increased his wealth 14 times making him the third-richest American at the time.
  • Eric Lefkofsky owned 22% of Groupon at the time it went public at $12.8 billion valuation. Thus Lefkofsky’s net worth was over $2 billion.
  • Mark Cuban was one of the co-founders of Broadcast.com, acquired by Yahoo! for $5.6 billion, a transaction that most likely made him a billionaire. In 2011, Cuban was No. 459 on Forbes Billionaire list, with a net worth of $2.3 billion.
  • Elon Musk first became prominent as one of the co-founders of PayPal. When PayPal was sold to eBay for $1.5 billion, Musk owned 11.2% of the company, making him a multi-millionaire. He later became a billionaire, when the stock of Tesla Motors, a company he took public in 2010, rose 3 times. He owns a 32% stake in Tesla, which is valued at $5.82 billion, as of August 2013.
  • Richard Branson most likely became a billionaire from his airline business that includes Virgin Atlantic (founded in 1984), Virgin Australia(former Virgin Blue), and Virgin America. His second major income source was his record business, that he sold for $900 million in 1992.

Self-Made Billionaire Serial Entrepreneurs

Entrepreneur Net Worth 2013 Twitter
Richard Branson $4.6 B @richardbranson‎
Mark Cuban $2.4 B @mcuban‎
Sheldon Adelson $26.5 B
Eric Lefkovsky $1.1 B @lefkofsky
Elon Musk $2.7 B @elonmusk

So what do you guys think is the best way to go forward – a single big idea or try many ideas? Do tell us what you think.

You have reached your limit of free stories
Become An Inc42 Plus Member

Become a Startup Insider in 2024 with Inc42 Plus. Join our exclusive community of 10,000+ founders, investors & operators and stay ahead in India’s startup & business economy.

2 YEAR PLAN
₹19999
₹7999
₹333/Month
Unlock 60% OFF
Cancel Anytime
1 YEAR PLAN
₹9999
₹4999
₹416/Month
Unlock 50% OFF
Cancel Anytime
Already A Member?
Discover Startups & Business Models

Unleash your potential by exploring unlimited articles, trackers, and playbooks. Identify the hottest startup deals, supercharge your innovation projects, and stay updated with expert curation.

[Infographic] Are you a Serial Entrepreneur?-Inc42 Media
How-To’s on Starting & Scaling Up

Empower yourself with comprehensive playbooks, expert analysis, and invaluable insights. Learn to validate ideas, acquire customers, secure funding, and navigate the journey to startup success.

[Infographic] Are you a Serial Entrepreneur?-Inc42 Media
Identify Trends & New Markets

Access 75+ in-depth reports on frontier industries. Gain exclusive market intelligence, understand market landscapes, and decode emerging trends to make informed decisions.

[Infographic] Are you a Serial Entrepreneur?-Inc42 Media
Track & Decode the Investment Landscape

Stay ahead with startup and funding trackers. Analyse investment strategies, profile successful investors, and keep track of upcoming funds, accelerators, and more.

[Infographic] Are you a Serial Entrepreneur?-Inc42 Media
[Infographic] Are you a Serial Entrepreneur?-Inc42 Media
You’re in Good company