Richard Branson Rejects the ‘5 A.M. Club’ Narrative, Warning Against the Cult of the Early Riser

For decades, the morning routine of Richard Branson has been treated as a blueprint for the aspiring mogul. The 74-year-old Virgin Group founder has long been the poster child for the dawn-patrol lifestyle, famously rising at 5 a.m. to exercise, engage with social media, and eat a breakfast of muesli and fruit while consuming his first of 20 daily cups of tea. But now, the billionaire who helped turn early rising into a corporate status symbol is issuing a surprising correction: Stop trying to be like him.

In a recent shift that challenges the prevailing ethos of Silicon Valley and Wall Street, Branson is warning that the obsession with predawn productivity is often a recipe for exhaustion rather than excellence. Writing on LinkedIn, Branson expressed concern over the way his personal habits have been canonized as a mandatory requirement for success. “I sometimes worry that people think it’s the secret to success,” Branson noted, reflecting on the nearly ten years since he first detailed his morning schedule in a viral blog post.

Branson’s pivot comes at a time when “hustle culture”—the glorification of constant work and minimal sleep—is facing a reckoning. While the business world has long fetishized the habits of high achievers, Branson is now dismissing the idea of a one-size-fits-all formula for achievement. He clarified that his 5 a.m. wake-up call is not a discipline he forces upon himself, but rather something that comes “very naturally” to his biological clock. For those who aren’t naturally inclined to see the sunrise, he warns that these hustle-culture silver bullets are more likely to lead to burnout than breakthroughs.

The billionaire’s advice to the modern professional is to reject the relentless hustle that defines much of the current productivity discourse. “Work hard, absolutely,” Branson told Fortune. “But also work smart, take care of yourself, and create a rhythm that’s sustainable. The best routine is the one that helps you feel your best.”

This philosophy of self-awareness is rooted in Branson’s own unconventional path. Long before he was a knighted billionaire, he was building an empire from non-traditional settings, including the crypts of churches, houseboats, and spare bedrooms. This history of trial and error taught him that the environment and timing of work are deeply personal. He suggests that professionals should spend less time auditing the schedules of famous CEOs and more time performing a rigorous self-assessment of their own peak performance windows.

“Firstly, reflect on when you feel at your best during the day,” Branson said. “For me, it’s early in the morning. Other people do their best work late at night.” He noted that while some may be sharpest in the morning, they might find their creative peak occurs after dinner. The goal, he argues, is to identify these patterns and make “even the smallest tweaks” to a schedule to align with them.

Branson is not alone in his skepticism of the early-riser mandate. While membership in the 5 a.m. club has become a status symbol for leaders like Apple’s Tim Cook, former First Lady Michelle Obama, and Block Inc. head Jack Dorsey, a growing cohort of night-owl CEOs is pushing back. This resistance is backed by a biological reality: while traditional 9-to-5 office structures favor morning types, research suggests that roughly two-thirds of the population do not naturally fit this mold.

One notable example of success outside the dawn-patrol window is Scott Mellin, the executive credited with pivoting Salomon from a specialized outdoor brand into a billion-dollar fashion powerhouse—famously seen on Rihanna during her 2023 Super Bowl performance. Mellin has maintained a routine for 25 years that involves waking up at 8 a.m., skiing in the morning, and not reaching his desk until noon. His career, which includes high-level roles at The North Face and Benetton Group, serves as a testament that the corner office does not require a 4 a.m. alarm.

Similarly, Todd Wiesel, the CEO of the whiskey marketplace Baxus, finds his clarity in the late hours. “I prefer to go to bed tired and wake up energized than to try and fall asleep while I am full of energy and excitement only to roll out of bed at 4 a.m. in search of calm and quiet,” Wiesel said.

Ultimately, Branson’s message is one of professional autonomy. He urges workers to be wary of anyone claiming to hold a universal “key” to success and to understand the difference between working hard and working smart. By prioritizing health, relationships, and the space for inspiration over a rigid clock, Branson suggests that the path to a breakthrough is found in one’s own rhythm, not someone else’s.