Todd Graves, billionaire CEO and co-founder of Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers, recently shared how he balances 90-hour work week along with parenting. Speaking to CNBC Make It, the 52-year-old billionaire who manages 800 restaurants, opened up about how building a successful business cost him to miss out on a lot on the personal front in the early stages. He revealed that worked from 12 to 16 hours daily to build his business. Even after becoming a billionaire, he said that he had to spend such long hours at work that at times, his wife would bring their children to the office so that he could spend some time with his family.Â
“I can’t tell you how many 15, 16-hour days I’ve worked in a row. I had to miss a lot of stuff,” the 52-year-old told CNBC Make It.Â
However, now Mr Graves, who owns a company estimated to be worth several billions, has revealed that he has figured out a way to distribute his workload throughout the day in a manner that allows him to make time for family and friends anyway. During vacations, for example, he wakes up at 4:30 am to work so that he can join his family by 11 am and spend the rest of the day with them.Â
“I’m as busy as anybody I know, I travel as much as anybody I know, but I can work my schedule where I can make most of the things I need to be at with kids, family or important friends,” Mr Graves said.
The billionaire also noted that starting a business takes dedication and making it successful requires you to “multiply that by infinity”.Â
Mr Graves previously revealed that in 1996, he worked ninety hours a week in an oil refinery in California and fished for salmon in Alaska to launch his network of chicken finger restaurants in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Now, Raising Cane has more than 800 outlets in the US and the Middle East and could finish this year with nearly $5 billion in sales, as per the outlet.
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Meanwhile, in the same interview, Mr Graves revealed his top “red flag” when hiring employees. He identified a pressing concern when reviewing resumes: the prevalence of job-hopping. He said that he views frequent job changes every two to three years as a major red flag, questioning the applicant’s motivations and loyalty. “I question that, because it’s like, ‘Are you in it just for you?” the CEO told CNBC Make It.Â
In his experience, job-hoppers tend to prioritise titles and control over teamwork, often using language they think hiring managers want to hear, rather than providing authentic answers. During interviews, Mr Graves looks for inconsistencies in candidates’ responses to detect insincerity.
