Richard Branson
Richard Branson
Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Bransonis an English business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. He is best known as the founder of Virgin Group, which comprises more than 400 companies...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionEntrepreneur
Date of Birth18 July 1950
CityLondon, England
entrepreneur risk achieve
If you don't take risks you won't achieve anything.
successful growth doe
Growth does not always lead a business to build on success. All too often it converts a highly successful business into a mediocre large business.
tumbling-down decision house
What's the most critical factor in any business decision you'll ever have to make? Basically, it boils down to this question: If this all crashes, will it bring the whole house tumbling down like a pack of cards? One business matra remains embedded in my brain - protect the downside.
dream achieve
Unless you dream, you're not going to achieve anything.
successful thinking people
I think that being a business a leader that treads all over people to get to the top is actually not the way I think to become a successful business leader.
hurt two feet
What we are trying to do at Virgin is not to have one enormous company in one sector under one banner, but to have two hundred or even three hundred separate companies. Each company can stand on its own feet and, in that way, although we've got a brand that links them, if we were to have another tragedy such as that of 11 September - which hurt the airline industry - it would not bring the whole group crashing down.
inspirational powerful giving
If you want swashbuckling action in your life, become an entrepreneur and give it a go.
risk groups essentials
Throughout my business life I have always tried to keep on top of costs and protect the downside risk as much possible. The Virgin Group has survived only because we have always kept tight control of our cash. But, likewise, I also know that sometimes it is essential to break these rules and spend lavishly.
space people friendly
There are millions of people out there who would love to become astronauts, who'd love to go to space - they'd love to look back at this wonderful world from space. That will be the engine that will enable us then to develop spaceships to transport people around the world at tremendous speeds in an environmentally friendly way.
people giving enriching
Business has to give people enriching, rewarding lives...or it's simply not worth doing.
night offering names
There have been times when I could have succumbed to some form of bribe, or could have had my way by offering one. But ever since that night in Dover prison I have never been tempted to break my vow.. My Parents always drummed into me that all you have life is your reputation: you may be very rich, but if you lose your good name you'll never be happy.
running team heart
Good people have always been at the heart of the Virgin business, and that's largely because we have tried to keep our business small, and our management teams tight-knit. I feel that small, compact companies, are better run. That is partly because people feel more connected in small companies.
team responsibility giving
I learnt from an early age the need to delegate responsibility out to other team members as there is just too much for one person to do themselves. What is the point of hiring talented team members if you don't give them the freedom to make the most of the chance you have given them?
fighting winning survival
Avoid litigations. They are expensive and consume loads of time but if you have got a good case and a better chance of winning; then fight it out.