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I'm a big fan of Richard Branson. Half because he's a brilliant mind. Half because he's always held up a big fat middle finger to the status quo.
He does things his own way, takes calculated risks, sometimes loses, sometimes wins, but always learns.
That's a recipe for long-term growth… and i dig it.
I just finished a couple books he has written and here are my takeaways I've called "Richard's Rules of Business". These aren't officially his rules, just ideas and concepts that I've internalized.
- Break the Rules. Start from the attitude of "Yes I can – OF COURSE I CAN" – Unstoppable self-confidence.
- Have fun. Fun should be a prime business criteria. Fun is at the core of how he likes to do business.
- It is only by being bold that you get anywhere.
- If you are a risk taker, then the art of a good risk is to protect your downside while not limiting your upside.
- The bgest way to cope with a cash crisis is not to contract, but to expand your way out of it.
- Make up your mind on whether you can trust someone in the first 60 seconds. Then, go with your gut.
- As Oscar Wilde said, "The only thinkg worse than being talked about is NOT being talked about."
- Separate your companies. This way ione fails, it will not threaten the rest of them. You will most certainly have disasters, so your job is to contain them.
- Numbers can be manipulated to prove anything. Don't just go by the numbers – go with gut instinct when looking at business.
- "My interest in life is giving myself huge, apparently unachievable challenges and trying to rise above them."
- When starting a business, survival is the key. Expenses are the wolves. Protect your young with cash.
- Always be reinventing yourself. The world moves and you have to stay ahead.
