Richard Branson, the Virgin Way

RICHARD BRANSON: THE VIRGIN WAY

November 4, 2014

Ari K

BSCI 651

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“If you live every day like it’s your last, someday you’ll almost certainly be right.” Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group, picks-up pace in his book by quoting Steve Jobs during the commencement speech Jobs made at Stanford University in 2005. Of all the commendable quotes Mr. Branson references in his book, I found this particular one to be the most fitting to start my paper with. The words “live every day like it’s your last” perfectly capture Mr. Branson’s belief that success in leadership lives in fostering the development of the overall morale and identity of any company. Mr. Branson also frequently mentions the importance of ‘listening’ as opposed to just hearing what is being said. His philosophy is that ‘Listening makes you sound smarter’ and, in order to be a good listener, you must develop a habit of effective note taking, which is a complementary skill to the practice of listening.

What makes this book great?

The stories Mr. Branson shares through his personal, lifelong experiences, coupled with the genuine importance of the content, make this book an incredible must read for all business enthusiasts. This book would not have the same effect on readers if it were a step-by-step playbook of what others should do to follow in Mr. Branson’s footsteps. By reading about a successful person’s first-hand experiences, this book sparks inspiration in others to strive to achieve similar success. This is not just one rosy tale after the other describing ‘How [he] made it big’, but rather, an honest account of all of the seemingly insurmountable challenges, near misses, and failures, which are every bit as valuable as the success stories themselves. The experiences shared by Mr. Branson are not only through concepts that may be difficult to fathom for the inexperienced, but rather...