Title: Losing My Virginity

Author(s): Richard Branson

Rating (0-5): 4

Amazon link: Losing My Virginity by Richard Branson

My Notes:

• Always have a checklist (would have prevented problem of locked canisters on the balloon)
• When in trouble, don’t freeze. Develop  backup plans and start executing them.
  • By the way, have backup plans ready in advance.
• Set up challenges for your children.
  • Make them something they can accomplish, yet be a stretch.
• Make sure your children know they’re loved.
• You’ve got one go in life, so make the most of it.
• Let your children form their own opinions.
• Have children try a variety of things and meet a variety of types of people.
• Teach children how to be entrepreneurial at a young age.
• Teach children to care for other people.
• Teach children to be wary of authority.
• Teach children independence and self-reliance.
• People learn in different ways.  Find the best technique for your children.
• Expose your children to lots of different possible professions and hobbies.
• Have children do something with selling – to at least become familiar with it.
• Find a partner who has strengths where you have weaknesses.
  • Business, but also personal.
• Only build a business if it’s fun and lets you exercise your creative instincts.
• If you are short on a resource, see if you have anything you can leverage to get it from someone who has an excess of that resource.
• Fully leverage the resources you have (name, reputation, etc.)
• To be in demand, make people believe you are already in demand.
• If you customers keep looking for the same thing (which you don’t provide), maybe it’s time to start providing it for them.
• Have a great lawyer.
• If someone shows you they aren’t trustworthy, get them out of a position of trust immediately.
• Sell something people are passionate about.
• An ideal business is one where you get the money before you have to buy the product (or create the service).
• Keep your plans and ideas to yourself.
• Find a business where your competitors are stuck in the old, boring, inefficient ways of doing things.
• Create a business that forms a community of customers
• Find where your market already is and build your business there.
• Improve the customer’s experience.
• If you want something, ask.
  • If they say no, find someone else to ask or some other angle of approach.
• All you have is your reputation.
• Hire people who are passionate, and knowledgeable, about the goods or services you sell
• Don’t spend money you don’t have to spend.
• Part of defining what you do is defining what you don’t do.
• When you have a successful business, look for related businesses you can grow – using your resources (brand, customers, knowledge, etc.) from the first business.
• Take big risks, as long as you can protect your downside.
• Give away the smallest percentages of your deals as possible (expenses, commissions, etc.)
• Tie people into long deals.  If they perform well, renegotiate (a little bit in their favor) and extend the deal.
• Make sure your business isn’t stuck in a rut.  Grow and change with the times.
• Buy under-appreciated assets that can be improved.
• Don’t be afraid to make a low-ball offer.
• Be open to all opportunities that come.
• When you learn a piece of intelligence, take advantage of it quickly.
• Stop negative rumors as quickly as possible.
• When you have free cash, diversify.
• Make sure to spend time doing the things that make you feel alive.
• When a competitor mounts an outrageous defense, it may be a sign of weakness.
• Put your trust in someone who has a lot to lose if they fail.
• Stay private.  Don’t take outside investors with plans that are the opposite of yours.
• Have a long-term perspective.
• Locate your retail businesses where your customers will be (lower income near bus/train stops).
• Pay attention to what the people around you are doing (or not doing) to determine what markets and trends may be hot (or not).
• Always be willing to reinvent your business.
• Find the right people, build the brand, protect your downside.
• Find a good partner, instead of putting up huge amounts of cash.
• Give your employees a share of the company, and an incentive to succeed.
• Keep a notebook with you constantly.  Record every idea and event.
• Always ask your employees and customers what you can improve.
• Look after your employees, your customers, and then your shareholders (in that order).
• Promote from within.
• Keep your business groups small (50-60 people maximum).
• When someone threatens you, they may actually be in a weak position.
• Don’t do nothing about a problem because you can’t solve everything.  Do what you can.
• Build to the highest quality.  One day, it may save your customers.
• When you buy something from your providers, have the contract be a “design, build, and maintain” agreement.  They’ll build in more quality if they expect to need to maintain it.
• If you have ongoing costs, make a plan to keep them under control.

Actions to take:

• No specific actions from this book