Talking of Virgin...

[our obsession]

Was in another thread and remembered about Richard Branson chatting on Talking Heads with Peter Thompson last night, (Monday 13/9 ABC).

Interesting interview, Richard the classic adventurer, promoter, creative guy, it's half an hour and quite candid, informative, the video link might go up eventually, but transcript is here:

http://www.abc.net.au/tv/talkingheads/

Specifically--------->

http://www.abc.net.au/tv/talkingheads/txt/s3003668.htm

Excerpt only:

PETER THOMPSON: Richard Branson moves at a frenetic pace. Entrepreneur, record-breaker, survivor of near-death experiences. From a small mail-order business, Richard Branson has built Virgin into a billion-dollar brand. Let's find out why he's such a dynamo.

Sir Richard, welcome to Talking Heads.

RICHARD BRANSON: Always a pleasure to see you.

PETER THOMPSON: Now, nobody questions what a success story you are in business, but I think people would be perhaps amazed to know that for a long time you had some difficulty separating "gross" and "net" - very, very basic business terms.

RICHARD BRANSON: I'm dyslexic.

Didn't actually know what dyslexia was until I was grown up, but hopeless at school and later on in life was tested.

And we built Europe's maybe largest private group of companies and age 50 I was in a board meeting, and I said something like, "Is that good news or bad news?" And I could see a director smile from the other side of the table. And he took me out of the room and said, "Richard, I don't think you know the difference between net and gross." And I said... Well, you know, I didn't want to admit the fact. And he said, "Well, look, let me just help you." So he pulls out a bit of paper and he draws the sea, and then he puts a net in the sea, and then he says, "The fish in the net, now that's your profit at the end of the year, and the rest of the sea, those fish that aren't in your net, that's your turnover." And I got it. And so anyway...

....so on---->

 

[our obsession]

...much more fun watching Richard Branson on video, love his smile...it is up and rolling, follow the prompts here:

http://www.abc.net.au/tv/talkingheads/video/




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[Bill.L]

Hi all,

I've often wondered if the very success of people like Branson is because they do not understand the numbers fully.

A lack of fully understanding the numbers is probably one of the reasons why he has taken up some, maybe many, of the business deals he has precisely because people who did understand the numbers thought it too risky, therefore passed and gave him the opportunity.

Of course a little luck and gaining the right people to iron out his deficiencies probably helped.

bye

 

[Rockstar]

Of course a little luck and gaining the right people to iron out his deficiencies probably helped.

People like RB create their own "luck" - it's a mindset. They hold a vision and persist with great tenacity to realise that vision. Many other examples in the world. We all do it in on our own varying scales. It's just that he is a master at it. A great role model and inspiration in this respect.