Richard Branson
64 quotes
Biography
Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson is an English business magnate who co-founded the Virgin Group in 1970, and, as of 2016, controls five companies.
"Well, I think that there's a very thin dividing line between success and failure. And I think if you start a business without financial backing, you're likely to go the wrong side of that dividing line."
"I think other companies need to stand on their own two feet, and the weak ones need to go to the wall."
"One thing is certain in business. You and everyone around you will make mistakes."
"My general attitude to life is to enjoy every minute of every day. I never do anything with a feeling of, “Oh God, I've got to do this today.”"
"I became an entrepreneur by mistake. Ever since then I've gone into business, not to make money, but because I think I can do it better than it's been done elsewhere. And, quite often, just out of personal frustration about the way it's been done by other people."
"My philosophy is that if I have any money I invest it in new ventures and not have it sitting around."
"Making money never was my incentive. I just want to fight big companies."
"If you want to be a Millionaire, start with a billion dollars and launch a new airline."
"I was born under a lucky star, and I have nothing whatsoever to regret. I wouldn’t change a thing about my life."
"To be associated with industry no longer carries the stigma of profiteering, exploitation and of being uncaring as it did when I was at school."
"The talents of young people must not be stifled. Education is not just about getting the right grades in exams but it should encourage all students to develop their optimum capacity, whatever that may be. Schools and colleges should prepare young people for life."
"A good PR story is infinitely more effective than a front page ad."
"We're here to make space more accessible to all. We want to turn the next generation of dreamers into the astronauts of today and tomorrow. We've all us on this stage have had the most extraordinary experience, and we'd love it if a number of you can have it, too. … If you ever had a dream, now is the time to make it come true — and I'd like to end by saying welcome to the dawn of a new space age."
"On one of my last days at school, aged 15, my headmaster predicted that I would either end up in prison or become a millionaire ... So for anyone anxious about their A-level results today, I hope this brings you some encouragement!"
"The music industry is a strange combination of having real and intangible assets: pop bands are brand names in themselves, and at a given stage in their careers their name alone can practically gaurantee hit records."
"A business has to be involving, it has to be fun, and it has to exercise your creative instincts."
"Business opportunities are like buses, there's always another one coming."
"To me, business isn't about wearing suits or pleasing stockholders. It's about being true to yourself, your ideas and focusing on the essentials."
"I never get the accountants in before I start up a business. It's done on gut feeling, especially if I can see that they are taking the mickey out of the consumer."
"My mother was determined to make us independent. When I was four years old, she stopped the car a few miles from our house and made me find my own way home across the fields. I got hopelessly lost."
"So I've seen life as one long learning process. And if I see - you know, if I fly on somebody else's airline and find the experience is not a pleasant one, which it wasn't in - 21 years ago, then I'd think, well, you know, maybe I can create the kind of airline that I'd like to fly on."
"Do not be embarrassed by your failures, learn from them and start again."
"I cannot remember a moment in my life when I have not felt the love of my family. We were a family that would have killed for each other - and we still are."
"I love the freedom of movement that my phone gives me. That has definitely transformed my life."
"The funny thing is people won't let me pay for things. I'll be in a restaurant and the manager will say, 'Oh no, it's on the house.'"