Stewart Hsu

I recently read Richard Branson’s autobiography “Losing My Virginity”, which covers the first 43 years of his life. Richard is most famous for his Virgin brand of companies which included a record label company, an airline, mobile phones and even a cola. His net worth (as of April 2007) is estimated at over $5.70 billion USD.

I read his book curious to find out what makes Richard Branson tick, how does he think, how did he become an extremely succcessful business entrepreneuer. I believe in the Process of Manifestation [insert link], which basically states your thoughts and feelings impact your real world results, and that it is *not* the other way around as most people tend to believe. I read his autobiography seeking to find both within and between the lines, how does Richard think. I wanted clues, tips and ideas I could use to apply in my own life.

Richard didn’t have everything handed to him on silver platter. He’s had his share of challenges. He was dyslexic and nearsighted, and back then, being unable to read, write and spell, meant teachers thought your were either stupid or lazy. As a result, in prep school, he was beaten once or twice a week for doing poor work. Dyslexia, at the time, was not known to be a learning disorder. When Richard left prep school at age 17, his headmaster said to Richard “I predict that you will either go to prison or become a millionaire.” Richard has done both.

From his autobiography, I took away 2 sets of powerful ideas, they are:
1) Challenge Your Children
2) Live Life to the Fullest

Challenge Your Children

Richard was raised in a family environment that I believe is optimal: a) there was an abundance of love in his family, b) his parents “adored each other” and c) his parents continually set challenges for the children. I don’t have children (yet), but my sense is anytime you’ve got these 3 ingredients present, your children will be off to an amazing start in life.

His mom was determined to make him independent. When Richard was 4 years old, his mom stopped the car a few miles from their house, and made him find his own way home across the fields. When he was 12, on a dark January morning, his mom woke him up and told him he needed to bicycle to a town 50 miles away to teach him the importance of stamina and a sense of direction. She packed him a lunch and set him off.

I recently had the opportunity to hear a new friend, Chief Denny, speak about real estate investing. Chief (yes, that’s his real name, he was a child of the 60s go figure), epitomizes a real estate entrepreneur — passionate, energetic, willingness to take risks and fun-loving. On top of all of the real estate anecdotes he shared, the one line that stuck in my head for some reason, was he said “I look at my role as a parent to provide my children with a constant stream of challenges.”

When I then read Richard’s book just a few weeks later, these 2 incidents were enough for me to connect the dots. Think about it. So often, parents try to protect their children and shield them from the world “out there”. When in fact, it should be the exact opposite, parents should be giving their children challenges non-stop, so that by the time they leave the home, they know how to think on their own feet. They have developed the confidence to face anything the world throws at them because they’ve already been challenged throughout their childhood under the care and guidance of their parents.

Richard Branson was clearly challenged throughout his youth; you could say he was conditioned to thrive on challenges. As a result, I think that environment, that conditioning played a huge part in setting the foundation for his achievements to come later in life.

“My interest in life comes from setting myself huge, apparently unachievable challenges and trying to rise above them.”
Richard Branson, Losing My Virginity p.154

Live Life to the Fullest

The second main theme of the book I took away is to live life to the fullest. I realize this may sound cliche, but this guy *really* embodies this ideal. Multiple times Richard was on the verge of losing his company with all the odds stacked against him. Multiple times Richard was on the verge of losing his life — he set speed records for crossing the Atlantic Ocean by sailboat and then later by hot air balloon. He later set the record for crossing the Pacific Ocean in a hot air balloon and has attempted to circumnavigate the world. He recounts those stories in detail, and it’s astonishing the degree to which he was willing to risk. But with high risk, he’s obtained some incredible successes and life experiences.

The take away I see is that Richard goes after life with a passion, a fullness, and a joy. And in return, that’s exactly what he receives. Too often, I see people taking the safe way out, comfortable in their daily routine, *not* pushing themselves just that tiny bit more, and guess what, they get average results in life. My challenge to you, the reader, is simply to challenge yourself more. Go beyond your comfort zone and you *will realize* you are capable of more than you had previously thought.

“You’ve got to go out on a limb once in awhile, that’s where the fruit is.”
Will Rogers

As far as life philosophies go, I find it interesting that very successful people always have a knack for articulating in a few words what really matters. Richard’s no exception:

“Every minute of every day should be lived as wholeheartedly as possible and that we should always look for the best in everyone and everything.”
Richard Branson, Losing My Virginity p.12