Screw It, Let’s Do It

 

The Quid On:

Screw It, Let’s Do It - Lessons In Life

By Richard Branson

Preview

Life’s too short to learn from one’s own mistakes. It always helps to draw inspiration from other’s experiences. Screw It, Let’s Do It is a quick read in which author Richard Branson shares the many truths he has learned in his life’s journey. The road to success is far from easy and Branson’s wasn’t any different. Despite his set of challenges, he managed to succeed. These life lessons right from never giving up and taking calculated risks to spending quality time with oneself and family, and not compromising on integrity, will encourage people from all walks of life.

About the Author

Richard Branson is a billionaire entrepreneur and philanthropist. A mildly dyslexic child, he set up his own magazine at the age of 15; an adventure that began in a basement in London made way for greater things and today, Richard is the owner of Virgin Group, which has over 400 companies across business interests which include airlines, record stores, and spaceflights.

The Big Idea: Dream on, and make it happen

We must eliminate the word ‘can’t’ from our dictionaries. The world may try to bring us down and tell us otherwise, but it’s important that we believe in ourselves and the beauty of our dreams. That being said, it’s vain to take uncalculated risks. We must have fun doing whatever we decide to pursue. Then it will never seem like work.

Even if we’re stuck in a job that we don’t like, we must find the time to do things we enjoy; that’s what will keep us going in life. Everyone needs a challenge. It helps us grow. While it’s okay to have a dream, it’s important to have a realistic plan to achieve it. We may be swimming upstream but the one who can find opportunity in any situation no matter how bleak, is a winner all the way. The world will not be kind to you, but you have to make your way through. While it’s good to plan and analyse past experiences, it’s important to live in the moment. Regret is a bad habit and can never do anyone any good.

On life’s journey, no matter what our goals are, all of us need a support system – family and friends. We must also respect everyone including those who cannot do anything for us.

What you will learn as you read:

·       How to ensure you’re making progress

·       What the importance of people in our lives is

·       Why a guy named Shawn Nelson became the President of Virgin

If you have the right attitude, you will find a way to overcome your weaknesses

If you really want to achieve success, you must let nothing stop you; not even yourself. Richard Branson was a mildly dyslexic child and found it very difficult to read and write at school. As there wasn’t much awareness about the condition back in the day, most of his teachers thought he was simply being lazy. Instead of giving up and wallowing in self-pity, he used his energy to find a way out. He decided to learn everything by heart. Today, he has an amazing memory, and believes it’s one of his strongest tools as a businessman.

Richard didn’t stop at that. He further challenged himself and got out of his comfort zone. He participated in an essay writing competition and won. This spurred him on to set up his own magazine at the age of 15! He, along with his friend, worked towards establishing Student Magazine. Right from making calls from a public phone to selling ad space, and conducting interviews with the likes of John Lennon, Mick Jagger and Dudley Moore, to working out the cash flows, Richard successfully did it all. He used his weakness to empower rather than embitter himself.

When Richard won the essay competition mentioned above, his mother encouraged him. She herself was one with a positive attitude, something which Richard seems to have inherited. During the second world war, she wanted to become a pilot, but women in those days weren’t allowed to. Needless to say, that didn’t stop her! A determined Eve Branson approached the Heston airfield dressed up as a man and got the job!

Like in business, take calculated risks even in life

‘Never say never’ doesn’t mean you go all guns blazing without giving things a thought. The trick lies in knowing which risks to take and which to pass. In the 2004 TV series, The Rebel Billionaire, Richard Branson offered the unsuspecting prize winner a gamble: he could either take the cheque for the million dollars that he’d won or toss a coin for a bigger mystery prize. After a lot of thought, Shawn Nelson decided to trade off the bigger mystery prize for his prize money. He believed he could use it to further his current business and help his employees. A coin toss wasn’t a calculated risk. Shawn ended up winning the one million dollars as well as the mystery prize – an opportunity to be President of Virgin for three months.

Richard got many business-offers that he believes were good, but he turned them down. Lloyd’s, the biggest insurance company, for instance, offered to take him on board but he declined. In retrospect, he believes it was a good decision because had he taken it up, he would have lost a fortune.

When one tries something new, one won’t always be lucky, and sometimes, may end up paying a high price. While we must take calculated risks, we must understand that we can’t always protect ourselves. Richard has also had his share of luck in personal life. He survived a crash with minor injuries when flying in an experimental flying machine built by an inventor named Richard Ellis. Ellis himself suffered a fatal crash in the same machine the week after!

It’s important to enjoy and be happy no matter what you pursue

Many of Richard Branson’s well-wishers have asked him to retire or simply relax considering Virgin Group is doing so well. But he doesn’t see a reason to change his life, because he has fun when he is working on various ideas for his businesses.

When something stops being fun, it’s a red flag that you need to move on. Nik Powell was with Richard from the start of Virgin. While the latter handled the creative side of things, the former handled the finances, and his main job was to run the Virgin record stores. When they started Virgin Atlantic airlines, British Airways offered them tough competition. As a result, Virgin Atlantic didn’t do well initially, and major earnings from the record stores that were booming were used to keep it afloat. Unlike Richard, Nik wasn’t too comfortable with this. He believed it was too risky to continue to fund one business with the earnings of another. Their different approaches towards the business meant that one couldn’t be happy while the other was. That’s when they decided to part ways amicably. If Nik had continued at Virgin even after things had stopped being fun for him, odds are that they would have both ended up unhappy, and in the process, they would have ruined their friendship.

Beauty and body care product store, Body Shop is also a great example of what happens when you’re having fun. Anita Roddick started off making skin creams in her kitchen, but today, Body Shop is a global empire.

Being preoccupied with the past, and worrying about the future, takes the focus off the present

Most of us spend a lot of time regretting or overanalysing past mistakes, and/or fretting about the future. We forget to live in the moment. When Spanish painter, Salvador Dali used to get bored with life, he would walk in his cliff-top garden. He would then pick a peach, ripe and ready, and admire its sun-kissed golden skin. He would sniff it and allow its perfume to intoxicate his senses. He would bite into it and savour its juices slowly. Lastly, he would spit it out and throw the remaining fruit. He derived more pleasure in the moment he bit into the fruit, than in eating baskets full of it.

Often, we go through life as an automaton. We live on auto-pilot. We must be alive to each moment and make every second count. Richard Branson’s grandmother was the oldest person at 89 years of age to pass the advanced Latin American ballroom dancing exam. She was 90 when she became the oldest person to hit a hole in one at golf. Shortly before her death at the age of 99, she went on a cruise around the world and even got left behind in Jamaica wearing nothing but her swimming costume. Even at that ripe age, she ensured she lived life to the fullest.

Richard’s parents share the same traits and though in their 80s, they travel around the world and are present at the start and end of all of his adventures, cheering him on.

It’s important to have a support system in life

Everybody needs somebody to fall back on. It’s important to have a support system like family or even friends who are like family. Richard Branson learned the value of family very early in life. His mother always found things they could do as a family. He even considers Virgin Group a big family of some 4000 staff members.

Richard dreamed of setting up a recording studio where bands could enjoy playing; they didn’t need to get their gear from all the way to the studio, as the studio would have its in-house gear. Moreover, the atmosphere wouldn’t be as formal as in most studios during those days. This led to him buying what is now called The Manor Studio. He didn’t have enough money to buy the studio himself. But, his parents and relatives pitched in, and helped him buy it. This kind family support showed Richard that his family trusted him and his dreams.

Richard has grown to put the same kind of faith in his employees. There is a culture to reward talent at Virgin. Even if someone is hired for a particular job but shows flair in another area, he or she is given a chance to try their hands at the new role.

Do the right thing always

In his show, The Rebel Billionaire, Richard Branson dressed up as an old cabby and drove the contestants to the manor house. On the way, he tried listening to their conversations and also noted how they treated him – an old man – when he couldn’t lift their heavy luggage. He learned a lot about their true nature and character from this.

Like respecting people, it’s also important to respect the law. Richard once fell into trouble because he tried selling tax-free records in his stores. These were meant for a Belgium-based order where tax doesn’t need to be paid. Richard couldn’t get the order to Belgium because he would have to pass through France, and they insisted on tax payments, which Richard didn’t want to pay. He then thought, why not sell these at the stores and make a quick buck! Richard didn’t know that he was being observed. His warehouse and stores were raided and he was put in prison.

It’s important to try and do the right thing even when no one is watching. You never know who you touch along the way. Even if our good deeds don’t lead to something productive, at least we will have a good name.

Always pay it forward

It’s important to have a social context to all our endeavours. Especially if we are financially blessed or have fame, power, and connections, we must use them for the larger good. During the Iraq invasion of Kuwait, Branson discovered that numerous refugees had crossed into Jordan. Richard reached out to the King and Queen of Jordan as he had good relations with them and asked them if he could help in any way. They responded by saying they would need hundreds of thousands of blankets. Despite Virgin airlines not doing too well at the time, Richard arranged to send jets carrying blankets and other supplies for the refugees.

Even when he found out that Saddam Hussein had held some British nationals as human shields, he leveraged his connections with Jordan’s King and Queen, and, as requested by Iraq, went along with Sir Edward Heath, the former prime minister, to negotiate. They risked their lives as many thought Hussein would take them hostage too, but they were successful.

Richard persuaded Elton John to sing ‘Candle in the Wind’ for Princess Diana’s funeral. The record sold 33 million copies, and all the proceeds were given to charity. In 2004, Richard started Virgin Unite, which brings Virgin staff all over the world together to do something for social causes. Richard has inculcated the habit of paying it forward in his children as well. Holly, his daughter, feels strongly about youth in the UK grappling with sexual issues and volunteers with Virgin Unite.

 

Final Summary

No matter what you’re pursuing in life, you must have a go-getter attitude. While it’s important to take calculated risks, it’s vain to overanalyse a situation or even regret the past. No matter how careful we are, mistakes are inevitable. You will grow, only when challenged. We must dare to get out of our comfort zones. We must not sit around waiting for fate to favour us, rather, seize the moment. It’s important to have fun no matter what we pursue. That way, we will ensure we’re using every moment wisely. 

People have a very important role to play in our lives especially family and friends. Strangers we meet along the way also matter. It’s wise to be good to, and respectful of all, because we usually meet the same people we met on our way up the ladder, as we do on our way down!