What Can You Do To Make A Difference? And Why Should You Do It? (...) The Scale Of One's Social Investments Doesn't Matter. What Matters Is That You Operate As A Force For Good At Every Scale Available To You.

-Richard Branson

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What Can You Do

Richard Branson

Topic

What Matters

Differences

Making A Difference

More From Richard Branson

Capitalism Has Never Stood Back And Examined Itself Properly. I Think Everybody Knows That Capitalism Is The Only Thing That Works, But Is The Current Form Of Capitalism The Best Way Of It Working?

Thinking

Way

Form

Making The Extra Effort To Say Thanks In A Genuine, Personal Manner Goes A Long Way. It Is Pleasurable To Do, And It Encourages More Of The Same Good Behavior.

Long

Effort

Way

If You Can Run One Business Well, You Can Run Any Business Well.

Running

Business

Wells

Most Entrepreneurs Are Not Doing It For Financial Motives In The First Place. They're Just People Who Love Creating.

Creating

People

Entrepreneur

To Have Created One Of The Most Respected Companies In The World. Not Necessarily The Biggest.

Business

Vision

Legacy

I Believe In Goals. It's Never A Bad Thing To Have A Dream. If Something Is Really What You Want To Do, Just Do It. Whatever Your Goal.

Dream

Believe

Goal

I Think Because I Have Great Difficulty Saying The Word, 'no,' Almost Every Day's A Different Adventure.

Adventure

Thinking

Different

Ridiculous Yachts And Private Planes And Big Limousines Won't Make People Enjoy Life More, And It Sends Out Terrible Messages To The People Who Work For Them. It Would Be So Much Better If That Money Was Spent In Africa - And It's About Getting A Balance.

Life

People

Balance

Grow Internally First. Strengthen Your Bottom Line First Before Considering External Growth.

Growth

Survival

Lines

If You Do Something For Fun And Create The Best Possible Product, Then The Profit Will Come.

Fun

Motivation

Work

We Will Be Producing Supersonic Planes Which Will Go Far, Far Faster Than Concordes. New York To Tokyo Could Be Less Than An Hour. You Could Be Traveling At 19,000 Miles An Hour Orbitally.

New York

Space

Tokyo

Our Model Is To Develop Each Business Separately With Its Own Shareholder And Management - This Way We Can Concentrate On The Job In Hand, Rather Than Be Part Of Some Enormous And Faceless Conglomerate.

Jobs

Business

Hands

I Think Sometimes When You Come From A Conservative Background, You Want To Rebel A Little Bit. I Dropped Out Of School At 15 And Learned Early In Life That Saying Yes Was A Lot More Fun Than Saying No. If You Have The Opportunity To Explore The Skies And Attempt Something People Haven't Done Before - Well, I Was Damned If I Was Going To Sit Around Watching Television While Someone Else Was Doing It.

Fun

School

Opportunity

I Truly Believe That Capitalism Was Created To Help People Live Better Lives, But Sadly Over The Years It Has Lost Its Way A Bit. The Short-term Focus On Profit Has Driven Most Businesses To Forget About The Important Long-term Role They Have In Taking Care Of People And The Planet.

Believe

Years

Long

Explore This Next Great Frontier Where The Boundaries Between Work And Higher Purpose Are Merging Into One, Where Doing Good Really Is Good For Business.

Motivational

Spiritual

Encouragement

If You Don't Make Bold Moves, The World Doesn't Move Forward.

Moving

World

Bold Moves

I Think I've Learned That If You Have A House, You End Up Living In The Kitchen, So If You Have One Big Kitchen And Then Enough Bedrooms For Your Family, That's About All You Need For A Home.

Home

Thinking

House

If You Want To Be A Millionaire, Start With A Billion Dollars And Launch A New Airline.

Entrepreneur

Dollars

Want

To Be Successful, You Have To Be Out There, You Have To Hit The Ground Running

Running

Successful

Being Successful

I Drink About 30 Cups Of Tea A Day. I'm A Complete Tea Addict.

Tea

Cups

Drink

Most "necessary Evils" Are Far More Evil Than Necessary.

Business

Evil

Necessary Evil

If You Look After Your Staff, They'll Look After Your Customers. It's That Simple.

Leadership

Simple

Looks

With All My Employees, I Listen To Them, Trust In Them, Believe In Them, Respect Them And Let Them Have A Go! I Never Believe I Know Better Than They Do And Have Been Fortunate Over The Years To Build Up A Very Strong Management Team Whom I Can Trust And Take Advice From.

Strong

Team

Believe

Throwing Yourself Into A Job You Enjoy Is One Of The Life's Greatest Pleasures!

Jobs

Fun

Adventure

We'd Love To Be Involved With The Creation Of Something Very Special, Something Quite Large And Something Quite Exciting.

Fun

Adventure

Special

The Way You Treat Your Employees Is The Way They Will Treat Your Customers

Way

Employee Appreciation

Treats

I’ve Always Had A Soft Spot For Dreamers – Not Those Who Waste Their Time Thinking ‘what If’ But The Ones Who Look To The Sky And Say ‘why Can’t I Shoot For The Moon?’

Moon

Thinking

Sky

A Successful Business Must Have A Sound Knowledge Of Its Market And Work On How Its Product Or Service Will Be Different, Stand Out And Improve People's Lives. If You Can Ensure It Responds To A Real Need In The Market Place, Your Business Can Punch Well Above Its Weight.

Real

Successful

People

If You Want To Stand Out From The Crowd, Give People A Reason Not To Forget You

People

Giving

Crowds

Fun Is At The Core Of The Way I Like To Do Business And It Has Been Key To Everything I've Done From The Outset.

Fun

Business

Keys

Flowers Flourish When They're Watered, And Shrivel Up When They're Not. People Are No Different. The Best Leaders Are The Ones Who Look For The Best In People.

Flower

People

Leader

We've Got An Engaging, Edgy, Vibrant, Fun Product, ... It May Or May Not Work, But We're Going To Give It Our Best Shot.

Business

Fun

Giving

I Was Fortunate Enough, After Many Visits To Many Wonderful, Weird People To Come Across Burt Rutan, Who Is A Genius In The Mojave Desert. And Spaceshipone Was Born And Had Three Flights Into Space That Won Something Called The X Prize. And From There, We're Building Spaceshiptwo, Which Is ... A Beautiful Spaceship That Is Very, Very, Very Nearly Completed And Will Be Ready From About Next Christmas Onwards To Start Taking People Into Space.

Beautiful

Space

People

I Am Impressed With Just The Enthusiasm For Life And The Fact That Some Of These People Are In Their 80's, Even 90's, And They're Absolutely Determined To Get Out There And Make A Difference.

Life

Differences

People

In The Same Way That I Tend To Make Up My Mind About People Within Thirty Seconds Of Meeting Them, I Also Make Up My Mind About Whether A Business Proposal Excites Me Within About Thirty Seconds Of Looking At It. I Rely Far More On Gut Instinct Than Researching Huge Amounts Of Statistics.

People

Mind

Statistics

When You Are Starting A Business Or Going Down Any Challenging Endeavor, You Are Bound To Encounter Challenges. You Are Going To Hit Many Roadblocks And Obstacles. These Are Obstacles That Would Make Any Sane Person Want To Throw In The Towel And Quit. If You Want Your Business To Succeed, You Can’t Do That (duh).

Challenges

Encounters

Duh

Whether We're Fighting Climate Change Or Going To Space, Everything Is Moved Forward By Computers, And We Don't Have Enough People Who Can Code

Fighting

Space

People

"i Think The Most Important Thing Is That In The Last Seven Days We've Just Had The Greatest Adventure Of Our Lifetimes." "i'm Inquisitive ... And I Love A New Challenge... And If I Feel That We Can Do It Better Than It's Been Done By Other People, We'll Have A Go."

Fun

Adventure

Thinking

Entrepreneurial Business Favours The Open Mind. It Favours People Whose Optimism Drives Them To Prepare For Many Possible Futures, Pretty Much Purely For The Joy Of Doing So.

Inspirational

Powerful

Business

If You Love What You Do And If You Believe In What You Do, Others Will Share Your Enthusiasm. Passionate People Find Their Way To The Virgin Group, And When They Do, We Snap Them Up And Try To Keep Them Within The Family.

Believe

People

Trying

A Business Can Be Started With Very Little Money.

Littles

Little Money

Ideas Are The Lifeblood Of Business. Capture Every Fleeting Idea And Drive For Change.

Ideas

Fleeting

Capture

Choose Great People And Shine In Their Shadows

People

Shining

Shadow

There Are Quite A Few Things I've Done That Even I Thought Might Have Been One Step Too Far. But If You Are Willing To Make A Fool Of Yourself And Make People Smile, As Long As You Do It With A Sense Of Fun, You Can Get Away With It.

Fun

Long

People

It Is Only By Being Bold That You Get Anywhere. If You Are A Risk-taker, Then The Art Is To Protect The Downside.

Art

Risk

Protect

I Just Kind Of Dive In If I Think I Can Create Something That Will Make A Difference And Then Try To Get The Numbers To Stack Up After The Event. So Most Of The Things I've Done I Would Not Have Done If I'd Have Asked The Accountants To Look At Them Before.

Thinking

Numbers

Differences

I Believe In Myself. I Believe In The Hands That Work, In The Brains That Think, And In The Hearts That Love.

Believe

Heart

Thinking

I Always Tell Other People To Protect Against The Downside, And Not Risk Roughing On New Ventures, But I Never Stuck To That Rule Myself.

New Ventures

People

Risk

Be Authentic And Organic. It Can't Be Forced Or It Won't Work. And Most Importantly, Have Fun.

Fun

Having Fun

If You Find Yourself Stuck In The Middle There Is Only One Way To Go, Forward.

Finding Yourself

Way

Middle

Through The Right People Focusing On The Right Things, We Can, In Time, Get On Top Of A Lot If Not Most Of The Problems Of This World. And That's What A Number Of Us Are Trying To Do.

Numbers

People

Trying

One Thing Is Certain In Business: You Will Make Mistakes. When You Are Pushing The Boundaries, Mistakes Are Inevitable-how You React Is Important.

Mistake

Important

Pushing

You See, It's Essential That One Of Us Stays Awake During The Flight [ballon]. So, Rather Than Using The Comfortable Virgin Seats Which We Used To Cross The Atlantic, We've Asked British Airways For Two Of Theirs.

Two

Essentials

Insult

I Never Set Out To Be A Businessman

Businessman

We Don't Actually Plan To Launch New Businesses Over The Next Few Years, But We Are Planning To Take The Ones We Have Into New Territories.

Years

Territory

The Idea That Business Is Strictly A Numbers Affair Has Always Struck Me As Preposterous. For One Thing, I've Never Been Particularly Good At Numbers, But I Think I've Done A Reasonable Job With Feelings. And I'm Convinced That It Is Feelings - And Feelings Alone - That Account For The Success Of The Virgin Brand In All Of Its Myriad Forms.

Jobs

Thinking

Ideas

There Are Millions Of People Out There Who Would Love To Become Astronauts, Who'd Love To Go To Space - They'd Love To Look Back At This Wonderful World From Space. That Will Be The Engine That Will Enable Us Then To Develop Spaceships To Transport People Around The World At Tremendous Speeds In An Environmentally Friendly Way.

Space

People

Friendly

Breaking The Rules And Challenging Convention Is In The Dna Of Every Successful Entrepreneur.

Successful

Dna

Entrepreneur

It's Far More Difficult Being A Small-business Owner Starting A Business Than It Is For Me With Thousands Of People Working For Us And 400 Companies. Building A Business From Scratch Is 24 Hours, 7 Days A Week, Divorces, It's Difficult To Hold Your Family Life Together, It's Bloody Hard Work And Only One Word Really Matters - And That's Surviving.

Divorce

Hard Work

People

Take A Chance - It's The Best Way To Test Yourself, Have Fund And Push Boundaries.

Inspirational

Business

Having Fun

When Employees Tell You About Their Good Ideas For The Business, Don't Limit Your Response To Asking Questions, Taking Notes And Following Up. If You Can, Ask Those People To Lead Their Projects And Take Responsibility For Them. From Those Experiences, They Will Then Have Built The Confidence To Take On More And You Can Take A Further Step Back.

Responsibility

Asking Questions

Ideas

As Much As You Need A Strong Personality To Build A Business From Scratch, You Also Must Understand The Art Of Delegation.

Art

Strong

Personality

If You Are A New Startup Company, Try Not To Arouse The Interest Or Suspicion Of Your Competition; Especially If They Are A Bigger Company. They Can Crush You While You Are Still In Your Startup Phase. Lie Low While Still Strengthening Your Bottom Line.

Crush

Lying

Competition

Running A Business Is Making A Difference In People's Lives

Running

Differences

People

First And Foremost, Any Business Proposal I Like Must Sound Fun.

Fun

Adventure

Sound

People Flourish If They’re Praised.

People

Ifs

I Think Bands Will Actually Make More Money Without Record Companies; A Much Bigger Share Of The Money Will Go To The Bands. You Won't Have Record Shops Taking 40 Percent Of The Money. You Won't Have Record Labels Taking 40 Percent Of The Money. So They Don't Have To Sell As Many Albums As They Used To In The Past. So It's Not Necessarily A Bad Thing If Record Companies Disappear.

Past

Thinking

Albums

A Generation Ago, The Image Was That You Had To Trample Everyone Else Down To Succeed; But I Don't Believe That Makes Good Business Sense.

Business

Believe

Generations

I Am Constantly Pushing Myself And My Own Expectations And Have Always Found That I've Always Come Out Better For It. Fear Is Human Nature, But Turning Fear Into Opportunity Is What Will Make A Difference. I Would Much Rather Look Back At My Life Saying "i Can't Believe I Did That," Than, "what If I Had Done That?"

Believe

Opportunity

Expectations

I Suspect In Most Companies, The Public Relations Person Is Down At No. 20 In The Pecking Order. But Here, He Is Fighting Incredibly Important Battles. If A Negative Story Starts Running Away With Itself In The Press And Is Not Dealt With Fast, It Can Badly Damage The Brand, And So We Put Enormous Weight On Our Pr People.

Running

Fighting

Order

I Have Had A Lot Of Fun Pushing The Boundaries On My Balloon And Kitesurf Adventures, Breaking Some World Records In The Process, And I Think This Attitude Of Having Fun Whilst Working Hard Is One That Lends Itself Very Well To Successful Entrepreneurship.

Fun

Attitude

Adventure

Avoid Litigations. They Are Expensive And Consume Loads Of Time But If You Have Got A Good Case And A Better Chance Of Winning; Then Fight It Out.

Fighting

Winning

Survival

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.

Success

Business

Real

A Company Is People … Employees Want To Know… Am I Being Listened To Or Am I A Cog In The Wheel? People Really Need To Feel Wanted.

People

Cogs

Needs

Doing Good Is Good For Business.

Doing Good

Above All, You Want To Create Something You're Proud Of.

Successful

Marketing

Business Success

If You Follow Your Dreams And Spend Your Life Doing What Brings You Joy, You Are More Likely To Find Success

Dream

Joy

Ifs

Dream Big And You Will Be Presented With The Opportunity To Lead The World On An Incredible Adventure.

Dream

Adventure

Opportunity

Sometimes The Riskiest Decision You Can Make Is To Do Nothing.

Decision

Sometimes

We Experiment Endlessly, With New Products, New Methods, New Companies And New Marketing. A Successful Business The Emphasis Is On Experiment And Development, Ideas Are The Lifeblood Of Business.

Successful

Ideas

Marketing

Conflicts Often Stem From A Couple Of Leaders On Both Sides That Are Badly Brought Up. They'd Rather Go To War Than Compromise. And In Business, You're Competing With Other Companies All The Time, But You Don't End Up Going To War With Each Other.

Couple

War

Leader

Smiling Can Be A Competitive Advantage. It Makes Everyone Feel Better And Every Situation Brighter.

Feel Better

Advantage

Situation

I Was A Risk-taker As A Young Man, And I Don't Regret It. I'm Not Adventurous In Quite The Same Way Now, But I Still Love The Challenge Of Testing Myself To The Limits, Flying Around The World, Or Seeing If I Can Be The First To Fly A Balloon Across The Atlantic, Or Trying To Take People Into Space At An Affordable Price In An Environmentally Friendly Way. I'll Be Going Into Space With Three Generations Of My Family!

Regret

Men

People

We've Definitely Cracked The Technology. Now We're Just Trying To Be Able To Produce The Amount Of Fuels That We Need To Satisfy Our Own Needs And Then Other People's Needs.

Technology

People

Trying

If You Are Glass Half Empty Type Of Person, Maybe You Just Haven’t Been Holding The Right Glass

Glasses

Half

Empty

I Think It's Quite Great To Set Yourself A Big Challenge And Then You've Got Another Reason For Keeping Fit.

Thinking

Challenges

Fit

I'd Like To See The Government Back A Programme Of Research Into The Medical Properties Of Cannabis And I Do Not Object To Its Responsible Use As A Recreational Relaxant.

Weed

Marijuana

Government

There Isn't A Flight Goes By When I Don't Stare Out Of The Window And Thank My Stars For What I'm Seeing And Feeling.

Stars

Feelings

Aviation

I Was Born Under A Lucky Star, And I Have Nothing Whatsoever To Regret. I Wouldn't Change A Thing About My Life.

Stars

Regret

Lucky

Business Has To Give People Enriching, Rewarding Lives...or It's Simply Not Worth Doing.

People

Giving

Enriching

I Never Learned The Rules In The First Place. To Change The Game Is At The Heart Of What Virgin Stands For, So The Company Culture Has Always Been: "don't Sweat It: Rules Were Meant To Be Broken."

Heart

Games

Sweat

As Men, We All Have Something To Give. We All Have The Power To Do Our Own Part To Stop The Global Pandemic Of Violence Against Women And Girls. It Is Holding Us All Back.

Girl

Men

Giving

Respect Is How To Treat Everyone, Not Just Those You Want To Impress.

Inspirational

Respect

Business

When I Started Virgin From A Basement Flat In West London, I Did Not Set Out To Build A Business Empire. I Set Out To Create Something I Enjoyed That Would Pay The Bills.

Pay

Bills

London

Our Generation Has Inherited An Incredibly Beautiful World From Our Parents And They From Their Parents. It Is In Our Hands Whether Our Children And Their Children Inherit The Same World. We Must Not Be The Generation Responsible For Irreversibly Damaging The Environment.

Beautiful

Children

Responsibility

Breaking The Rules And Challenging Convention Is In The Dna Of Every Successful Entrepreneur. Doing Things Differently And Solving Problems With New, Innovative And Fresh Approaches Are The Very Reason Many Start-ups Are Able To Compete And Sometimes Outpace The Established Market Leaders.

Successful

Market Leaders

Dna

It Took Me Years To Work Out The Difference Between Net And Gross. In Meetings I Just Used To Say, 'tell Me If It's Good Or Bad News.

Business

Differences

Years

If You Get Into Business Solely To Make Money, You Won’t. If You Try To Make A Real Difference, You’ll Find Success.

Real

Differences

Trying

I Like To Set Myself A New Adventure Challenge At Least Once Or Twice A Year Because I Love That Side Of My Life. I Love Getting Fit And Training For It.

Adventure

Years

Challenges

Exploration Is A Wonderful Way To Open Our Eyes To The World, & To Truly See That Impossible Is Just A Word.

Eye

World

Way

Can You Afford To Ignore China? It's Like Saying You Can Afford To Ignore The Internet. I Don't Think So.

Thinking

Internet

China

After All - Life Is Not A Dress Rehearsal!

Dresses

Rehearsal

Life Is

Every Success Story Is A Tale Of Constant Adaption, Revision And Change. A Company That Stands Still Will Soon Be Forgotten. Trying To Provoke Positive Change Is A Principle We've Embedded Across The Virgin Family For More Than Four Decades.

Change

Trying

Stories

Just Start. You Will Learn So Many Lessons Just By Doing.

Lessons

If You Can Run One Company, You Can Run Another. Running Companies Are About Inspiring And Driving The Best Out Of People.

Running

People

Driving

Any Successful Entrepreneur Knows That Time Is More Valuable Than Money Itself.

Successful

Entrepreneur

Valuable

I Know Enough To Know That No Man Is An Island.

Men

Islands

People

Build Your Own Business Team. Survival In Business Requires A Synergy Of Skills.

Team

Skills

Survival

Some 80% Of Your Life Is Spent Working. You Want To Have Fun At Home; Why Shouldn't You Have Fun At Work?

Inspiring

Fun

Home

Don't Wait Till You Are Big Before You Begin Building Your Brand. Build A Brand From Scratch Alongside Your Business.

Waiting

Survival

Scratches

Be Creative. Innovate Consistently On The Little Things That The Big Companies Ignore. Little Things Often Make Big Differences In Business.

Differences

Creative

Survival

Never Go Into Business Purely To Make Money. If That's The Motive You're Better Off Doing Nothing.

Powerful

Doing Nothing

Making Money

I Myself Have Benefited From Many Mentors Throughout My Life.

Mentor

Wine, Like Life, Is Meant To Be Enjoyed.

Life

Wine

Enjoyed

My Parents Brought Me Up With This Philosophy. You Must Do Things. You Mustn't Watch What Other People Are Doing. You Must Not Listen To What Other People Are Doing.

Philosophy

People

Parent

Perhaps, Therefore, It Is Odd That If There Is Any One Phrase That Is Guaranteed To Set Me Off It's When Someone Says To Me, 'ok, Fine. You're The Boss!' What Irks Me Is That In 90% Of Such Instances What That Person Is Really Saying Is, 'ok, Then, I Don't Agree With You, But I'll Roll Over And Do It Because You're Telling Me To. But If It Doesn't Work Out I'll Be The First To Remind Everyone That It Wasn't My Idea.'

Ideas

Work Out

Boss

Universities Are Fantastic Places To Gain Knowledge On A Subject, Develop A Personal Network, Explore Your Character And Learn New Techniques To Approach Problems. I Do However Believe That There Is A Strong Argument For Students Who Have An Idea They Are Passionate About To Just Try And Turn It Into A Reality. I Fell Into This Category And I Don't Regret Not Going To University.

Strong

Regret

Believe

Learn To Live On The Edge.

Survival

Edges

I've Obviously Been Born Fortunate. I Love People. I Enjoy Every Single Minute Of My Life.

People

Born

Minutes

Once A Changemaker, Always A Changemaker But Only A Few Swim Against The Tide.

Inspirational

Business

Swim

To Launch A Business Means Successfully Solving Problems. Solving Problems Means Listening.

Mean

Listening

Problem

Education Doesn't Just Take Place In Stuffy Classrooms And University Buildings, It Can Happen Everywhere, Every Day To Every Person.

Inspirational

Business

Classroom

We Love Formula One And Think Formula One's Great. But We Think Formula E Is Different. We Would Be Making A Big Mistake If We Tried To Compete With Formula One And Be Similar To Formula One, We Have To Be Radically Different To Formula One To Have A Chance Of Survival. I Don't Mean Survival By Beating Formula One But Co-existing Complimentary To Formula One.

Love

Mistake

Mean

The Years I Would Have Spent At University, I Spent Building Student Magazine And Virgin Records. For Me That Was Far More Fun And Satisfying. I Have Treated Everyday As The University Education I Never Had And Think I Learnt More About Business And Life Than I Would Have At University In The Process.

Fun

Thinking

Years

Colleagues Should Take Care Of Each Other, Have Fun, Celebrate Success, Learn By Failure, Look For Reasons To Praise Not To Criticize, Communicate Freely And Respect Each Other.

Fun

Innovation

Culture

Virgin, Is How Good You Are With People. If You're - If You're Good With People And You've Got - You Know, And You Really Care, Genuinely Care About People Then I'm Sure We Could Find A Job For You At Virgin. I Think, You Know, That, You Know, That The Companies That Look After Their People Are The Companies That Do Really Well. I'm Sure We'd Like A Few Other Attributes, But That Would Be The Most Important One.

Jobs

Thinking

People

I Definitely Go On Gut Instinct But It Has Always Had The Back Up Of Research And Information.

Research

Goes On

Information

Believe In Yourself And Back Yourself To Come Out On Top. A Fulfilling Career Is Waiting For Those Brave Enough To Find It.

Powerful

Believe

Careers

It's Better To Say Nothing Than Spend 1,000 Words Or An Hour Speech Saying Nothing. Get To The Point.

Speech

Saying Nothing

Hours

I Am Always Working On The Go.

Always Working

I Think That Marijuana Should Be Legalized. I Think The Only Reason It Isn't Legal Is Because Politicians Who Smoked It When They Were Young Men Or Young Women Just Don't Have The Courage When They Become Politicians To Legalize It.

Marijuana

Men

Thinking

It Isn't Effective Or Productive To Force Your Employees To Do Anything. Choice Empowers People And Makes For A More Content Workforce.

Leadership

People

Choices

Don't Think About Making Money, Think About Making A Difference, Spot Where Others Are Doing It Badly And Do It Better

Thinking

Differences

Self Improvement

Your Employees Are Your Company’s Real Competitive Advantage. They’re The Ones Making The Magic Happen-so Long As Their Needs Are Being Met.

Real

Long

Magic

Entrepreneursh Ip Is A Great Leveller, Since Having The Benefit Of A Wealthy Background Or A Generous Investor Isn't Always An Advantage. The Wonderful Thing Is That Money Is Not The Sole Currency When It Comes To Starting A Business; Drive, Determination, Passion And Hard Work Are All Free And More Valuable Than A Pot Of Cash.

Determination

Hard Work

Passion

As An Entrepreneur, You've Got To Protect Against The Company Going Bust. And As An Adventurer, You've Got To Protect Against Losing Your Life. It's Even More Important As An Adventurer To Get It Right.

Entrepreneur

Important

Losing

So I've Seen Life As One Long Learning Process.

Life

Long

Process

Have Faith In Yourself. Think Yes Not No. Live Life To The Full. Never Give Up.

Giving Up

Live Life

Thinking

You Can Create A Business, Choose A Name, But Unless People Know About It You're Not Going To Sell Any Products.

Names

People

Knows

Space Travel Will Be Like Every Other Business. There Will Be Competitors. . . . Thirty Months From Now, I'm Confident We'll Be Flying People Into Space.

Future

Space

People

My Definition Of Success? The More You Are Actively And Practically Engaged, The More Successful You Will Feel.

Inspirational

Business

Successful

One Thing Is Certain In Business, You And Everyone Around You Will Make Mistakes.

Business

Mistake

Certain

By Nature I Am Curious About Life, And This Extends To My Business.

Curious

A Business Has To Be Involving, It Has To Be Fun, And It Has To Exercise Your Creative Instincts.

Life

Success

Business

If You Take Care Of Your Workers They'll Take Care Of Your Business.

Care

Take Care

Workers

You Can Never Go Too Far Wrong By Thinking Like A Customer Who’s New To The Business.

Thinking

Customers

Have Passion For What You Do; Believe In Yourself And Your Product And Your Customer; Persevere; Delegate; Listen. Have Fun. Today, I Add: "do Good".

Fun

Believe

Passion

A Little Humour Is Good For The Soul - Regardless Of How Old You May Be.

Soul

May

Littles

To Be A Great Leader, You Must Be A Great Listener

Leader

Self Improvement

Listeners

As An Adventurer...i Try To Protect Against The Downside. I Make Sure I Have Covered As Many Eventualities As I Can. In The End, You Have To Take Calculated Risks; Otherwise You're Going To Sit In Mothballs All Day And Do Nothing.

Health

Inspire

Risk

If A Chairman Of A Company Visits Seattle, That Chairman Should Take All The Staff Out In The Evening And Have A Few Drinks Together, Talk Together And Party Together And Not Be Embarrassed About The Staff Seeing The Weaker Side Of You.

Party

Together

Evening

I Am Passionate About Many Things But Conserving Our Planet And Its Species Is A High Priority Of Mine.

Priorities

Passionate

Planets

Screw The Competition - Focus On Good Customer Service.

Focus

Competition

Good Customer Service

I Have Always Believed That Personal Relationships Are Vital In Business And That People Should Be Directly Accountable For Their Actions.

People

Action

Should

Failing Can Provide Invaluable Lessons And Making Mistakes And Experiencing Setbacks Is Part Of The Dna Of Every Successful Entrepreneur.

Mistake

Successful

Dna

People Do Not Mind People Who Try Things And Fail. If You're A Good Entrepreneur, You're Not Going To Succeed In Every Single Thing You Try. You've Got To Try To Succeed At More Things Than Fail.

People

Entrepreneur

Mind

Having No Regrets Makes Way For The Best Piece Of Advice I Can Give - Don't Be Afraid Of Failure.

Regret

Giving

Advice

I Never Wanted To Be A Businessman, I Just Wanted To Change The World

Business

World

Management

We [virgin Group] Have Been Successful Not By Wasting Time Scrutinising Our Competitors But By Looking At Ourselves From The Point Of View Of Our Customers Do And Seeking Feedback Through Listening.

Successful

Views

Listening

You Must Have The Courage To Trust Your Instincts And Be Ready To Question What Other People Don't. If You Do That, You Can Seize Opportunities That Others Would Miss. Believe In Yourself, And Use Everything You Can - Including The Obstacles - To Propel You Along The Road To Success. Who Knows What You Might Achieve?

Believe

Opportunity

People

It's Never Easy To Set Up Any Business, But It Comes Back To Determination And Drive And The Love Of What You Do!

Determination

Easy

I Never Really Felt Secure Until I Was Well Into My 30s, Because Anytime I Had Success, I Would Invest In New Projects.

Projects

Wells

Secure

It Always Pays Off To Focus On Things That Will Make You Feel Proud. Remember This During Every Difficult Decision You Face.

Focus

Decision

Faces

Happiness Doesn't Come From Making A Fortune And Owning Lots Of Possessions. 'stuff' Doesn't Bring Happiness. Family, Friends, Good Health And The Satisfaction That Comes From Making A Positive Difference Are What Really Matter.

Differences

Matter

Stuff

With Space Travel, [it's] No Different. You Know, In 1990 I Read The Name Virgin Galactic Airways. Loved The Name. And Set Out To Try To Find An Engineer Or Rocket Scientist In The World Who Could Build A Safe, Reusable Rocket That Could Take People To And From Space And We Could Start A Whole New Era Of Commercial Space Travel.

Names

Space

People

We Have The Enormous Opportunity In Our Hands To Make A Positive Difference For Business, People, And The Planet.

Opportunity

Hands

Differences

Screw It, Just Do It!

Inspirational

Screws

Just Do It

I'm Not The Sort Of Person Who Fears Failure.

Persons

The Entrepreneurs Who Succeed Usually Want To Make A Difference To People’s Lives, Not Just Their Own Bank Balances.

Differences

People

Entrepreneur

Good People Have Always Been At The Heart Of The Virgin Business, And That's Largely Because We Have Tried To Keep Our Business Small, And Our Management Teams Tight-knit. I Feel That Small, Compact Companies, Are Better Run. That Is Partly Because People Feel More Connected In Small Companies.

Running

Team

Heart

The Quickest Way To Become A Millionaire In The Airline Business Is To Start Out As A Billionaire.

Airline Business

Way

Millionaire

Look, If You Can Indulge In Your Passion, Life Will Be Far More Interesting Than If You're Just Working. You'll Work Harder At It, And You'll Know More About It. But First You Must Go Out And Educate Yourself On Whatever It Is That You've Decided To Do - Know More About Kite-surfing Than Anyone Else. That's Where The Work Comes In. But If You're Doing Things You're Passionate About, That Will Come Naturally.

Hard Work

Passion

Indulge In

Everyone Needs Something To Aim For. You Can Call It A Challenge, Or You Can Call It A Goal. It Is What Makes Us Human. It Was Challenges That Took Us From Being Cavemen To Reaching For The Stars.

Stars

Goal

Challenges

Focus On Your Business Strengths And Keep Its Weaknesses Away From The Competition Or Public.

Focus

Competition

Survival

If You Don't Take Risks You Won't Achieve Anything.

Entrepreneur

Risk

Achieve

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.

Motivational

Inspiring

Ideas

People Who Think And Say We More Often Than I Are A Lot More Likely To Succeed.

Thinking

People

Succeed

Life Is A Series Of Ups And Clowns. Make It Worth Your Wild!

Inspirational

Business

Life Is

I Think The Thing About Capitalism Is It's An Evil Necessity, Capitalism. Communism Has Been Tried And Failed, And Socialism, That Doesn't Work Very Well. Capitalism Works, But The Problem About Capitalism Is It Does Mean That A Few Individuals Become Very Wealthy. Therefore, I Think Those Individuals Have Enormous Responsibility To Redistribute That Wealth Either By Creating New Businesses Or Creating New Jobs And Making Sure That Money Just Doesn't Lie In A Bank Account For Future Generations.

Jobs

Lying

Mean

Run Lean; Avoid Unnecessary Expenses.

Running

Survival

Unnecessary

I Myself Have Invested In Uber And Hailo, I Think They Offer Great Alternatives To Disrupt Markets That Have Remained Unchanged For Many Years.

Thinking

Years

Uber

My Philosophy In Life Is That You Only Live Once. Live Life To Its Fullest.

Philosophy

Live Life

You Only Live Once

My Mother Always Taught Me Never To Look Back In Regret But To Move On To The Next Thing. The Amount Of Time People Waste Dwelling On Failures Rather Than Putting That Energy Into Another Project, Always Amazes Me. I Have Fun Running All The Virgin Businesses-so A Setback Is Never A Bad Experience, Just A Learning Curve.

Success

Mother

Running

If Somebody Offers You An Amazing Opportunity But You Are Not Sure You Can Do It, Say Yes-then Learn How To Do It Later!

Motivational

Inspiring

Powerful

A Company's Employees Are Its Greatest Asset And Your People Are Your Product

People

Assets

Employee

My Mother Always Taught Me Never To Look Back In Regret But To Move On To The Next Thing.

Regret

Moving

Looks

Not Enough People Realize The Satisfaction You Can Get From Really Pushing Yourself To The Limits.

People

Limits

Satisfaction

We Need A New Way Of Doing Business To Get Out Of The Present Crisis ... Absolute Greed Has Come Close To Bankrupting The World. Thanks To The Crisis That Certain Businesses Have Dumped On Everyone A Lot Of People Are Going To Suffer On A Global Scale. All Of Us Must Learn. It Is All The More Important That Those Business Leaders That Are Left Standing Try To Be A Force For Good.

People

Greed

Leader

The Brands That Will Thrive In The Coming Years Are The Ones That Have A Purpose Beyond Profit.

Years

Purpose

Profit

If You Don't Have Time For The Small Things, You Won't Have Time For The Big Things

Inspirational

Business

Bigs

Give Your Employees A Mission That Matches Their Ambitions. When You Challenge People, They Surprise You.

Ambition

People

Giving

We Hope To Create Thousands Of Astronauts Over The Next Few Years And Bring Alive Their Dream Of Seeing The Majestic Beauty Of Our Planet From Above, The Stars In All Their Glory And The Amazing Sensations Of Weightlessness And Space Flight.

Dream

Stars

Future

Kite Surfing Is A Great Way Of Keeping Fit. Kiting Is Great Because You're Bouncing Over The Waves And You're Surfing The Waves. I Do Quite Long Kite Surfs-50 Miles In A Day.

Adventure

Long

Surfing

Whatever Business You Are In, Every Company Can Shoot For The Start In Their Own Way.

Inspirational

Business

Way

Unless You Dream, You're Not Going To Achieve Anything.

Dream

Business

Achieve

All You Have In Life Is Your Reputation: You May Be Very Rich, But If You Lose Your Good Name, Then You'll Never Be Happy. The Thought Will Always Lurk At The Back Of Your Mind That People Don't Trust You.

Names

People

Mind

Success Comes From Delegating, Risk-taking And Having A Good Team!

Team

Risk

Good Team

Publicity Is Absolutely Critical. A Good Pr Story Is Infinitely More Effective Than A Front Page Ad.

Communication

Stories

Pages

To Be A Real Entrepreneur You Always Have To Be Looking Forward. The Moment You Rest On Your Laurels Is The Moment Your Competition Overtakes You.

Real

Entrepreneur

Competition

I Just Wanted To Create Things That I Could Be Proud Of. Money Was Just An Evil Byproduct To Pay The Bills At The End Of The Year.

Years

Evil

Proud

Understanding Quotes: Their Essence and Application

Quotes, or quotations, are powerful tools in communication, encapsulating ideas, emotions, and wisdom in concise expressions. They serve various purposes across different contexts, from academic writing to everyday conversation.

1. Defining Quotes

A quote is a repetition of someone else's statement or thoughts. It can be a direct replication of words spoken or written by another individual, often used to support arguments, provide evidence, or convey profound insights.

2. The Importance of Quotes

2.1. Enhancing Credibility

Incorporating quotes from authoritative sources can bolster the credibility of your work. By referencing experts or primary sources, you demonstrate thorough research and a solid foundation for your arguments.

2.2. Providing Evidence

Quotes serve as concrete evidence to support claims. In academic and professional writing, they validate points made, offering readers a basis to trust the information presented.

2.3. Conveying Emotions and Perspectives

Quotes can encapsulate emotions and perspectives succinctly. They allow writers to express complex feelings or viewpoints through the words of others, often more eloquently than paraphrasing.

3. Types of Quotes

3.1. Direct Quotes

Direct quotes involve copying the exact words from a source, enclosed in quotation marks. They are used when the original wording is significant or particularly well-expressed.

3.2. Indirect Quotes (Paraphrasing)

Indirect quotes restate the original message in your own words. While not enclosed in quotation marks, they still require proper attribution to the original source.

3.3. Block Quotes

Block quotes are lengthy direct quotations, formatted as a separate block of text. They are typically used for quotes exceeding a certain length, varying by citation style. For instance, in APA style, quotes longer than 40 words are formatted as block quotes.

4. Proper Usage of Quotes

4.1. Contextual Relevance

Ensure that the quote you choose is relevant to the topic and adds value to your content. Avoid inserting quotes solely for decorative purposes.

4.2. Integration into Your Writing

Seamlessly integrate quotes into your writing. Introduce them appropriately and follow up with analysis or commentary to connect them to your main points.

4.3. Attribution and Citation

Always attribute quotes to their original authors and provide proper citations according to the required style guide (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.).

5. Common Mistakes to Avoid

5.1. Overusing Quotes

Relying too heavily on quotes can overshadow your voice. Use them sparingly to support your arguments, not replace them.

5.2. Lack of Analysis

Presenting a quote without analysis or explanation can leave readers questioning its relevance. Always follow up with your interpretation or discussion.

5.3. Misquoting or Taking Out of Context

Ensure that quotes are accurate and not taken out of context, as this can mislead readers and undermine your credibility.

6. Quotes in Different Contexts

6.1. Academic Writing

In academic writing, quotes are used to support arguments, provide evidence, and engage with existing literature. Proper citation is crucial to avoid plagiarism.

6.2. Journalism

Journalists use quotes to provide firsthand accounts, add authenticity, and present multiple perspectives within a story.

6.3. Literature and Creative Writing

In literature, quotes can be used to convey character voices, themes, and stylistic elements. They enrich narratives and provide depth to storytelling.

7. Punctuation and Formatting

Understanding the correct punctuation and formatting of quotes is essential:

Quotation Marks: Always enclose direct quotes within quotation marks.

Punctuation Placement: In American English, periods and commas are placed inside quotation marks, while colons and semicolons are placed outside.

Block Quotes: For longer quotes, format them as block quotes without quotation marks, and indent the entire block.

8. Ethical Considerations

Ethical use of quotes involves accurate representation, proper attribution, and respect for intellectual property. Misuse can lead to plagiarism, which carries serious academic and professional consequences.

9. Tools for Managing Quotes

Utilize tools like citation generators and plagiarism checkers to manage quotes effectively. These tools help ensure proper formatting and originality in your writing.

Conclusion

Quotes are invaluable in enriching content, providing evidence, and conveying complex ideas succinctly. When used appropriately, they enhance the quality and credibility of your writing. Always ensure relevance, proper integration, and ethical usage to maximize their impact.

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