The virgin way
Insights on commanding excellence
Description
The Virgin Way centers on enjoying your work. Life is too short to spend on things you dislike. The four tenets are: Don't dwell on the past or idly dream about the future.
Act now on what inspires you. Have serious fun and passionately engage in all you do. This spark comes from within and can't be mandated.
Live fully as if today is your last. Learn voraciously as if you will live forever. As Branson says, never apologize for having fun.
Like Gandhi and Jobs said, make the most of the time you have.
Table of contents
01Listen
Effective listening has become rare in the modern business world. Everywhere you look, people listen too little and talk too much. You can often tell when someone is not actually listening because they simply say "I hear you" while clearly not absorbing anything said to them. The best approach for listening in a business setting is taking thorough notes. Due to his dyslexia, Richard Branson has always kept detailed written records of every conversation and any ideas that come to him. This allows him not just to listen better, but to later reference commitments made and hold others accountable. Many of history's greatest leaders were known for their willingness to intently listen to others, whether it was former US President Jimmy Carter, Mary Robinson, Ireland's first female president, or Winston Churchill. People meeting the legendary Nelson Mandela often came away deeply impressed by his ability to make them feel like the most important person in the room through his exceptionally focused listening. As Mark Twain once wisely said, "There is nothing so annoying as having two people talking when you're busy interrupting."
In addition to carefully documenting every discussion, Branson employs one other technique to improve his listening abilities - he keeps no personal office. Instead, he operates out of a home office, or, even better, goes directly to visit with people in their own offices. This removes any intimidating pressure of being "summoned to meet with the CEO" and facilitates more open, flowing conversation. As Branson puts it, "The simple fact is that nobody has ever learned anything by listening to themselves speak." He advises getting "extra ears strapped on" and literally going out to listen first-hand to people's anxieties and excitements about the company.
When customers complain, the Virgin approach is to view such feedback as invaluable rather than an irritation. Customer input, whether positive or negative, provides an honest external perspective to be highly valued and acted upon. In Virgin Atlantic's early days, Branson himself used to make a habit of cold calling picked up passengers to get unfiltered opinions on their experiences and where improvements could be made. As he says, "I have always found it to be one of the idiosyncrasies of the human condition that a problem that is handled quickly and effectively will almost always serve to generate more long-term customer loyalty than when the original service was delivered satisfactorily." The mantra of "first to know, first to handle" applies here - if an issue can be resolved promptly, it saves frustration for the customer and time and money for the company.
02Learn
Avail yourself of the best education you can get. Then never stop learning for the rest of your life by actively seeking out new experiences first-hand. While reading books and interacting with academics has value, truly understanding something requires getting your hands dirty with new experiences, businesses, cultures and people. As the saying goes, "Life isn't a dress rehearsal." By persevering through challenges, you would be amazed at what you can achieve. Leadership requires hiding any panic you may feel from others, as the ancient Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu noted. Legendary golfer Gary Player famously stated, "The harder I practice, the luckier I get," while the Roman philosopher Seneca observed that, "Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity."
In the early days of Virgin, Richard Branson had the nickname "Dr Yes" because his attitude was, "The answer is yes, now what's the question?" Even today, the fastest way to get his attention is to tell him something cannot be done. As Branson relates, "When someone expresses doubt, I like to say, ‘Great! Well, why don't we look at how we can do it differently and be the first ones to make it work.’ That was our approach with Virgin Atlantic, and we have maintained that mindset since getting off the ground."
Being forward-looking and willing to take risks is key to making your own luck. Virgin Megastores launched in 1971 as Virgin's only business at the time, successfully evolving from selling vinyl records to CDs. However, Virgin completely missed the digital revolution. Attempts to break into digital music downloads with a branded MP3 player and Virgin Digital service were crushed by Apple's juggernaut iPod. As Branson admitted, "We could have saved ourselves money had I been willing to read the writing on the wall sooner, cut our losses and bid farewell to a business that had served us well for three decades."
The people and companies viewed as lucky are usually the most willing to take risks. To get lucky more often, prepare thoroughly, work harder than anyone else, and try new things. You must also seize opportunities when they arise from being at the right place at the right time. As Branson says, "I firmly believe clever entrepreneurs have a knack for engineering their own luck – also known as risk-taking." Most established companies focus strictly on average consumers to maximize profits. However, to break into a market, cater to consumers at both ends of the spectrum. For example, when Virgin Atlantic started flying, Branson disliked the rubber tube headsets airlines used. When he asked about using electronic headsets and letting customers keep them, he surprisingly learned that giving away branded headsets was slightly cheaper than recycling old ones. So Virgin Atlantic did just that to great success.
03Laugh
The key to leading a successful business is ensuring your employees are passionate, committed, and having fun while they work. As Richard Branson says, "I love nothing better than what appears to be an outlandish challenge. As any of my colleagues from Virgin will attest, in my vocabulary the phrase ‘seemingly impossible’ is defined as ‘something that should be a lot of fun disproving.'" Fun should be a central aim - it leads to greater passion, creativity, and ultimately better business performance.
The Virgin Group has always emphasized fun, stemming from its early days when everyone would celebrate surviving another week by sitting on beanbags in the first Virgin Records shop in London. While the company has grown, that underlying spirit of camaraderie and enjoyment has persisted. As management guru Peter Drucker noted, "Culture eats strategy for breakfast." No matter how brilliant a leader's vision and strategy, it needs a healthy, spirited culture to come to life.
Virgin's culture of fun has been an incredible competitive advantage, attracting passionate, like-minded people who want to prove the seemingly impossible is possible. When employees truly embrace the culture, they breathe life into what the company offers. As Richard Branson says, "All of our seeming hodge-podge of businesses has one critical element in common: the service culture that comes with our people – call it the ‘we’ factor if you like – is the pulse that drives everything we do." People are at the heart of it all.
04Lead
Leadership fundamentally involves streamlining processes for the team, fostering an environment that welcomes diverse talents and ideas. By creating a positive impact on others, a leader can be truly effective. The mantra is simple: maintain simplicity and keep progressing. For sustainable success, it's crucial to identify and develop future leaders within the organization. These emerging leaders often have a keen sense of upcoming trends, and it's up to the current leadership to align with their forward-thinking approach. Today's young workforce, having been raised in a digital world, seamlessly blends entrepreneurial spirit with social technology for collaborative efforts. Their vibrancy and fresh perspectives are invaluable, especially in optimizing social platforms.
Investing in the next generation of leaders means rethinking education to enhance problem-solving skills. While subjects like algebra and calculus are important, leadership in the real world also demands emotional intelligence and critical thinking. Special focus should be placed on supporting female entrepreneurs, providing them with easier access to start-up capital to overcome persistent barriers. Large corporations can play a significant role by integrating young entrepreneurs into their supply chains, giving these start-ups the opportunity to thrive. For instance, Virgin Atlantic has chosen to offer healthy snacks from budding food entrepreneurs on its flights.
Related books
