Explore Quotes by Richard Branson

Learn to look after your staff first and the rest will follow

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?

Dream big and you will be presented with the opportunity to lead the world on an incredible adventure.

When I started Virgin from a basement in west London, there was no great plan or strategy. I didn't set out to build a business empire ... For me, building a business is all about doing something to be proud of, bringing talented people together and creating something that's going to make a real difference to other people's lives.

Clearly in the eyes of the consumer; the brand has not been diluted, but we must guard against that happening at all costs.

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.

When I was young, every time I criticized someone, my mother would stand me in front of the mirror and say: 'The flaws you see in others are actually a reflection of yourself.' That taught me to pay close attention when I looked at others.

One night, I was chatting with a group of 16-year-old girls over a few drinks about a name for the record store ... A bunch of ideas were bounced around, then, as we were all new to business, someone suggested Virgin. It smacked of new and fresh and at the time the word was still slightly risqué, so, thinking it would be an attention-grabber, we went with it.

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.

It is important to remember that life is not a dress rehearsal and that none of us should waste our time on doing things that don’t spark fires within us. My golden rule for business and life is: We should all enjoy what we do and do what we enjoy.

Any successful entrepreneur knows that time is more valuable than money itself.

The ability to bounce back after a setback is the single most important trait an entrepreneurial venture can possess.

There is no point in starting your own business unless you do it out of a sense of frustration.

If you're looking to become an entrepreneur then don't waste your time going to university or business school - just get on and do it.

Purpose is not an add-on, it’s not an initiative. It is a culture change and it never finishes

I never set out to be a businessman

Please don’t get hung up on this question of whether you need to have experience in an industry before you launch your startup.

To be successful, you have to be out there, you have to hit the ground running

Have fun do good and the money will come

Succeeding in business is all about making connections

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.