false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172729803m/211099.jpg 211099 11 In this autobiography, Virgin Group founder Richard Branson says one of his prime business criteria is "fun." Fun made Branson a billionaire, and few business memoirs are one-billionth as fun as Branson's, nor as niftily written. Not only does it relate his side of near-death corporate experiences, it tells how the chairman literally cheated death by gun, shipwreck, and balloon crash.<p> Branson's empire--now encompassing interests in an airline, pop music, soda pop, e-commerce, and financial services--began when the dyslexic 16-year-old dropped out of school in 1968 to found the British magazine <I>Student</I>. His headmaster said, "I predict that you will either go to prison or become a millionaire." Briefly imprisoned for dodging customs selling records, Branson got his first million by releasing <i>Tubular Bells</i>, a maverick recording all the stuffy executives rejected. (1998's <i>Tubular Bells III</i> puts the series' sales over 20 million.) <p> Despite wild tales of Branson's wife-swapping and Keith Richards fleeing naked from Branson's studio at gunpoint with another man's woman, the most shocking parts of the memoir concern British Airways' James Bond-like "dirty tricks" campaign against Virgin Atlantic, resulting in the biggest award for damages in English history.<p> Though it's filled with famous names, witty quotes, and pulse-pounding accounts of lunatic balloon adventures, it is as a business thriller that the book really scores. His instinctive bet-the-ranch tactics could cost him all, or earn another billion. Either way, Branson will likely remain the most entertaining entrepreneur in Europe. <I>--Tim Appelo</I> 204315 1998 Losing My Virginity: How I've Survived, Had Fun, and Made a Fortune Doing Business My Way total:308|5:99|4:146|3:46|2:15|1:2| 308 1249 481 55 5 1 false false Tue Dec 30 11:14:37 -0800 2008 Tue Dec 30 11:21:37 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Fri Jan 09 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 08 07:19:11 -0800 2009 Fri Jan 09 20:56:24 -0800 2009
Sir Richard Branson's autobiography. Very surprised at how amicable a person Branson is - I mistook him to be a cocky, entrepreneurial jerk, but I was absolutely wrong about that. He clearly enjoys sleeping around, but that aside, ...more...]]> 4 0 false false Fri Jul 24 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 01 11:29:44 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 02 21:44:01 -0700 2009 1 1. His keen insight followed by hardwork style is refreshingly different from the super strategy and analysis focus from the MBA courses. A happy medium is my preference.
2. His story of the battle with British Airways resonated with me ...more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Mon Jun 29 10:43:51 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 29 10:46:34 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Sat Aug 09 07:23:31 -0700 2008 Fri Feb 13 05:21:39 -0800 2009
If I were told that someone had ghost written this book for Richard Branson I would not be surprised. Then again, given what I know of Branson (after having read the book), I have no rea...more...]]> 0 0 false false Sun Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Jul 01 18:08:59 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 01 18:12:53 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Tue Nov 25 09:52:19 -0800 2008 Tue Nov 25 09:53:45 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Thu Sep 24 09:24:40 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 24 09:29:14 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Wed Sep 09 19:39:10 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 09 19:39:54 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Mar 10 15:49:00 -0700 2009 Tue Mar 10 15:53:51 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Sun Mar 18 23:41:50 -0700 2007 Sun Mar 18 23:44:26 -0700 2007
Richard Branson is a businessman that anyone who is in their 20s or 30s and ambitious right now should read about. I'm not recommending that we all take his "all in" approach to business (he would often be on the brink of financial collapse, go all in, and make ...more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2002 Tue Jun 30 15:31:13 -0700 2009 Tue Jun 30 15:32:08 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Fri May 08 08:23:35 -0700 2009 Fri May 08 08:23:42 -0700 2009 www.100bestbiz.com]]> 5 0 false false Wed Apr 15 15:25:40 -0700 2009 Wed Apr 15 15:26:08 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Thu May 10 08:20:20 -0700 2007 Fri Mar 07 05:54:52 -0800 2008 more...]]> 2 0 false false Sun Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Jun 14 12:10:41 -0700 2008 Sat Jun 14 12:13:06 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2005 Thu Jun 07 11:24:18 -0700 2007 Thu Jun 07 11:26:26 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Oct 04 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Aug 11 14:53:18 -0700 2008 Mon Oct 06 17:43:47 -0700 2008 With all these entrepreneurs, it's great to find out how they ended up in their industries.
Some bits in this book though I feel you need to take a bit with a pinch of salt as they seem to have been put in the book for a reason, if you know what I mean.
His new ...more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu May 22 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu May 22 19:26:43 -0700 2008 Thu May 22 19:33:03 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Apr 14 19:58:45 -0700 2008 Tue Apr 15 16:07:04 -0700 2008 more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=211099