30 Days of Genius- Richard Branson

Richard Branson's words are in bold. My comments are in italics.

• "My greatest fear in life is saying no to something and then regretting it."
• Preach, Richard. Preach. Say yes to everything. If you don't, you'll regret it. 

• "Screw it, just do it."
• Act first, analyze later. Do you wonder about what something would be like? Do it. Have an idea? Make it happen. Then figure out the rest later. 

• "The first rule of business is to protect the downside." 
• Contrary to popular opinion, entrepreneurs are not risk takers. You shouldn't be betting the company with every decision. Be sure to protect your assets and keep the business afloat.

• "I’m interested in life, generally"
• Virgin brands represent over 400 companies. How Richard justifies that is saying that he is interested in every aspect of the human experience. By finding ways to improve music, airlines, health, food, and journalism all at the same time, each is an engaging task full of discover for him. 

• "I’m a good listener. A good leader needs to be a good listener. I know what I think, so I don’t need to listen to my own voice." 
• You won't learn by speaking. You should always be listening to the opinions of others. Take notes during all meetings- that's how things get done and how you learn. 

• "There is not much of a difference between a business person and an artist. You start off with a blank canvas, and have to get all of the little details right."
• A concept I heard put in different words before. "Every entrepreneur is an artist and every artist is an entrepreneur." Create things, then sell them. It's a simple maxim but a intricate task.

• "If something is run in a stuffy way, one shouldn’t be frightened of un-stuffy-fying it."
• Richard is known as one of the most fun CEOs in the world. And fun can be a blue ocean strategy. If something is boring, make it fun. The world will appreciate it. 

• Learn the art of delegation
• Great leadership is about finding people better than you are and inspiring them to work with and for you. You can't do everything- and you don't want to. Learn to identify the things that should be delegated and the people who you can delegate them to. Then do it.