Dyslexic as a child and a poor student who left school at the age of 15, Richard Branson now runs the largest group of private companies in Europe. With annual revenues topping $25 billion, Branson’s family of “Virgin” companies look to turn conventional business wisdom on its head.
Business has grown to be one of the most powerful forces on the planet. Its effect touches virtually every sphere of human activity; business has the potential to improve people’s lives worldwide. Likewise, business leaders have the opportunity to make a tremendous difference in the world.
Business leadership is not for the faint of heart. A business leader is responsible for the lives and wellbeing of others and to varying degrees, for the wellbeing of his or her community, nation and the world. As such, anyone interested in providing leadership in a business could benefit from cultivating the following qualities of character:
1. Humility – once this is lost, all is lost
2. Decisiveness – every choice involves risk, those who are decisive are comfortable with risk
3. Equanimity – keeping your cool under pressure allows perspective; fanaticism of any kind is unsustainable
4. Courage – leadership involves standing in the spotlight…get used to scrutiny, criticism and praise
5. Compassion – great leaders care deeply about others; leaders who understand others can help them grow more effectively
6. Curiosity – it may have killed the cat, but curiosity is the hallmark of today’s leader
7. Resourcefulness – no matter how great the base of resources, there is always a need for wise and creative stewardship
8. Vision – where there is no vision, leaders and their organizations perish
Business is about people and value. Sustainable businesses find ways to add value and to meet people’s needs and business leaders must lead from the back and from the front.
We live in an era of unprecedented transformation and disquiet and leaders who thrive in this environment must be fast adapters. The way business is done has changed significantly over the last 24 months and as we considered yesterday, today’s problems require today’s solutions.
When you have the time (sorry this one is roughly 30 minutes), I recommend that you listen to Chris Anderson’s interview of Richard Branson at TED 2007:
Have a wonderful day!
Gregory Hake 
Amazing that you have already accomplished 100 posts. In every one of posts I’ve met new people, stories, poems, music, and ideas. That is an incredible amount of new blood flowing through my system in just a few short months. Thanks & congratulations!
Great interview with Richard Branson. What a charismatic, interesting man. Great attitude, and good to see he is doing helpful and philanthropic things with his talents and amassed wealth.
Thank you for the list of golden characteristics!
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It really has been my pleasure. Thank you for your readership!
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Sorry – somehow or other my previous posting got forwarded prematurely. However, the theme of it hopefully will never get lost, and that theme is that genuine leadership is genuinely caring about every aspect of their lives, and taking the responsibility to actually live out their dreams with the desire and commitment to serve others.
And that is what Richard has done and is doing. It’s not about him, or what’s in it for him. It is about him, and what value he can offer and provide to others. I would imagine that the by far vast majority of his 55,000 employees are happy, really happy, doing what they are doing. Why, because they are working for a leader who genuinely cares, so that of course is passed on to them.
And that is what the eight points that you mention does Gregg – they get passed down to everybody in the organization, on the team, and a part of things.
This allows people to participate in what we all want to do and that is to be making a positive difference. We don’t have to be a Richard Branson to accomplish that; we do need to apply those eight characteristics to who we are every moment of every day however!
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To inspire others to acheive their own greatness does require all of the traits you listed. The most successful leaders are the ones who understand the value of cultivating, caring for and even lifting others up around them. In a world where many of our “so called” learders are being found ‘wanting” it is a great time for righteous leadership to be the norm, not the exception. Thanks for your post, it is refreshing and can be helpful if overlaid onto all areas of life.
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Excellent points! I saw the news link on Twitter about reaching your 100th post – congratulations!
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Interesting interview. Loved the story about net and gross. His humility and fearlessness is compelling. I’ll bet it’s an experience working with him. Great leaders are remarkable but you have to be willing to keep up or you don’t stay on the team for long.
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The points that you mentioned are excellent and anyone would benefit from cultivating these characteristics in their own life!
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Every business leader started out in a position that was not the head of the company, whether they worked their way through the ranks or worked somewhere else before starting their own company. So every business leader knows they would much rather work for someone with these traits than someone without them. As a consumer, when you buy from a company from a certain amount of time, it becomes obvious what the company culture is, and that culture begins with the traits of that business’ leader. Thanks for a great post.
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You’re welcome, Colin. Thank you for your thoughtful comments.
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Wonderful interview ….. A perfect example of passion fueled by depth of character. Thank you.
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Always been a big Branson fan, I read his book in 1998, it was definitely an inspiration then, and continues to be.
This is a great reminder and those 8 points are absolutely vital, no matter what the industry or context.
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