Losing My Virginity: How I've Had Fun & Made a Fortune Doing Business My Way

by Richard Branson

Book Overview

The unusual, frequently outrageous autobiography of one of the great business geniuses of our time, Richard Branson. In little more than twenty-five years, Richard Branson spawned nearly a hundred... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0812931017
• ISBN13: 9780812931013
• Release Date: October 1998
• Publisher: Crown Business
• Length: 370 Pages
• Weight: 1.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.5" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

The story of Branson's life... great read!

I bought "Losing My Virginity" after reading and enjoying his latest book "Screw It, Let's Do It", which is a quick read... I wanted to know more about his life. As with "Screw It, Let's Do It", he covers his life from early childhood to business mogul. "Losing My Virginity" contains a lot more details though. Although it is probably impossible to understand how hard Branson worked to get where he is, he does a good job of telling the story of how he started out, how he struggled in his early days, the many disappointments he had, and the successes they had that eventually snowballed into the business empire that Virgin is today. By his own admission, Branson is not an academically brilliant man. He's just a regular guy who goes after what he wants with all he has. He doesn't let failures along the way derail him from achieving his goals. This book is a great read that I highly recommend.

The European dream!!!

"Losing my virginity" is an entertaining page-turner all the way from the beginning to the end. It is fascinating to read about what a mildly dyslexic man with no college education could create for himself. Richard Branson is a man with a zest for life and all its challenges. Fun lies at the core of everything he does. The best part is he makes money doing what he does. His social circle includes a wide variety of people that include his small-town neighbours, Peter Gabriel, Queen Noor and Rod Stewart. The book includes the birth of Virgin records, Branson's daredevil ballooning adventures, his legal battle with British Airways, and experiences that I truly wish were personal experiences. It will leave you hooked all the way until the end. Every guy that reads this will wish that this is the life he could lead - definitely the European dream.

The way a leader is supposed to think

Now with the caveat that this is Branson's view of how he got to where he is today, I found this book to be a terrific read. In my mind, 'Losing My Virginity' perfectly encapsulates the way a leader is supposed to think and act. Ever heard Branson speak in public? He's surprisingly shy, ill-at-ease, and not all that eloquent. But the guy works hard every day at crafting his vision and pushing it forward one day at a time. That's the genius of this book - Branson shows us the method he's used to succeed and admits that there's no great genius involved, but a heck of a lot of perserverance, determination...and a fair degree of flair!My caveat at the beginning? If you want a very different viewpoint of Branson's career, check out Tim Jackson's excellent "Virgin King."

Sometimes, even the big boys have to bend over and take it..

Branson shares one heck of a story. It includes antics as a teenager, problems in school coupled with entrepreneurial endeavors, harrowing hot air balloon adventures, and culminates with a heated battle with British Airlines.Branson was wheelin' and dealin' from day one, when Virgin began as "Student", a magazine bootstrapped to moderate success. It soon led to selling records via mail order, the opening of retail record outlets, and other business ventures, including the launch of the Virgin Atlantic airline. Throughout the book, Branson shares early run-ins with the police, harrowing hot air balloon adventures, intimate encounters, and his perspective on all his life experiences. The book culminates with an in depth recount of the battle between Virgin Atlantic and British Airways. According to the book, BA throws obstacle after obstacle, including a dirty PR machine in the path of Virgin Atlantic, attempting to force it out of business using any means necessary. The upstart, Virgin, determine to get a fair shake, ultimately puts together a case to silence BA's slanderous campaign, and emerges with the right to compete freely with BA, and a substantial financial settlement. The little guy wins, and BA gets what it deserves.Branson sees and writes about life as one big adventure. No obstacle is too big to overcome, no calculated risk too big to take. Virgin's gotta be an exciting place to be, and Branson quite a character to know. Whether you're looking for a business book, a novel, or just a great autobiography, check out "Losing My Virginity"!

Very Rich and Intense, still it Reads like a Breeze

The book was, to my delight, a very interesting read. "Losing My Virginty" reads like a novel and I would say that it was as interesting as both "Memoirs or a Geisha" and the "Harry Potter" series. Yet the book was full of lessons in a variety of business fields; entrepreneurship and risk-taking being at the forefront of those fields. In its value as a business book, I would compare it to "Lessons from the Top" and "The Millionnaire Next Door", both of which were a much less gripping read. However, "Losing my Virginity" is different from those two books in that it is primarily about "World Class Entrepreneurship".Branson takes the reader on a trip back to the 60's and 70's when Virgin took off and gradually leads you into the "jetstream" of his turbulant life. You will enjoy the ride.This is definitely a book that I thoroughly enjoyed and earnestly recommend to anyone, not necessarily to businessmen, just to anyone who wants to make the most of his/her life.Richard Branson used the book well on many occasions to tell his side of the story and to clarify to the public certain events that may have not been fully disclosed in that way during the time of their occurance.He also talks freely about matters, which a conventionial bussinessman would find out of place, beyong the point or even downright embarrassing. Those "personal" moments are actually the essence of what this book is all about. The book is about Branson's life and Virgin Group is just that, a very large chunk of Branson's life.