#379

I professed my fanhood for Bear Grylls here and now I must do so for another Englishman, a knight in fact, who I've recently learned more about. His words and philosophies are inspiring; his actions, adventures, daredevilry, business successes, and humanitarian efforts are impressive (lest we forget: actions speak louder than words). I'm referring to Richard Branson, or Sir Richard Branson, although I bet he's quick to dispel or oppose any pretentiousness that comes with the title. He said this in an interview and it's great advice: "I actually think everybody should write a book about their lives. I've persuaded a number of people to do so.... You don't have to have led a very public life, I think everyone has led interesting lives. Your children and your grandchildren will be fascinated by the lives you lead." I am grateful for every word my grandparents wrote that was saved by the family. My dad's dad kept a journal during the Korean War and my mom's dad wrote several letters home from WWII. I continue to ask questions and pry stories out of my grandmas. They're awesome women; I'm so lucky, and M 'n' m are lucky to have them as great-grandmas. I spent considerable time with one of my great-grandmas when I was young – I was cared for by a person born in 1900! – and I'll never forget her motherly generosity and dependability. She had a wonderful sturdiness of character. I won't forget her house and garden, her cactuses and Siamese cats, her coin collection and the organ she played beautifully. How much I'd love a book about her life and times! She rode in a covered wagon. She lost a young son tragically (to drowning in the ocean) and was heartbroken I'm sure. She would not allow anyone to leave her house without a hug. She was a Dodger fan because of Jackie Robinson, and she smoked, drank beer, and watched baseball when she wasn't mothering and feeding everyone. And her daughter (my grandma) became the first Ph.D. in the family and one of the most all-around impressive women I've ever known, a sheer force of productivity and love. I remember my great-grandma sitting with me at a table and doing a Lego set while listening to the radio broadcast of the college football game everyone else was at. Awesome. What a woman! So just do it, someday, please, for your descendants, write down a few thoughts and stories. In a journal, on Facebook, in emails, whatever. In any form or format your loved ones can keep... or photocopy or scan or otherwise digitally archive; let them figure it out; you just record your slice of history, what you went through, what advice you'd give, your life's joys and curiosities, and so on; it's fascinating and your grandchildren will thank you.

"First of all, I'm lucky, I have a very extraordinary mother, and a lovely father, and we're a very, very close-knit family, and that's fortunately continued with myself, my wife and children, and so on ever since. So that's given us a fantastic foundation as a family.... Well, my mother, her whole approach to bringing up her children was one where she'd be arrested today but in those days she could get away with it. At age three or four she would shove me out of the car two or three miles from grandmother's house and tell me to make my own way there. She would put me on a bicycle at age seven or eight and tell me to ride 300 miles in the pouring rain, again to grandmother's house, and her attitude was, you know, if we survived we'd be the stronger for it. She wouldn't allow us to watch television, for instance, we had to get out there and do things. She would push us out of the house and tell us to come back in the evening.... We lived in the countryside and it was a fun upbringing, and a very loving upbringing; it may not sound like it, but she wasn't actually trying to kill us, she did love us as well [laughter].... It's fun, my mom's 94 now and I just saw her a few minutes ago and she will never stop. I mean she's got an idea a minute, and, you know, we've always had to run to keep up with her, and put the two of us together and it's a dangerous combination!"
     — Richard Branson in a phone interview with Tim Ferriss 

"When things went wrong (during his various dangerous adventures)... if you're gonna survive, the only way you're gonna survive is by keeping focused, by staying positive, even if you are facing almost certain death, you're definitely going to die unless you stay focused and stay positive and fight to the bitter end, and, you know, there have been circumstances where, on paper, we were well over the 90% chance I'm not coming home, and I think by staying focused and staying positive, and with a big dose of good fortune, we made it all the way back."
     — Richard Branson, interviewed by Tim Ferriss

"I think humor is important, putting on a brave face, cracking jokes, plenty of hugs; I think hugs are important [laughter]."
     — Richard Branson, speaking of how he reassured others as Category 5 Hurricane Irma roared over them devastating Necker Island

"Clients do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients.... A company is people.... The way you treat your employees is the way they will treat your customers.... There's no magic formula for great company culture. The key is just to treat your staff the way you would like to be treated."
     — Richard Branson

"Complexity is your enemy. Any fool can make something complicated. It is hard to make something simple."
     — Richard Branson

"If your dreams don't scare you they are too small."
     — Richard Branson

"I don't think of work as work and play as play. It's all living."
     — Richard Branson