Entrepreneurs are GREAT - Part 1

Richard meets Richard - Branson, that is! - and gets business advice from one of Britain's greatest entrepreneurs.

Transcript

Great Britain is a country full of bright business ideas, and the people behind these ideas are great entrepreneurs.

Through hard work, risk and dedication, they've become some of the most successful people in the world and I’m off to meet a few of them.

Oxford is home to one of the world’s greatest entrepreneurs, Sir Richard Branson. He’s one of the best-known faces of business in Britain and Britain's fourth richest citizen. Wonder where I am on that list...

Richard Branson's success started when he opened his first record shop in Oxford Street, London, in 1971, and he never looked back. His success rocketed from launching his own record label, Virgin Records, to creating the hugely successful Virgin Atlantic Airways, and he's now worth an estimated 4.2 billion dollars. I've been lucky enough to be invited to Richard Branson's home and I'm really excited about it. I'm hoping to find out the secret of his success.

Richard: Sir Richard, you are one of the world's greatest entrepreneurs, not just in Britain. How have you achieved this?

Sir Richard: Well, by having a blast, having a lot of fun, trying to create ventures that really make a difference to other people's lives, not being afraid to give it a go, sometimes falling flat on my face, sometimes succeeding.

Richard: So in your eyes, what makes a good entrepreneur?

Sir Richard: An entrepreneur is somebody who sees a gap in the market and feels that people are not being treated well, and gets in there and fills that gap. An entrepreneur is somebody who, you know, believes in what they're doing 100%, who acts with integrity, who realises their reputation is all they've got in life and sets about to create a great brand. 

Richard’s entrepreneurial spirit has led to Virgin’s success and he's not alone. Britain is a great place to do business.

Richard: Any advice for me?

Sir Richard: Don't try to do everything yourself. You know, try to find people who are better than you. Learn the art of delegation early on. Make sure that all the people who are working for you have fun in what they're doing because 90% of your life seems to be spent at work, so make sure it's enjoyable, and screw it, just do it. Just get on with it.

Task 1

Which is the best title for this video?

Exercise

Task 2

Select all the things that Richard Branson says about good entrepreneurs.

Exercise

Task 3

Reorder these words to make sentences from the video.

Exercise

Task 4

Match the words and phrases to make expressions from the video.

Exercise

Discussion

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Submitted by miguelABP on Thu, 17/01/2019 - 17:21

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i think there is a lot of qualities that can make a good entrepreneurship, like talking, working hard, have good contacts, having good relation with other people, etc. yes, one time i tried to have my own business and i think it was really hard. i think that we should admire entrepreneurships for what they do.

Submitted by David Lara on Thu, 17/01/2019 - 15:19

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Hello, I want to know the meaning of some phrases: 1) I'M OFF to meet a few of them 2) BY HAVING a blast 3) Screw it Thanks in advance
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Submitted by Peter M. on Fri, 18/01/2019 - 07:36

In reply to by David Lara

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Hello David Lara,

 

1) I'm off to... means the speaker is going somewhere to do something. For example:

I'm off to meet a few of them = I'm leaving because I'm going to meet...

 

2) have a blast means to have a great time, especially at some kind of social event. For example:

I had a blast at the party last night.

 

3) Screw it! is something we say when we have lost patience. For example:

This computer is hopeless. Screw it, I'm going to have to buy a new one.

Note that this is a very informal slang expression which may be mildly offensive to some people. 

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Roza on Wed, 11/07/2018 - 17:40

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for me it was difficult
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Submitted by btriton on Sun, 20/05/2018 - 14:42

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I think the entrepreneur must be persistent in his job, and knows the weak and strong sides of the business. I will want to start my own business in short time. yes, we could admire business people, much of them get money in honest a fair way.