Business Stripped Bare

Adventures of a Global Entrepreneur

By: Richard Branson

Narrated by: Adrian Mulraney

Length: 11 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

From its creation as a mail-order record company to the literal launch of Virgin Galactic, today Virgin is one of the premier ‘way-of-life’ brands in the world, trusted and enjoyed by many millions of people.

In Business Stripped Bare, Sir Richard Branson shares the inside track on his life in business and reveals the incredible truth about his most risky, brilliant, and audacious deals. What qualities does Richard look for in the people he hires? How does he manage a crisis? Who are the entrepreneurs he most admires? Find out what really happened when Virgin bid for Northern Rock and why Richard believes all businesses must work with governments to tackle climate change and invest in the future of our planet.

Combining invaluable advice with the remarkable and candid inside stories of Virgin’s greatest achievements, as well as some of its setbacks, Business Stripped Bare is a dynamic, inspirational and truly original guide to success in business and in life. Whether you are an executive, an entrepreneur or are just starting out, Richard strips business down to show how you can succeed and make a difference.

©2008 Richard Branson (P)2010 Random House Audiobooks

stick to business

stick to business the global things and climate stuff are snoozers. plus you turn off people with different views. there was a statement in there imlying that Jimmy Carter knew a lot about business or entrepreneaurial endeavours. say what?!

He's rich and he likes to party...

There are some good nuggets, some things you'll gain from this about the importance and respect towards safety, of being responsible and quick to respond, however there are also things that I'll probably remember even more because they seemed rather consistent - Branson seems to always think that to sell something, it just helps to get naked or have some other people get scantily clad. He may be right, he may be wrong, but it does get monotonous about the third time he mentions how getting attractive people to say and dress a particular way will sell. He may indeed be more of Brand-son most of the time, but it wasn't that bad of a listen. 3 stars.

Boring.

What did you like best about Business Stripped Bare? What did you like least?

I can't tell much about it, quit half way.

What do you think your next listen will be?

Something about business but not from this author.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Boring.

Do you think Business Stripped Bare needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Not at all.

Any additional comments?

Skip this one, go for the next.

Felt like more of the same

I was hoping for nuggets of wisdom on how to run a business. You got a few, but mostly it was Richard Branson patting himself on the back for what a success he is and how much fun he has. The book takes you through each of his business enterprises and shows you how they started, how some failed and how most succeeded. He is a good guy, I really like him, but this is the second book I listened to and both seem like a giant soap box of a commercial to get you to fly Virgin, or buy Virgin. Too bad Gildardt Jackson didn't narrate this one. I feel he could capture Sir Richard's essence better than Adrian Mulraney. Jackson also had much more emotion. Mulraney was just plain boring at times, combined with the content of this book (which I already got from the first book I listened to) was just putting me to sleep!

great book

Great book, a must buy. I loved hearing a Richards perspective on business and on new markets.

the voice comes through

excellent reader, excellent authentic writing by branson
concrete examples, lack of bluster, honest description written as if he was talking
clues and rules on how to create a supportive culture and a happy workplace
an expert soaked in his subject

cut off before the last two chapters he knows nothing about global warming and it would take shakespeare to make that hackneyed subject ear worthy i'll decide whether to do anything without his help and what he had to say could have been conveyed in 2 sentences

neither did i need to be told to spend my career...from day 1...with efforts...no matter how small...to do good (ughhhhh)

this reduced it to 4 stars but if i could have made it 4 1/2, i would.

Very Enlightening

Richard was able to give a new insight of becoming an entrepreneur. I highly recommend getting his book. At the very least inspired me to give it my all.

Occasionally Riveting, Often Ponderous

Despite his massive ego, I love Richard Branson. He's a swashbuckling entrepreneur, and he loves to remind you of that at every turn. There are some exciting bits in this book, but too often it amounts to little more than shameless self-promotion and, at times, surprisingly dull details of his various enterprises. Regardless of the shortcomings, I consider this audio book, on the whole, a worthwhile listen.

The narrator is top notch and helped to hold my interest during the low points.

Somewhat disappointed

The beginning of this book is great. He goes into detail about how he handled himself and parts of his companies. However, Later on the book becomes a commercial. He goes into explaining why his Product/Service X is better than the rest. He explains more why his company is better and not how he made it better.

Engaging guy but boring book

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Jeez, from what I know Richard Branson is a pretty engaging guy but he writes an extremely boring book. There's no humor to lighten things up and the narrator doesn't help any. You get the impression that there are a few places that jokes run flat because the narrator is so bland. Had I known I wouldn't have bought this book. There's a bit you can learn about business, but not enough to warrant listening to this book.

Would you ever listen to anything by Richard Branson again?

Nope.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Narrator is boring.