Hanging out with Richard Branson & Elon Musk

Sir Richard Branson continues to be a source of inspiration and motivation for us and last week we watched the live stream of the very first Virgin Unite Google+ Hangout between himself and Paypal, Tesla and SpaceX founder; Elon Musk. They both answered questions about entrepreneurship from various tech hubs across the world including the Branson Centres of Entrepreneurship in South Africa and the Caribbean, the Start-Up Loans initiative in the UK and Virgin Mobile in Colombia.

Elon's vision for the future is based on his passion for wanting it to be better than the past. He said during the Hangout that, if you’re in the business of making useful things for people, then you’re on the right track... it’s as simple as that!

Elon also spoke of his new project Hyperloop which he claims could make a 380-mile journey in "about half an hour" compared to 3 hours. Hyperloop seems to involve sending passengers through a low-friction tube in a capsule. Aimed at being a practical solution for people separated by 1,000 miles or less, the motivation behind it originated from his disappointment at reading about California’s high-speed rail project. To find out more about Hyperloop click here.

On creating a business, Richard said to "come up with an idea that will improve people’s lives and just do it. Lots of people come up with great ideas, but it’s important to turn them into actions and give it a try, and if it fails, pick yourself up and try again." This is certainly the way we think when we're discussing our new ideas, if we don't try something (after careful planning & research of course!) we know we'll regret it even if it doesn't go so well. Our motto, similar to Richard's 'screw it, let's do it' is 'what's the worst that can happen!?'

During the Hangout, Richard also spoke of the UK Government and the need for it to foster small companies, as most are fragile and have a low success rate, and shield them and let them grow so they can become sustainable. He said the big companies always try to stamp out the smaller ones, but it’s an issue of survival - British Airways tried to eliminate Virgin from the airline industry but Virgin outshone them putting the customer experience at the heart of their offering as a way to standout, and sued BA for their dirty tactics.

Richard also talked of entrepreneurs using their flair to help address the world’s larger and more complex problems. I have long been a supporter of The Elders, a concept originated from a conversation between Richard Branson and the musician Peter Gabriel to create a group of dedicated individuals who use their collective wisdom and influence to help tackle some of the world’s most important problems. Desmond Tutu, Kofi Annan, and Gro Harlem Brundtland are only some of the devoted people who make up The Elders, first backed by honorary Elder Nelson Mandela. Find out more & join their cause on Facebook

His final note was to have fun, look after yourself in the process and surround yourself with people who can share the burden of the business and enjoy the good times. Most importantly, he inspired the 5,000 viewers by encouraging everyone to dream big and believe those dreams will one day become a reality. Richard then said farewell to Elon in America and (we assume!) went off to enjoy the sun on Necker Island!

To view the entire hangout in full click here. The conversation was moderated by Yonca Brunini from Google who will be hosting more Google+ Hangouts featuring some of the world’s top entrepreneurs soon.

Katie x