A conversation with
Richard Branson 

Richard Branson is looking tanned, warm and relaxed. Which should come as no surprise given that he’s speaking to me from his office on Necker Island in the Caribbean. I’ve been spending the day at his company’s HQ in central London, getting a better idea of the measures they’ve put in place to help workers with diverse needs. Virgin is a huge supporter of ActionAble25, a project that I’m spearheading which is designed to empower businesses to build disability-inclusive
action plans. The inaugural virtual conference is on February 26 where you’ll be able to hear from dozens of experts about best practice strategies.

Richard – ‘Just Richard please, Sara, not Sir Richard’ – knows exactly how important it is to put disability front and centre of corporate policy. He has always been open about his dyslexia and how that has become a strength for him. He’s one of the
leading forces in how we’ve redefined dyslexia, seeing it as a skill rather than an impediment.

Thinking in a different way is an essential quality amongst business leaders – as is being honest about the disability that so many of us face but very few will admit to in public.

When Richard was at school in the 1960s, dyslexia wasn’t a common diagnosis, even though the issue was a significant impediment for many pupils. In fact, he told me, the word never even cropped up. He was just told by teachers that he was under-performing, struggling at tasks that others seemed to do with relative ease. Aged 15, he quit school and set up Student Magazine at a time when there was a lot of turmoil around the world – there were huge protests about the Vietnam and Biafran wars and it was those societal issues that motivated him more than O levels.

 

‘Like most dyslexics, when I found something that interested me, I excelled. I was very interested at what was going on in the world and determined to see if we could make a difference somehow. That magazine became my world.’

It became an early schooling for his business career too, particularly in the art of delegation which is what so many leaders with a disability have to manage. Richard learned very early to surround himself with people who could do what he was less able to master.

 

‘I’m proud of my dyslexia. It’s who I am. It’s awful to think that there was a time when we’d give kids drugs to “cure” something that didn’t need to be cured. It’s not an illness but a blessing. I was talking to a mother the other day who I met on Necker. She was here for a conference and was in floods of tears because her child had just been diagnosed with dyslexia. And my first response was this: “What’s his character like?” When she replied that he’s adorable, I told her that the dyslexia would shape his life in a positive way. My grandson is dyslexic and I know that it’s the personality that matters, who you are. Because you struggle in some things, you’ll succeed in others. Let the mathematicians be good at what they do and let people with different skills find their path, and very often dyslexics discover that creativity is what’s right for them. We don’t want everyone thinking and doing the same.’

He’s right. Too many companies look at what disabled workers can’t do rather than what their skills are. We need to create structures that enable us to get the best from each other, so that everyone has a chance to shine, something that I’m convinced ActionAble25 will be able to provide. Advice and inspiration for organisations that want truly diverse companies that allow disabled members of their teams to shine.

When senior leaders talk about their disabilities, others feel able to express themselves in authentic ways, instead of hiding what makes them unique. That in turn strengthens the connection to customers because you’re more able to see
things from their perspective. I’m trying to do that by talking about my multiple sclerosis and what it feels like to be in a wheelchair in FTSE-100 boardrooms, where no one wants to reveal any vulnerability.

 

Richard has done it by talking about neurodiversity. You’re not a lesser person, you’re just one with a different shape and perspective. But how does he think more leaders can be persuaded to come out and reveal themselves when it comes to their disabilities, to open up those conversations?

‘The more leaders can get out and talk to everyone and get feedback and learn from each other, from their teams and customers, the better working life will be. We need to learn to listen more and then enact policies that emerge from those conversations and learnings. The more conversations we have, the easier it gets.

‘There’s a philosophy we have here at Virgin that I’m really proud of. It’s called Circles. We draw a circle around ourselves to acknowledge how we feel, if things are going well in our lives, what’s missing, how we can be better. And then we gradually draw bigger circles – for our colleagues, our teams, the communities we work and live in. How can we do more to help them feel good about themselves? We’re here to look after each other.

 

‘I remember being at our game reserve, Ulusaba in South Africa, and we were giving hearing aids to those in the local community. And I’ll never forget the look on the face
of one seven-year-old who had never heard his mother speak. The screams of joy were unforgettable. That’s what I mean about people, no matter how high up they are in business, taking time to see things from another perspective. Leaders need to make an effort to look beyond their own lived experience.’

In a few weeks, we have more than 700 people from scores of different companies gathering for our unique event, to help organisations make their workplaces more diverse. What’s the one thing Richard would like to tell everyone there, an inspirational message about how to become more inclusive?

 

‘Treat everyone as if they’re one of your own family. For instance, you only want the best for your children no matter what choices they make. If your son or daughter has a disability, you’re going to treat them beautifully, give them every bit of support you possibly can. It should be the same for anyone you work with. Whoever you are, whatever your background or, in this case, disability. Treat people with respect. If
your kids have issues, would you do everything you can to make their lives perfect? Of course you would. So to everyone out there in a position of leadership, think about those you work with. How would you treat them if they were your child? Have conversations with them, listen to them, help them, work with them, make things better for them. They’re not just employees, they’re people.’