What is the Mogul Mindset?

The term “mogul mindset” came from reading Virgin chief, Richard Branson’s autobiography, “Losing my Virginity,” and realizing that his mind worked in such a way as to make success on a global level almost inevitable for him.

Listed below are just some of the patterns of thought I identified that led to his amazing accomplishments and that I think anyone can use to maximize their chances of getting to the top of the Hollywood heap:

Ask “How Hard Could It Be?”  As a teenager, Richard Branson decided to start an alternative student publication. That idea became Student, a magazine which featured all of the English celebrities of the day, and ran for several years, ultimately with a circulation of 100,000 distributed throughout the UK. Later, he started a record label, Virgin Music, and then an airline, both from scratch.

Put One Foot In Front of the Other  When young Richard Branson wanted to start what became Student, without a pause, he made a list of potential contributors and advertisers, and called the local bookstore chain to see if they would stock the magazine. Later on, when considering starting an airline, he picked up the phone and tried to lease a jumbo jet from Boeing. And then he called a potential competitor’s booking line to see how busy they were. Step one, step two…

Don’t Let Fear of Failure Get In the Way of Success When you have big dreams, lots of people will tell you you’re crazy. And others will secretly- or not so secretly- root against you (and maybe even plot against you!) when you start to make progress toward your big dreams. Richard Branson was often torn apart in the press when he started forming Virgin Airways. If you think that stopped him, you haven’t taken a Virgin flight lately– but you could!

Stay True to Yourself- In Richard Branson’s case, this means pursuing businesses for the fun and adventure, and trying to remain above board even when the competition is being underhanded. It also means sticking up for himself in court- and in the court of public opinion- as when he had proof that British Airways was employing unfair- and even illegal- tactics to ruin Virgin Air.

YII’s Mogul Mindset eBlasts will keep you up-to-date on the latest posts on Your Industry Insider, with information designed to provide a head start if you’re still in school, get you started on the right foot if you’ve just graduated, help you transition from another industry, or get you unstuck if you’ve hit a roadblock on the path to success. Sign up today!

Photo used with limited permission: http://www.flickr.com/photos/halonfury/ / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

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