Richard Branson On Why You Should Dump Your MBA & Focus On People To Be A Successful Entrepreneur

Did you know that Richard Branson, the founder of the Virgin Group, which controls more than 400 companies, dropped out of college when he was just 15-years- old? Yes, he is unusual in his own ways and clearly does not believe in a common education system for all. He did what he seemed was right for him. In a recent interview with Freakonomics Radio, he emphasized on why you should dump your MBA plans and instead learn to understand people. He believes if you can trust them, work with them, inspire them and promote them, then your team can do wonders. © Reuters Even Alibaba founder Jack Ma believes why you don't need to be the smartest person in the room to be successful, but you do need an eye for hiring and working with the smart people as a team. Here is what Richard Branson believes entrepreneurs should focus on instead. 1. Put Yourself Out Of Business And Delegate © revstreammarketing Branson says "I actually believe that people should delegate early on in their businesses, so they can start thinking about the bigger picture. Put yourself out of business, and let them get on and run your business day to day." What does this do? It gives you more time to focus on the bigger picture and builds trust among your team. 2. Understanding The Terms Net & Gross Can Be Put On Hold For Some Time. What he means to say here is that, learning all the business terminologies is not a necessity to run a successful company and he himself learned those terms when he was in his 50s. Branson says, “What matters is, you know, have you created the best company, the best airline, or the best record company? And if you have created the best, your figures will add up at the end of the year, and you'll have more money coming in than going out, and you can employ some accountants to work out the difference between net and gross.” 3. Professionalism Is Fine But Entrepreneurs Are Different © Thinkstock/Getty Images Branson believes, "They need a passion, absolute passion for what they're doing. They need an absolute belief in what they're doing. They need to be wonderful motivators for people. If you've got a happy, motivated group of people you're working with, you can achieve anything." What he means here is that MBAs are fine, but they are not always the best option to become a successful entrepreneur, as there are many other things that drive an entrepreneur. 4. Treat Your Employees Like Your Family Richard says, "If you treat your people badly, they're not going to go that extra mile when things get tough. I mean, a lot of our time we spend at work, and work should be fun. It should be enjoyable. And you should also have policies that follow through with that.” By having such policies, he means to say that you should give your employees the freedom to have some off time when they want, and flexibility of working from home as this build your trust in them.