Richard Branson is the man behind the Virgin brand, one of the world’s richest and very successful individuals. Barbadians know him well because he spends a lot of time here on the island. How many people know that he had to overcome the challenge of being dyslexic?
Truly an inspirational story!
Sit back and turn up your speakers and listen to a man that BU truly admire.
About this Talk
When Richard Branson was at school, his headmaster predicted he would wind up either a millionaire or in jail. Since then, he’s done both. Here he talks to TED’s Chris Anderson about the ups and the downs of his career, from his multibillionaire success to his multiple near-death experiences, from Virgin’s line of spacecraft to the failure of the Virgin condom. He also reveals some of his (very surprising) motivations.
Richard Branson bootstrapped his way from record-shop owner to head of the Virgin empire. Now he’s focusing his boundless energy on saving our environment. Read full bio »
Source: TED
[vodpod id=ExternalVideo.434662&w=425&h=350&fv=bgColor%3DFFFFFF%26file%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fstatic.videoegg.com%2Fted%2Fmovies%2FRICHARDBRANSON-r-2007_high.flv%26autoPlay%3Dfalse%26fullscreenURL%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fstatic.videoegg.com%2Fted%2Fflash%2Ffullscreen.html%26forcePlay%3Dfalse%26logo%3D%26allowFullscreen%3Dtrue]
David,
But….
Do you admire any BLACK BAJAN BUSINESS people?
Do you admire any WHITE BAJAN BUSINESS people?
Do you admire anything BAJAN?
It is always easy to praise others when you are programmed to pull down your own kind.
But there are probably plenty of people in Richard Branson’s own country who hate and envy him too…. maybe they even devote their lives to starting hate-blogs against him.
To Anonymous, yes we do, yes we do,yes we do.
Richard Branson would have been an outcast in Sir Louis Tull’s perfectly spelled and grammatically correct world, but Sir Louis is not alone, from Gladstone Holder on down there a lot of language mavens AKA useful idiots in Barbados, who have contributed very little to uplifting the lot of their fellow man but have done quite in bit to put down and belittle others.
Richard Branson had better not write any letters himself address to Sir Louis. 😀
Good observation Adrian H, Barbadians always seem to take their correctness a little too far. Here is a man who has overcome a personal disability to become a successful global person but instead we always seem to pull to the insignificant
Sir Richard keeps making the news all the time. What next?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/help/3681938.stm
Come off it, you guys. There is a difference between dyslexia ( a common problem worldwide, but hardly recognised in Barbados) and straightforward lazy spelling and poor grammar caused by a lack of proper teaching, or a lack of discipline, or lack of caring about how a piece is presented. Branson overcame dyslexia – and you can bet that the people that he hires to run his empire can all spell and write proper grammar. In Barbados people produce poor grammar and poor spelling and wear it as a badge of honour that they “en care about how it look (sic), everyone know (sic) what they mean.”
peltdownman // Oct 12th 2007 at 3:08 pm
Come off it, you guys. There is a difference between dyslexia ( a common problem worldwide, but hardly recognised in Barbados) and straightforward lazy spelling and poor grammar caused by a lack of proper teaching, or a lack of discipline, or lack of caring about how a piece is presented. Branson overcame dyslexia – and you can bet that the people that he hires to run his empire can all spell and write proper grammar. In Barbados people produce poor grammar and poor spelling and wear it as a badge of honour that they “en care about how it look (sic), everyone know (sic) what they mean.”
———————————————————-
Who writes proper grammar? Proper grammar is a hindrance to expression. Language has grown and the rules have not. Do you know the history behind grammar rules? how they came about? etc. You are only fooling yourself by holding unto them and demanding that others do. If there is some over reaching utility to correct spelling and proper grammar beyond it’s usefullness in communicating ones exact thoughts, why do so many in Barbados reach for it, not as tools of learning but as weapons to silence that which they disagree with, and to “put people in their place” etc?
Take a look at Sir Luis’ face in that You Tube clip, particularly when he says “duh can’t spell” —–the snobbish elitist facial expression makes it evident that he isn’t truly concern that “duh can’t spell” but that he is enjoying the moment of belittling “duh”. The sophist amongst us i.e. the Gladstone Holders of yore and now, have always felt threathen by the brave willingness of the ordinary man to communicate in public and to pen his thoughts, in the manner that he best can, for to do so takes away from their ill earned payments and prestige for their hairsplitting expoundings.
Utter crap Adrian.
This is why society is in the mess it is in today.
Everyone making up the rules as they go along.
Anonymous // Oct 12th 2007 at 6:00 pm
Utter crap Adrian.
This is why society is in the mess it is in today.
Everyone making up the rules as they go along.
————————————————————
Yuh mean everything i just said is all crap? I gave several opinions——
1: no one writes grammatically correct anymore.
2: That the history of grammar rules leave a lot to be desired.
3: That language has outgrown grammar rules.
4:That Barbadians tend to cite grammar rules to shut down discourse more so than to correct any deficiencies in understanding what is being communicated.
5:That Sir Louis Tull is a fitting example of no.4
It shouldn’t be suggested by you, or anyone, that I would apply my views on grammar rules, and their application by bajan language mavens, to suggest that i have an all inclusive view, about all rules and all regulations. They must all fit a purpose and if they don’t then we should look to remove them. Yet i am not calling for the removal of grammar rules, or suggesting that persons should not aspire to meet the rules in their written statements. What i am saying is, that it is high time for the mavens to find another occupation, that the language no longer needs their self appointed protection, for they have squandered their prestige, by their willingness to us their knowledge of the rules to direct or dismiss public debate, and belittle their fellow man.
Rules and regulation for directing behavior in the society is needed and must be protected. However there must be an agree too process for changing and or amending societal rules and regulations as it is certain that society will change.
the snobbish elitist facial expression makes it evident that he isn’t truly concern that “duh can’t spell” ……
the Gladstone Holders of yore and now, have always felt threathen(ed) by the brave willingness of the ordinary man …….
_________________________________
QED Adrian
the snobbish elitist facial expression makes it evident that he isn’t truly concern that “duh can’t spell” ……
the Gladstone Holders of yore and now, have always felt threathen(ed) by the brave willingness of the ordinary man …….
———————————————————–
Now beyond the self serving uselessness of your corrections do you have any other comments to make on what you may have gathered from the text you corrected? Or as a text editor such is beyond you?
I guess that the words “self-serving” can be handed around in this dialogue, Adrian. Suffice to say that there is a reason why rules apply in spelling and grammar, and that is to make the language more easily understood by everybody, and by that, I mean everybody. I am not writing about dialect here, which of course has it’s place in everyday discourse between people in a close society. However, take that dialect outside its immediate environs, and it will not be clearly understood. Perhaps your english teacher gave you a hard time at school, though I doubt it as your writing is excellent. I just don’t get your problem. There is no motive here to silence people, just to get them for once to follow the rules. I can see that discussing this with you is like spitting into the wind, though. have a good weekend!