• Sir Richard Branson is the founder of the Virgin Group.
• He’s famous for his global adventures and hatred of stuffy corporate culture.
• Business Insider took a look at a typical day for Branson, which involves lots of tea and plenty of time spent with family and friends.
Sir Richard Branson has had quite a life.
After founding Virgin Records in 1972, the mogul went on to establish the Virgin Group conglomerate, get knighted by the Queen of England, and accrue a personal fortune of about $5 billion, according to Forbes.
The business magnate is now famous for his globe-trotting adventures and his casual, mischievous attitude. This is the man who once took a hilarious photo with a Virgin employee he caught napping on the job, after all.
According to Virgin’s website, Branson doesn’t intend to retire and “spends most of his time working on not-for-profit initiatives.”
So what does his daily routine look like?
Branson himself broke his daily schedule down in a blog post in April. Every day is different for the jet-setting billionaire, but here are some highlights from his usual schedule:
Branson wakes up at 5 a.m. every day. "Getting up and at it early gives me time to get on top of things, and chart my day effectively," he wrote in a 2014 blog post.
Source: Business Insider, Virgin
He carves out plenty of time to spend with his family and eat breakfast. "Not only does this help them know how important they are to me, but it also grounds me before I start my day," he wrote.
Source: Business Insider, Virgin
Once he's up, he's ready to move. Some of his favorite activities include kite-surfing, swimming, cycling, and tennis. Virgin's website says the founder has a "mean tennis serve."
Source: Business Insider, Virgin
In 2010, he ran a marathon in London while dressed as a butterfly.
Source: Virgin
In 2009, he kite-surfed with a naked model on his back. In February, he hit the waves to compete against former US President Barack Obama.
Sources: Business Insider, Business Insider
In a blog post, he wrote that he'd recommend kite-surfing to anyone with access to a body of water.
Source: Virgin
"There's nothing quite like the feeling of freedom, exhilaration, and oneness with nature that comes from kiting – and the extraordinary rush of adrenaline it gives you," he wrote in a blog post.
Source: Virgin
Getting an early start to the day isn't only about exercising. Branson lives on Necker Island in the British Virgin Islands, which he bought for about $320,000 in 1979. "Living in the BVI, I like to be online early, so that I am accessible and available to our offices in other time zones," he wrote.
Source: Business Insider, Virgin
"I can work through my emails before most of the world logs on," he wrote.
Source: Virgin
Back at the office, Branson doesn't don fancy suits and designer ties. "I hate ties. I can't understand how ties ever caught on," he told the Wall Street Journal in 2014.
Source: The Wall Street Journal
In fact, his famous hatred of ties has prompted Branson to snip them off peoples' necks.
Source: Business Insider
He spends his workdays staying on top of business, checking his various social media platforms, reading the news, and keeping in touch with his employees.
Source: Virgin
"Being a modern business leader is all about having your finger on the pulse and knowing what you're talking about. I'm always checking in with our Virgin teams," Branson wrote on his blog.
Source: Virgin
Carrying a notebook also keeps him on track. "My secret 'life hack' has also been to write it down! I can't tell you where I'd be if I hadn't had a pen on hand to write down my ideas as soon as they came to me," Branson wrote in a blog post.
Source: Virgin
To keep up his energy throughout the day, Branson drinks up to 20 cups of tea — white, no sugar.
Source: Virgin
When it comes to food, Virgin's website reports that Branson enjoys egg sandwiches, along with "his wife's stews, shepherds pie or a Great British roast dinner."
Source: Virgin
The Virgin founder has many hobbies, like playing chess. Some of his past times, however, are somewhat unusual ...
Source: Virgin
... like constantly striving to break world records. In 1985, Branson's boat, the Virgin Atlantic Challenger, sunk just before breaking the trans-Atlantic speed record. Branson and the crew were rescued, and went on to break the record in 1986.
Source: Business Insider, The New York Times
To stay focused and relaxed amid his work and extreme hobbies, Branson takes some time to practice yoga and Thai Chi during the day.
Source: Virgin
He's not a big TV watcher, but he does enjoy the odd movie — he even made a cameo appearance in "Casino Royale" — and listens to Peter Gabriel, Mike Oldfield, and The Sex Pistols.
Source: Virgin
After enjoying dinner with family and friends, Branson hits the hay around 11 p.m. every night. He says he usually requires about six hours of shut-eye.
Source: Virgin
Branson says it's important to approach life with a sense of adventure: "The spirit of adventure motivates us to set goals, push ourselves, thrive in the face of hardship, and achieve epic feats."
Source: Virgin
