1) You read about Elon Musk:
- What surprised you the most?
- Elon made many choices without any calculated thought. Such as when he moved to Canada from South Africa without making any arrangements for a place to live or work.
- What about the entrepreneur did you most admire?
- I admired his determination. When he sets his mind to it he will get it accomplished. He seems as though he is a robot, because it was said that he could go days without eating or sleeping if he needs to get something done.
- What about the entrepreneur did you least admire?
- He was known for treating others poorly on many occasions and he was very vindictive.
- Did the entrepreneur encounter adversity and failure? If so, what did they do about it?
- He encountered adversity and failure numerous times throughout his life. One example was while he was working at x.com/PaPal and the other executives initiated a coup behind his back while he was on vacation. They succeeded with a vote of no confidence and subsequently replaced him. However, instead of lashing out as he was known to do, he held back an bitterness and even continued to be an advisor and continued to invest in the company and at one time becoming the company's largest shareholder.
2) What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited?
He was fiercely determined, innovative, charismatic, and has a unique ability to translate scientific ideas into a business venture.
3) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.
I don't understand why he thinks that taking his kids on a short weekend camping trip is beneficial to them. For being extremely intelligent, he has a skewed way of prioritizing his life and what is actually important in the grand scheme of things.
He was fiercely determined, innovative, charismatic, and has a unique ability to translate scientific ideas into a business venture.
3) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.
I don't understand why he thinks that taking his kids on a short weekend camping trip is beneficial to them. For being extremely intelligent, he has a skewed way of prioritizing his life and what is actually important in the grand scheme of things.
4) If you were able to ask two questions to the entrepreneur, what would you ask? Why?
1) Do you think that you could have achieved more if you were capable of motivating others rather than taking a view of a micromanager? In my opinion, you can always get more accomplished as a group rather than alone. Therefore, I would be interested in his opinion if looking back does he believe that he could have achieved more as a team.2) Do you attribute this psychotic behavior to your childhood? He is a very intelligent individual and it would be interesting to know if he treats other poorly because of his insecurities stemming from his childhood or is it because he has a superiority complex.
5) For fun: what do you think the entrepreneur's opinion was of hard work? Do you share that opinion?
I believe that his opinion of hard work is that the day is not over until the problem or project is solved as he was known to go hungry, sleep in the office, and go without sleep while working on his projects. That way of thinking is not the life for me. We only get one life and it is not my plan to work it all away.
I believe that his opinion of hard work is that the day is not over until the problem or project is solved as he was known to go hungry, sleep in the office, and go without sleep while working on his projects. That way of thinking is not the life for me. We only get one life and it is not my plan to work it all away.
Hello, Jeremy. Your second question that you'd have asked Elon Musk surprised me a lot! "Do you attribute this psychotic behavior to your childhood?" Not sure you'd get much of an answer if you phrased it that way. I thought Steve Jobs was bad, but now you're making me wish I'd read the biography on Elon Musk instead. Another thing is that you mentioned how he up and moved without making any arrangements ahead of time; it seems like the kind of thing I would never be able to do. I always want a plan and a backup plan, maybe I don't have the right mindset to be an entrepreneur, but I still don't want to jump out of a plane without a chute.
ReplyDeleteHey Jeremy,
ReplyDeleteI was very interested in reading about Elon Musk, and I might read this book for the third reading reflection of this class. I agree that it is very surprising that Elon Musk made many decisions without any calculated thought. His quality of determination was probably very important in his success, and without it, he may have not been as successful. Similarly, adversity may have been needed for Elon Musk to truly understand his unique position. I think the two questions you would ask him are very interesting and quality questions. Overall, great post!
Hi Jeremy,
ReplyDeleteI also read the Elon Musk biography and I agree, his determination is very admirable. The fact that he refused to just give up on either Space X or Tesla back in 2008 and instead fought until the last minute to keep both really shows how much passion he has for what he does. I also agree that the way he treats others, especially his employees, is not admirable. One would think that he would treat his employees who help build the foundation of his companies with respect but he has very questionable behavior instead.
Hey Jeremy,
ReplyDeleteI too read this book about Elon and when you mentioned that you admired how determined he was I too recall thinking of him that way. I remember reading that when he wanted a date with his wife (before they were married), she stood him up and he continued to try and woo her and here we are today with the married couple. You mentioned that he might be working his life away, but his work is rooted in helping humanity and I think that’s more than many of us can say.