What makes Elon Musk so effective? I'm more interested in why. \ stacker news ~builders

What makes Elon Musk so effective? I'm more interested in why.

2362 sats \ 59 comments \ @k00b 30 Oct builders

Elon just cares about being effective more than anything else and has identified what's required to be effective. Andreessen does a great job explaining that. What's more interesting to me is why, especially if it's as obvious as Andreesen implies. If Elon is able to care about being effective more than anything else, why is it other people can't/don't? If I had to guess, it's related to something I've heard Elon say a lot: "I want to be useful." He pursues this to a pathological and self-destructive degree.

imo The origin of "I want to be useful" is the severe bullying his biographers have covered. Having suffered bullies growing up, if it persists long enough you realize the best defense for being bullied is being useful to as many people as you might need to defend you. It then becomes somewhat of a feedback loop: as you become more useful, the number of people and their desire to destroy you grows, and your best defense is becoming more useful to even more people and so on.

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858 sats \ 2 replies \ @didiplaywell 30 Oct

It's an engineering mindset. The exact same mindset you use to design something is the one you can use to organize something, for it's all about "allocating matter" at the end, be it metal, be it resources.

One of the key aspects of a good engineering project is task division and cohesion: one team will design this section, another this one, etc. So it's not only the mindset needed to design a bolt but the mindset needed to think where it goes, who works with this next, what about costs? logistics? etc.

So, all what's needed to be efficient is already there. The key to efficiency is not about getting it but about not ruining it.

The key to his success is thus in this phrase: Too many MBAs ruining companies

People was extremely efficient before, that's how extremely sophisticated planes and cars where designed with pencil and paper. The problem started when the MBA corporate culture began to corrode everything. A culture of accommodating people based on their self-perceived importance, not their usefulness.

So, Musk is simply getting back to basics. One of the reasons I admire him and trust him is that, with an MBA sub-culture already in place, it takes great humility to take yourself out of the way and let people work. The MBA sub-culture does the exact opposite out of ego and the never ending need to justify a job position that should not exist.

This "anit-MBA" policy (aka "rub no one's ego" policy) is perfectly summed up in is anti-handbook" manual.

30 sats \ 1 reply \ @Bell_curve 30 Oct

Excellent comment

Lots of great info and insight

Thanks for sharing

comment bookmarked

21 sats \ 0 replies \ @didiplaywell 30 Oct

My pleasure as always Sr

249 sats \ 1 reply \ @Car 30 Oct

I've come to realize Elon understands human psychology at a high level. Most effective leaders have this quality about them. He also sees the impossible as possible, heard a story that revolved around Elons inner circle in the 2000’s making fun of him every time he came around talking about his electric car startup. Most people are afraid of humiliation, some embrace it as a badge of honor and a reason to keep going.

21 sats \ 0 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

Did he start Tesla?

215 sats \ 4 replies \ @realBitcoinDog 30 Oct

Relentless sheer force of will

Sleeping in Tesla factory in 2018 while death ready to eat his face off only enough funds to make payroll for four more weeks

0 sats \ 3 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

How do you know he slept in the factory in 2018?

0 sats \ 2 replies \ @realBitcoinDog 30 Oct

I did a quick YouTube but couldn’t easily find that clip. I know it’s part of larger 2hr interview. From when producing Model 3 in 2018 and trying to secure funding from Saudi Arabia

0 sats \ 1 reply \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

So what does this really tell you? You didn't hang out with him while he slept in the factory an entire year. You believed a story. There are plenty of stories. This is why I believe unless we meditate enough to understand ourselves and our biases, we can't make an honest assessment of our reality. We are all biased and believe what we want to believe, right?

11 sats \ 0 replies \ @realBitcoinDog 30 Oct

“perception is reality”

247 sats \ 12 replies \ @JesseJames 30 Oct

he truly gives a shit, is my professional assessment...lol unfortunately not many people do these days...

0 sats \ 11 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

What makes you think he gives a true shit?

292 sats \ 10 replies \ @JesseJames 30 Oct

hmm.... his track record maybe? "We will make fully electric fast car" - done "We will start the internet satellite service" - done "We will make re-usable rocket" - done "We will go to mars" - pending He seems to do things he said he will do, it stands to reason he does give a shit of what he says and does... Maybe it's me, but if half of people would do the same I have a feeling we would be better off and in slightly better place. I could be wrong, I have been wrong before :-) Majority of things he does it does benefit the society, don't ya think? I can't be certain how "true" he is, I can only see what he does.

0 sats \ 8 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

How have these things helped humans specifically?

0 sats \ 7 replies \ @JesseJames 30 Oct

internet access in the areas were there was none (not even planned) , for starters...

0 sats \ 3 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

So that's a decent point in my view. Brining the internet to more people. What would be his next greatest accomplishment to you?

51 sats \ 2 replies \ @JesseJames 30 Oct

self driving taxis/cars he just introduced, no DWIs and less accidents on weekends or in general. I like the idea of self driving cars, just not too warm about it yet (gotta see it, test it to believe it), but the idea is great... There is no doubt that machine can see way better than people, its the reaction to specific situation (deer or dead raccoon on the road, potholes etc) that it remains to be seen in action, time will tell. The idea of traffic in the city is controlled by machines is not the worst in the world, look at traffic in NYC or LA... maybe that's a solution... don't know for sure but it sounds promising. Also, you don't own a car, you just use it when you need it. I'm talking city conditions, not the country, that won't happen for a long while.....

21 sats \ 1 reply \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

I can see that perspective. In my view, no computer will ever match human discernment and intuition. And people who choose to drive drunk need help, not an autonomous driver. I don't want more tech in my car. I want simple, easy to repair. Peak cars are 90s and early 2000s Toyotas. Made to last and be repaired. For me, learning to drive and be present in ones reality is important part of the human experience. Self driving cars will further disconnect us from what makes being a human fun. These are just my opinions. Whether or not self driving cars are net positive for humanity is up for debate I suppose. And other car bands are just as far along as Tesla in this pursuit from what I have heard. From where I am sitting, while a successful business move, Tesla hasn't done anything to help humanity. They have just reprogrammed many of us.

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0 sats \ 2 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

And that helps people how? Expand on this. When I was young, no one had internet. And we were happier in many ways. I am not saying you are wrong. I just want to hear more on how this helps us.

21 sats \ 1 reply \ @JesseJames 30 Oct

Learning opportunities. I bet you remember going to the library and bringing books home for study and once in a while getting late charges...lol. Now kids, don't remember what library is/was, they just google stuff and get free pdfs from z-library, don't tell me that's worthless... One can get actual college degree online, that ain't nothing... imho

21 sats \ 0 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

For sure. The internet is such a great tool. There are 2 sides to that coin. But I agree that information being free and accessible I a great thing.

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0 sats \ 0 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

The majority is often wrong. Look at money. And all those things you listed are pointless to me. And that is just one mans perspective. I don't know anything. But I "feel" like he has a big ego and is looking to control as much as possible. There are always facts available to confirm our own bias. To me that doesn't play much if a roll in how I see the world. I follow my gut. He may be very good for us and appreciate your ideas. And I appreciate the fact that you are open to being wrong. This is important. I am also open to being wrong. I would rather him be a positive force than for me to be "right". It's an interesting topic here on stacker.

211 sats \ 1 reply \ @orangecheckemail_isthereany 31 Oct

A few thoughts on this. Apologies for the sloppiness of the writing. Threw this together hastily off the top of my mind.

One way to look at this is that Elon is actually what a normal human is supposed to act like, and to flip the question around on ourselves.

What is it about the rest of us that is so internally discordant? Most of us, I think it is fair to say, wish we'd act differently than we do (or we've had long periods of time where that has been the case).

We say we want and value one set of things yet our actions suggest otherwise. Either we aren't being honest about what we really want, or somehow we can't seem to get ourselves to habitually do what we say we actually want.

Or maybe what we want is a very unstable rapidly changing thing. What about our core values? Are they a very unstable changing thing? Probably not. So why don't we act in line with our professed core values more consistently throughout our lives in the ways we use our time and spend our attention?

It seems to me Elon does do that.

Maybe most of us are virtue signalling (even to ourselves) more than talking about what we actually value and want to do, and maybe Elon actually holds the values, and really does want what he says he wants, in addition to merely talking about them. Or our values and desires are genuine but there is something going on with the rest of us that makes us unable to do what we say we want to do.

It seems to me Elon is a more consistent human and that seems to me like that's something that should be more normal.

Maybe we should ask the question "Why are so many of us so ineffective?" Why do so many of of struggle to do what we think we should do, what we think we really want to do, or what we want ourselves to want to do? Do you really want to do what you say you want to do? Then why don't you do it? Maybe that's the more relevant question rather than "Why is Elon able to do what he says he wants to do?"

Many of us could be far more effective it seems to me if we would only follow our own advice. Why don't we? Maybe that is the weird thing.

21 sats \ 0 replies \ @Bell_curve 31 Oct

Nice comment

Sorry about the video being gone

I can’t remember which one but I will try to find it from memory

170 sats \ 0 replies \ @asterisk32 30 Oct

Summary, being HARD-CORE, long-hours with high intensty.

Oh and some Ketamine prescriptions for the depression that comes with all of it https://edition.cnn.com/2024/03/18/tech/elon-musk-ketamine-use-don-lemon-interview/index.html

Seems like to be him you've got to willing to, for lack of better phrasing, "TEAR YOUR HEART OUT"

13 sats \ 0 replies \ @B_rian 30 Oct

He makes people believe the impossible is possible and he's willing to risk everything and sacrifice anyone to prove it.

47 sats \ 15 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

I believe he is an egomaniac that wants as much power and control as possible. I don't see what value he has brought humans. I am fully prepared to be wrong about this. I would rather be wrong than for him to be what I think he is. Time will tell I suppose..

137 sats \ 14 replies \ @Undisciplined 30 Oct

Even if your assessment is correct, isn't there still an interesting question about why he's been so effective? It's not like there's a notable shortage of power hungry egomaniacs.

88 sats \ 2 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

Sure. It's interesting. But what is effective? Doing a lot does not mean doing a lot of good necessarily. It depends on your world view. Mine is such that jI don't see his accomplishments. I see wasted energy. And I can see how others see him as incredibly productive. Depends on what you value.

11 sats \ 1 reply \ @Undisciplined 30 Oct

I get where you're coming from. I think the interesting thing to consider, even if you don't value the results he's achieved, is whether there's something valuable in his process.

Regardless of whether you or I value what Elon has done, he has done a lot of what he set out to do. Can we learn from his method to accomplish more of what we want to do?

7 sats \ 0 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

Maybe. I learn from sitting in silence. Heroes always get knocked off eventually. I have had many heroes in the past. I used to like Elon in fact. And he got revealed just like they all do.

2 sats \ 10 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

What do you think are his most important contributions to mankind?

11 sats \ 9 replies \ @Undisciplined 30 Oct

I'm not a big Elon guy. There's a chance some of his space or solar technologies end up making a very large difference for humanity, but my knowledge of those things is fairly shallow.

79 sats \ 8 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

To me this is completely insane. The only reason we do not have peace here on earth is humans that are hurting each other. It's perfect here. Why would we take our problems to a dead red planet? It doesn't make any sense. To think we could thrive there better than here is completely counterintuitive. But most people have no intuition left. Maybe he is right. Maybe we need to go to Mars. But I really think it's about hype and stock price go up. Elon delivers on some things but most he doesn't. He makes big bold claims and falls short consistently. Maybe he's a visionary. I think it's all an act. And he is part of a bigger machine that is quite anti human. I would love to be wrong by the way. Again, I used to be a big fan of his.

11 sats \ 7 replies \ @Undisciplined 30 Oct

I wasn't referencing colonizing Mars. I also think that's pointless.

What is in space, though, that's extremely valuable to humanity, are mineral rich asteroids. These have the potential to radically reduce our scarcity of precious metals, which will make mining on Earth unnecessary/uneconomical and drive down the costs of new technology.

54 sats \ 6 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

Do you think the moon landing was real? I believe that space exploration is a psyop. A complete myth. A fools errand. A distraction. Am I right? No idea. That's just what my gut tells me which isn't worth much to anyone other than me.

21 sats \ 5 replies \ @Undisciplined 30 Oct

I do think the Moon Landing was real. They left reflectors up there that you can independently verify (if you have a powerful enough laser). We measured a reflection off the Moon when I was in undergrad and that only works because of those reflectors. Otherwise, the beam would be to randomly dispersed by the uneven terrain to return a coherent signal.

Where I do buy into some of the conspiracy stuff, is that the documentation of the Moon Landing does seem very sketchy and likely fake.

My personal theory is that the Moon Landing happened but the technology to record and photograph it didn't exist, so they faked that part for PR reasons.

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21 sats \ 0 replies \ @realBitcoinDog 30 Oct

2min video. “Starting a company is like staring into the abyss and eating glass. They give you both the worst problems, and the things nobody wants to work on.”

55 sats \ 0 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

His ability to make other think that he is effective.

55 sats \ 0 replies \ @7e6e393a56 30 Oct

Careful! Many despots wanted to be useful to society. Elon Musk wanted to strike Bolivia because of Lithium... I could list several other controversial actions of his here Your ego is as big as your fortune

121 sats \ 1 reply \ @DarthCoin 30 Oct

https://corbettreport.com/musk/

11 sats \ 0 replies \ @DesertDave 30 Oct

You all better listen to Darth on this one. You know he is right.

99 sats \ 1 reply \ @k00b OP 30 Oct

Hmmm bug, my video isn’t loading on mobile. We might need to adjust some things to support longer videos.

11 sats \ 0 replies \ @didiplaywell 30 Oct

Nor in the PC either!

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @Bell_curve 30 Oct

Democrats are bullies in Elon's view and I support that message. Paid for by no one or me.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @Bell_curve 30 Oct

0 sats \ 6 replies \ @anna 31 Oct

He’s not very constrained by morality, which would probably be a common theme of effective businessmen. He is not truthful, treats people as disposable tools, encourages human rights violations and environmental destruction to access resources. Sure, he is effective at making money but not in a way that I can admire

0 sats \ 5 replies \ @Bell_curve 31 Oct

How long have you had this opinion of Elon? Was it before or after he purchased Twitter?

0 sats \ 4 replies \ @anna 31 Oct

Before. I’ve never been interested in Twitter. Did that affect your opinion of him?

I started to doubt his integrity around 2018 when I got deep into 3D printing and realized a lot of his statements about the technology didn’t make sense. For sure he has engineers that have accomplished great things in all his projects, but I started feeling like he was just a good speaker without a lot of substance to back it up. Over the years, this feeling has grown.

11 sats \ 3 replies \ @Bell_curve 31 Oct

I was skeptical before he purchased Twitter. He said free speech was important to him and he demonstrated it by acquiring Twitter. Big fan of Elon.

0 sats \ 2 replies \ @anna 31 Oct

There’s talk since he acquired it of Twitter suspending journalist accounts and such, do those reports seem accurate to you? Like I said I really don’t follow what’s going on with Twitter

0 sats \ 1 reply \ @Bell_curve 31 Oct

Those rumors are not accurate. Probably lies spread by left wing corporate media. These same journalists who said they would quit Twitter have all come back. I wish they kept their word.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @anna 31 Oct

Got it, thanks