Reading Reflection No. 1

Reading Reflection:

"Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future" by Ashlee Vance

1) About the Entrepreneur

• What Surprised Me: Despite being described as very timid in his demeanor, Musk often asks very direct questions that are inconsiderate of decorum. For example, Vance says that Musk once asked her if she thought he was insane based on their interaction, not in a joking manner but to see if that was the frame of mind she was considering him in or not. I guess with the very logical, problem-solving mind that Musk has, these sorts of probing questions are a reflection of his character and outlook on life, though some may see them as rude.
• What I Most Admired: I really admired how incredibly visionary Musk is, with all of his ventures being in some way linked to his goal of interplanetary colonization. Vance says at his headquarters there are two pictures of Mars, which show before and after colonization pictures of the red planet, and that this helps convey the message of working towards something revolutionary and historic to the employees at the company. The inspiration to work hard for something bigger than yourself that Musk generates is highly commendable.
• What I Least Admired: While Musk's logical nature usually serves him well to tackle large design problems like automotive and rocket design, his brash manner of speaking and occasional inability to frame his desires in a pleasant way can sometimes hinder his vision. For example, Vance said Musk responded to workers not coming in on weekends as much as they used to by saying, "We've grown f***ing soft", and wanted to send a company email to convey this complaint. While I can understand his no-nonsense approach, not everyone operates with his personality, and I think he should recognize that to lead his team with more constructive communication.
• Adversity Encountered: Musk had a difficult time interacting socially during his childhood, as his know-it-all personality and non-emotional approach to life left him with few friends. He decided to forgo living with his mother at a young age and go live with his dad because he felt it more fair that his father have at least one kid, which confused and saddened his mother, who thought she had created a loving home for him. Musk's difficulty forming close attachments has spilled over into his relationships, as he has kids with one ex-wife and has a second wife who he divorced and remarried. Despite these hardships in his personal life, he constantly moves forward and provides invaluable leadership to his company, often devoting all of his personal time to the cause.

2) Core Competencies: I think Musk primarily has the competencies of problem-solving and endurance to push through difficult times. The companies he runs have made a name for themselves by being the most innovative of their field, be it reusable, self-landing rockets, or all electric vehicles designed with style and luxury in mind. Musk has carried these competencies from his days as PayPal's founder, as his novel concept for money transactions spurred a whole new industry of person to person cash exchange. Though many people have said his ideas are too unrealistic, which many still do, he has pushed forward through it and created profitable companies that push the boundaries of possibility.

3) Confusing Aspects: One thing that confused me about the book was Musk's attitude toward a book being written about him. He initially says to Vance that if she were to write a book on him with his cooperation, he would need to see it before it went out and add footnotes as he saw fit. When Vance stated on their first interview that this would not be possible for her, Musk immediately backed down and accepted to her terms, which seems wholly against his personality and method of dealing with problems, where usually he requires everything to be attuned to the exact specifications he explains, case in point being his adverse reaction to workers not coming in on the weekends. While I can accept Musk eventually caved to protect his image from vicious reporting, I somewhat doubt he immediately was thrilled with the idea of being fully hands off on the project. 

4) Questions: My questions for Musk would relate to his overarching goals of interplanetary colonization. The first would be: How do you determine what projects to undertake so they act in synergy to accomplish your goals? A lot of Musk's companies seem to be stepping stones to accomplish bigger things, like producing rockets to eventually launch a global satellite internet service, which can in turn fund Mars missions, so it would be interesting to learn how he envisions those paths. Secondly: How do you convince investors to fund projects that have never been done before and have no close counterpart to compare to? It is hard enough to pitch investors ideas that have already been done before but with slight modifications to compete with existing producers, but if you have to convince investors that a market exists where no one has sold before it must be much harder, so I would want to know his process for that.

5) Opinion of Hard Work: I think Musk clearly believes in the value of hard work, as his own schedule is so strenuous he is forced to portion out a few hours in a week for dating rather, than having free time to do what he wants. While I agree that hard work is necessary for success, I think Musk's method of working himself and his employees sometimes to the bone is more harmful long-term, and that taking breaks to preserve your physical well-being and your mental health are just as important as meeting quotas and deadlines.