Elon Musk's 10 Rules of Success
1. Act despite fear
2. Focus on the customers
3. Have a high pain threshold
4. Be rigorous in self analysis
5. Expect to fail
6. Have a sense of humor
7. Aim for perfection
8. Do your chores
9. Be an adventurer
10. Inspire greatness
11. Drive innovation
When something is important enough, you do it
even if the odds are not in your favor.
I think it is possible for ordinary people to choose to be extraordinary.
I could either watch it happen or be part of it.
Failure is an option here.
If things are not failing,
you are not innovating enough.
The first step is to establish that something is possible;
then probability will occur.
It's very important to have feedback.
You're constantly thinking about
what you've done and how you could be doing it better.
If you're trying to create a company,
it's like baking a cake.
You have to have all the ingredients in the right proportion.
People work better when they know what the goal is and why.
It is important that people look forward to coming to work
and enjoy working.
You shouldn't do things differently just because
they're different. They need to be.. better.
It's very important to like the people you work with,
otherwise life and your job is going to be quite miserable.
Work like hell.
I mean you just have to put in 80 to 100 hour weeks every week.
[This] improves the odds of success.
If other people are putting in 40 hours and
you're putting in 100,
even if you're doing the same thing,
you will achieve in 4 months what it takes them a year.
Some people don't like change,
but you need to embrace change
if the alternative is disaster.
Persistence is very important.
You should not give up unless
you are forced to give up.
Pay attention to negative feedback and solicit it,
particularly from friends.
Hardly anyone does that,
and it's incredibly helpful.
What makes innovative thinking happen?
I think it's really a mindset.
You have to decide.
If something is important enough you should try,
even if the probable outcome is failure.
I think it's very important to have a feedback loop, where you're constantly thinking about
what you've done and how you could be doing it better.
I think that's the single best piece of advice:
Constantly think about how you could be
doing things better and questioning yourself.
My motivation for all my companies has been to be involved in something
that I thought would have a significant impact on the world.
Don't be afraid of new arenas.
No, I don't ever give up.
I'd have to be dead or
completely incapacitated.
Life is too short for long-term grudges.
Patience is a virtue,
and I'm learning patience.
It's a tough lesson.
Elon wanted a new payment method on the internet,
so he created Paypal.
Elon wanted to drive an electric car,
so he founded Tesla.
Elon wanted to go to space,
so he created SpaceX.
Elon wanted faster transportation,
so he is developing HyperLoop.
Elon doesn't go around telling everyone
how much the world sucks.
He is too busy changing it.
Takeaway: BE LIKE ELON.
Don't complain about your circumstance, change it.
Constantly think about how you could be doing things better.
Keep questioning yourself.
It's OK to have your eggs in one basket as long as
you control what happens to that basket.
When Henry Ford made cheap, reliable cars
people said, ‘Nah, what's wrong with a horse?’
That was a huge bet he made, and it worked.
Take risks now and do something bold.
You won't regret it.
It wasn't a question of profit versus non-profit.
It was how do we live?
Great companies are built on great products.
Really, the only thing that makes sense
is to strive for greater collective enlightenment.
Starting a company is like eating glass
and staring into the abyss.
If you feel like you are up for that,
then start a company.
As much as possible, avoid hiring MBAs.
MBA programs don't teach people how to create companies.
If you get up in the morning
and think the future is going to be better,
it is a bright day.
Otherwise, it's not.
I would like to die on Mars.
Just not on impact.
I think it is a mistake to hire huge numbers of people
to get a complicated job done.
Numbers will never compensate for talent in getting the right answer.
Two people who don't know something are no better than one.
I've actually not read any books on time management.
If you're co-founder or CEO,
you have to do all kinds of tasks
you might not want to do..
If you don't do your chores,
the company won't succeed..
No task is too menial.
Don't just follow the trend.
You may have heard me say that
it's good to think in terms of the physics approach of first principles.
Which is, rather than reasoning by analogy,
you boil things down to the most fundamental truths
you can imagine and you reason up from there.
People should pursue what they're passionate about.
That will make them happier than pretty much anything else.
1. Act despite fear
2. Focus on the customers
3. Have a high pain threshold
4. Be rigorous in self analysis
5. Expect to fail
6. Have a sense of humor
7. Aim for perfection
8. Do your chores
9. Be an adventurer
10. Inspire greatness
11. Drive innovation
When something is important enough, you do it
even if the odds are not in your favor.
I think it is possible for ordinary people to choose to be extraordinary.
I could either watch it happen or be part of it.
Failure is an option here.
If things are not failing,
you are not innovating enough.
The first step is to establish that something is possible;
then probability will occur.
It's very important to have feedback.
You're constantly thinking about
what you've done and how you could be doing it better.
If you're trying to create a company,
it's like baking a cake.
You have to have all the ingredients in the right proportion.
People work better when they know what the goal is and why.
It is important that people look forward to coming to work
and enjoy working.
You shouldn't do things differently just because
they're different. They need to be.. better.
It's very important to like the people you work with,
otherwise life and your job is going to be quite miserable.
Work like hell.
I mean you just have to put in 80 to 100 hour weeks every week.
[This] improves the odds of success.
If other people are putting in 40 hours and
you're putting in 100,
even if you're doing the same thing,
you will achieve in 4 months what it takes them a year.
Some people don't like change,
but you need to embrace change
if the alternative is disaster.
Persistence is very important.
You should not give up unless
you are forced to give up.
Pay attention to negative feedback and solicit it,
particularly from friends.
Hardly anyone does that,
and it's incredibly helpful.
What makes innovative thinking happen?
I think it's really a mindset.
You have to decide.
If something is important enough you should try,
even if the probable outcome is failure.
I think it's very important to have a feedback loop, where you're constantly thinking about
what you've done and how you could be doing it better.
I think that's the single best piece of advice:
Constantly think about how you could be
doing things better and questioning yourself.
My motivation for all my companies has been to be involved in something
that I thought would have a significant impact on the world.
Don't be afraid of new arenas.
No, I don't ever give up.
I'd have to be dead or
completely incapacitated.
Life is too short for long-term grudges.
Patience is a virtue,
and I'm learning patience.
It's a tough lesson.
Elon wanted a new payment method on the internet,
so he created Paypal.
Elon wanted to drive an electric car,
so he founded Tesla.
Elon wanted to go to space,
so he created SpaceX.
Elon wanted faster transportation,
so he is developing HyperLoop.
Elon doesn't go around telling everyone
how much the world sucks.
He is too busy changing it.
Takeaway: BE LIKE ELON.
Don't complain about your circumstance, change it.
Constantly think about how you could be doing things better.
Keep questioning yourself.
It's OK to have your eggs in one basket as long as
you control what happens to that basket.
When Henry Ford made cheap, reliable cars
people said, ‘Nah, what's wrong with a horse?’
That was a huge bet he made, and it worked.
Take risks now and do something bold.
You won't regret it.
It wasn't a question of profit versus non-profit.
It was how do we live?
Great companies are built on great products.
Really, the only thing that makes sense
is to strive for greater collective enlightenment.
Starting a company is like eating glass
and staring into the abyss.
If you feel like you are up for that,
then start a company.
As much as possible, avoid hiring MBAs.
MBA programs don't teach people how to create companies.
If you get up in the morning
and think the future is going to be better,
it is a bright day.
Otherwise, it's not.
I would like to die on Mars.
Just not on impact.
I think it is a mistake to hire huge numbers of people
to get a complicated job done.
Numbers will never compensate for talent in getting the right answer.
Two people who don't know something are no better than one.
I've actually not read any books on time management.
If you're co-founder or CEO,
you have to do all kinds of tasks
you might not want to do..
If you don't do your chores,
the company won't succeed..
No task is too menial.
Don't just follow the trend.
You may have heard me say that
it's good to think in terms of the physics approach of first principles.
Which is, rather than reasoning by analogy,
you boil things down to the most fundamental truths
you can imagine and you reason up from there.
People should pursue what they're passionate about.
That will make them happier than pretty much anything else.
