Book Club #10: Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future, by Ashlee Vance
It’s difficult to overstate the importance of Elon Musk in our current time. He’s a combination of Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, and Steve Jobs.
He already helped create a company that was the starting gun for what would lead to cryptocurrency (PayPal) and in his spare time he advises other companies that are taking on an idea of his that he simply has no time to pursue (Hyperloop).
It’s important to read Ashlee Vance’s Elon Musk: Tesla, SuperX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future not because you wish to imitate Musk, necessarily (though you certainly can), but because it’s fascinating to see the brain at the heart of so many changes going on in our modern world.
Vance spent years interviewing almost 300 people who were on hand to watch and work with Musk both personally and professionally. He also managed to get 40 hours with Musk himself to clarify and corroborate key and controversial points.
Vance was driven by, among other things, how and why a man who has already amassed a fortune in one field (finance) would then turn around and risk it all on three fields he had no experience in (automobiles, space, and energy).
Yet, there we see some immediate lessons. Musk has proven that you don’t need to know an industry top to bottom before barging your way in, and that sometimes money doesn’t cure all when chasing big ideas.
It’s a messy tale, whether it’s regarding his personal life (Musk has been through two wives, and has 5 children with the first, and is currently on to the third love interest) or his professional life (there were lawsuits around some Tesla departures and he fired a 12-year assistant essentially for asking for a pay raise).
Vance makes it clear that Musk has the ability to do things differently, but has chosen to play to his strengths rather than work on his weaknesses.
A final thought…
Robert Downey Jr. met with Elon as part of his research to prepare to be Tony Stark of the Iron Man films. It’s because Musk might be the closest man to that fictional character we have – and for his flaws and superpowers – he’s not that far off from Tony Stark.
Check out Elon Musk: Tesla, SuperX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future. It’s a fascinating read and a departure from the traditional business books you might have read up until now.
