7 ms·

My jaw drops every time I hear about SpaceX and Tesla. How could Elon grasp two extremely different and difficult technologies and build such amazing companies

by hi41 7y ago

My jaw drops every time I hear about SpaceX and Tesla. How could Elon grasp two extremely different and difficult technologies and build such amazing companies within a decade. I have difficulty learning new things. Some pointers will help. Thank you.

sfblah 7y ago
You, my good sir, are a fanboi’s fanboy.
- toomuchtodo 7y ago
  It amazes me how this forum handles praise for determination, passion, and perseverance. We shouldn’t discount luck, but you can respect the traits above without the derogatory terms (“fan boi”).
  - whateveracct 7y ago
    Idolization of others is unbecoming period. No person is special or mystically above others for doing acts of business and technology. That's what I live by at least.
    - endorphone 7y ago
      Admiring the accomplishments of others is unbecoming? That is remarkably sad. As the root post says, it is amazing what Musk has achieved, and I'd love to learn what the secret is. I suspect it's that he knows the limits of his own capabilities so he finds the right people to execute his visions. But it is absolutely remarkable that a payment startup guy kicked off two envelope-pushing companies that have achieved such heights. Countless rich guys have taken their lucre and tried to change the world, usually to extraordinary failure. Tesla and SpaceX have both changed the world and entire industries (as did PayPal), and they're just getting started.
      - whateveracct 7y ago
        Sorry but nobody is remarkable in my eyes no matter how hard they try
        zionic 7y ago
        That seems like a very toxic and unhealthy mindset. If I had to guess, seemingly an internal defense mechanism stemming from one's own insecurities.
        whateveracct 7y ago
        I don't see anything unhealthy about it. The mindset sees people as people. Nobody is especially special and everyone is simply Themself. Ever seeing others as More Impressive somehow is what is toxic. You seem to imply that I am insecure about my lack of success or skill in relation to others? And that I wish to bring others down to defend against this insecurity? Fundamental misunderstanding - we speak different languages and hold different values. I never compare myself to others and am very happy with my life and the way I'm going about it. And if someone regarded me in this way, I would reject it and tell them to cut it out.
    - egdod 7y ago
      We’re all deserving of respect as humans. But some people really are better at things than other people. It’s not unbecoming to acknowledge that.
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
okareaman 7y ago
How To Think Like Elon Musk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXe8JGB4FWA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXe8JGB4FWA
caconym_ 7y ago
Yeah, the guy is an absolute maniac and based on what I’ve heard I would not want to work at either of those companies, but you can’t argue with his success. He’s broken into two mature markets that have been dominated by massive incumbents for half a century or more. How many business leaders can say the same?
jariel 7y ago
"How could Elon grasp two extremely different and difficult technologies and build such amazing companies within a decade." Because they're both very well established technologies and there are tons of people with deep expertise in this area. Space is full of kafkaesque levels of bureaucracy, it's shocking that we haven't been doing this for a long time. It's the scale of these industries that he's taking on that is mind-boggling, not really the tech itself. It's operational exceptionalism more than anything.
soheil 7y ago
I think it would be odd if there did not exist a person or two at the extreme fringes of the gaussian distribution of one's achievements. The real question is are there more incredible people even further out on the distribution tail that somehow are not so visible to the public.
nojvek 7y ago
He made his billion from PayPal (software) and really went serious to make a dent in hardware. I really wish more billionaires, govts and VCs poured money into serious hardware and manufacturing. It really seems like US has lost its edge in manufacturing. 90% of the things in the mall/online seem to be from China. The economy may be doing great today but really not a great sign of the future.
- mft_ 7y ago
  According to Wikipedia, he made $165m from the sale of PayPal.

by hi41 7y ago

sfblah 7y ago

You, my good sir, are a fanboi’s fanboy.

toomuchtodo 7y ago
It amazes me how this forum handles praise for determination, passion, and perseverance. We shouldn’t discount luck, but you can respect the traits above without the derogatory terms (“fan boi”).
- whateveracct 7y ago
  Idolization of others is unbecoming period. No person is special or mystically above others for doing acts of business and technology. That's what I live by at least.
  - endorphone 7y ago
    Admiring the accomplishments of others is unbecoming? That is remarkably sad. As the root post says, it is amazing what Musk has achieved, and I'd love to learn what the secret is. I suspect it's that he knows the limits of his own capabilities so he finds the right people to execute his visions. But it is absolutely remarkable that a payment startup guy kicked off two envelope-pushing companies that have achieved such heights. Countless rich guys have taken their lucre and tried to change the world, usually to extraordinary failure. Tesla and SpaceX have both changed the world and entire industries (as did PayPal), and they're just getting started.
    - whateveracct 7y ago
      Sorry but nobody is remarkable in my eyes no matter how hard they try
      - zionic 7y ago
        That seems like a very toxic and unhealthy mindset. If I had to guess, seemingly an internal defense mechanism stemming from one's own insecurities.
        whateveracct 7y ago
        I don't see anything unhealthy about it. The mindset sees people as people. Nobody is especially special and everyone is simply Themself. Ever seeing others as More Impressive somehow is what is toxic. You seem to imply that I am insecure about my lack of success or skill in relation to others? And that I wish to bring others down to defend against this insecurity? Fundamental misunderstanding - we speak different languages and hold different values. I never compare myself to others and am very happy with my life and the way I'm going about it. And if someone regarded me in this way, I would reject it and tell them to cut it out.
  - egdod 7y ago
    We’re all deserving of respect as humans. But some people really are better at things than other people. It’s not unbecoming to acknowledge that.
deleted 7y ago
[deleted]

okareaman 7y ago

How To Think Like Elon Musk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXe8JGB4FWA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXe8JGB4FWA

caconym_ 7y ago

Yeah, the guy is an absolute maniac and based on what I’ve heard I would not want to work at either of those companies, but you can’t argue with his success. He’s broken into two mature markets that have been dominated by massive incumbents for half a century or more. How many business leaders can say the same?

jariel 7y ago

"How could Elon grasp two extremely different and difficult technologies and build such amazing companies within a decade." Because they're both very well established technologies and there are tons of people with deep expertise in this area. Space is full of kafkaesque levels of bureaucracy, it's shocking that we haven't been doing this for a long time. It's the scale of these industries that he's taking on that is mind-boggling, not really the tech itself. It's operational exceptionalism more than anything.

soheil 7y ago

I think it would be odd if there did not exist a person or two at the extreme fringes of the gaussian distribution of one's achievements. The real question is are there more incredible people even further out on the distribution tail that somehow are not so visible to the public.

nojvek 7y ago

He made his billion from PayPal (software) and really went serious to make a dent in hardware. I really wish more billionaires, govts and VCs poured money into serious hardware and manufacturing. It really seems like US has lost its edge in manufacturing. 90% of the things in the mall/online seem to be from China. The economy may be doing great today but really not a great sign of the future.

mft_ 7y ago
According to Wikipedia, he made $165m from the sale of PayPal.