1) You read about an entrepreneur:
- What surprised you the most?
- What surprised me most about Elon Musk was learning about his background and his life back in South Africa and learning about how involved he was with all his companies even though they are so large!
- What about the entrepreneur did you most admire?
- Kind of leading off my last answer, I really admire that Elon Musk is still committed to ensuring his vision is brought to life by being involved with all the projects! He hasn't just taken a manager position or an overseer role but is still very passionate about all the things his companies are working on!
- What about the entrepreneur did you least admire?
- I think that one of the things that I dislike about Elon after reading this book is his attitude towards his employees and his ego. He tends to work his employees to the point of exhaustion but who knows, maybe this is his way of challenging them and producing the seemingly impossible results he expects. He also has a way of talking in his speeches and press conferences that makes it seem like he is responsible for all the success of the companies and doesn't really give enough credit to the teams that are actually developing the solutions!
- Did the entrepreneur encounter adversity and failure? If so, what did they do about it?
- Elon has definitely faced his fair share of adversity and failures! With Space X alone, there were constantly failures on the launch pad and test sites but he just kept on trying. Aside from that, when he dreams out loud the world tends to reject and instantly critiize every idea he throws out there.
2) What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited?
Elon Musk's potentially greatest skill is his desire to continue learning. He read every book in the school library in high school and is continuously seeking to better his understanding of literally every aspect of the universe! Knowledge is power!
3) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.
I didn't really understand why the author included alot of info about his children and his wife kind of out of no where. Seemed random to me.
4) If you were able to ask two questions to the entrepreneur, what would you ask? Why?
How do you take such an extreme concept like commercial space travel or online banking when nothing exists in the market like that and turn it from concept to a multibillion dollar enterprise?
These ideas aren't like most entrepreneur's, they aim to tackle giant problems that plague society as a whole. I want to know how you take such a big problem, craft a workable solution, and then proceed to move from concept to company.
How did you remain confident and firm behind your ideas even though the world rejected every idea you put out.
Personally I get really discouraged when people hate on my ideas or creative concepts and to have the world literally talk crap about everything you put effort into, I just want to know how he remained courageous enough to work through all that and still come out successful!
5) For fun: what do you think the entrepreneur's opinion was of hard work? Do you share that opinion?
Elon has a work ethic that involves grinding 24/7. There is never off time, there is never slack effort given. I believe that you need to know when to grind but also add time to develop your own life and enjoy your time here on Earth. Elon lacks this sense of balance that I desire which may work for him but I feel like life isn't all about what you can fit on a resume.
I liked this post! I think it's interesting how so many entrepreneurs we were able to read about have similar views on hard work and have all gone through some kind of adversity or failure. Even if they all attain a lot of wealth, and their character may be of question, no one can deny the work necessary to bring dreams like these into fruition. I would ask Elon a similar question; I'm curious about how he takes these big ideas that people always try to work towards and create it into a tangible reality.
ReplyDeleteI like your choice of biography, Elon Musk is definitely one of the most renowned entrepreneurs in the world at the moment.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with your reasoning behind his behavior towards his employees. By reading his biography and learning about his management style, it is clear that he pushes his coworkers and employees t the limit because he does the same with himself, and this is repeatedly talked about in the book.
Additionally, it is important to point out that the biography was written in a chronological way, therefore, the mention of his short-lived first marriage and his kids came later in the book, and quite frankly, I believe that it was very detailed given the fact that Musk himself reviewed the material before publishing. Ultimately, the author succeeded at pointing out his differences with most other people, but at the same time pointing out his human needs.
Hey, I also read up on Elon Musk. I know he has been in the spotlight for a while now and that it annoys some people, really look at what he is doing! Space X, Tesla, and Solar City not to mention all the companies he started up to get to where he is now. I also found it pretty surprising about his schedule and how involved he is in all of his companies, it's a rather hectic way to live. I feel the way he pushes his employees could be done a better way. However, he is just treating others the way he treats himself, the problem is he is not really taking good care of himself.
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