Elon Musk is by no means an ordinary individual. He is not 50 yet and he has founded 3 cutting-edge companies and is currently the second richest man in the world.
He also makes out time from his busy schedule to grant interviews and share his knowledge and insights with his millions of fans all over the world. He has said a lot over the years but we were able to pick the three most recurring pieces of advice he gives in his interviews.
READ: Elon Musk loses an estimated $6bn after a Tesla car accident killed two people
Work super hard
Across various Elon Musk interviews, he repeatedly stressed the need for every entrepreneur to have strong work ethics. He believes hard work is really important if one wants to be successful in what they do. He has a practical explanation of how hard work can make a lot of difference.
Elon Musk Speaks
“You have to work hard every waking hour. If you do simple math’s on this. If someone else is working 50 hours a week and you are doing 100 hours a week. You will be able to get twice as much done in a single year than the other person.”
READ: Blue Origin Vs Space X: Bezos and Musk’s subtle battle for supremacy
Be obsessed with what you do
Elon Musk works 100 hours a week. You really can’t work that long on something you don’t like or are not obsessed about. He stressed the importance of this while noting that life is too short to be stuck doing what you don’t love doing.
Elon Musk Speaks
“Even if you are the best of the best in what you do. There is always a chance of failure. So I think it is important that you really like what you do. If you like what you do, you will think about it even when you are not working. It is something that your mind is drawn to. If you don’t like it then you really just can’t make it work.”
READ: How to stay employable amidst massive unemployment
Take risk early in life
Elon Musk’s advice to young graduates and entrepreneurs is to do something bold and daring early in life before the obligations of being an adult or a parent sets in. While addressing fresh graduates in a graduation ceremony he had this to say.
“Now is the time to take the risk, you don’t have kids. As you get older your obligations increase. Once you have a family you start taking risks not just for yourself but for your family as well and it’s much harder.”
What you should know
Elon Musk founded and sold 3 companies for a record $2bn before Tesla and Space X. He now works 85 hours a week claiming that he is trying to slow down as he gets older.