Have you read the
new Elon Musk biography?
I’m making inroads.
But, in some ways, I feel like I’ve already finished it.
The papers here in the UK have been chock-full of excerpts and wherever I look on the interwebs, I see headlines like “7 major takeaways from the book” or “4 lessons we learnt from Elon”.
The fanboys and fangirls are out in full force, fawning over Elon’s work ethic, courage, genius and vision.
These are all noble virtues, especially if you want to build the next $1bn+ unicorn.
After all, Musk’s got more dough than a New York bagel shop.
But
it’s not all gravy for Elon.
Not by a long stretch.
The book's also full of stories which put a very different slant on things.
Like the time Elon crashed on his factory floor for months, sleeping just 4 or 5 hours a night…
Or when his family flew in for Thanksgiving, and Elon spent the day on back to back conference calls…
Or accounts of
his constant stomach pains, heartburn and vomiting.
It sounds like Elon's living a thoroughly miserable life.
And I’m not the only one who thinks that. Elon himself agrees.
The book is littered with quotes like this:
From 2007 onwards, until maybe last year, it’s been nonstop pain. There’s a gun to your head, make Tesla work, pull a rabbit out of your hat, then pull another rabbit out of the hat. A stream of rabbits flying through the
air. If the next rabbit doesn't come out, you’re dead. You can’t be in a constant fight for survival, always in adrenaline mode, and not have it hurt you.
The book has got me mulling over topics like work, money & happiness, and how these all fit together.
And reading about Elon's life has got me asking this:
Is it all worth it? Is the juice worth the squeeze?
To my mind, it all boils down to the question "how do I want to spend my
life?"
Questions don't get much meatier than this.
But then again, I’d hate to look back as I’m about to go the way of the dinosaurs, realise that I approached life as a constant battle when I didn't need to, and know that I got it
wrong.
So to my mind, it’s a question worth spending a bit of time on.
If you feel the same and you want to explore this question more, 1 on 1 coaching can be a great way to delve deeper.
More info here:
https://waitinglist.followingfulfilment.com
That’s all for today.
Have a good weekend.
- Tom