False economy What’s in it for me? Understand what makes the

Saving the human race is what drives Elon 
Musk.
Achieving success in the sustainable-technology 
industry isn’t easy. Many try and most fail. And 
yet Elon Musk, founder of Tesla Motors and 
SolarCity, has managed to succeed not once, 
but twice. How did he manage it?
It comes down to the way he sees the world. 
Musk is not your average money-obsessed, 
Silicon-Valley 
entrepreneur. 
Uniquely, 
he 
possesses a kind of universal empathy. 

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Harboring a deep care for the whole of 
humanity, Musk is driven by a single goal: to 
save us, the human race, by relocating humanity 
to Mars. In Musk’s view, the Earth, vulnerable to 
asteroids and with dwindling resources, is no 
longer a tenable home.
This concern never leaves his mind, and has 
instilled in him an unshakeable determination to 
get things done. Of course, this doesn’t always 
manifest itself well. Musk is notorious for setting 
unrealistic goals, assigning incredible workloads 
and verbally abusing his employees.
Musk even berated an employee who, instead of 
attending a company event, chose to be present 
for the birth of his child. Musk demanded that he 
consider where his true priorities lay. The way 
Musk sees it, you can either commit 100 percent 
to changing the history of the world, or not at all.
Love him or hate him, Musk is nevertheless 
respected by employees for his sense of 
mission. They know it brings success. And he’s 
no hypocrite, either. Musk’s sense of purpose is 
plainly evident in his grueling weekly schedule. 
Monday begins at SpaceX, in Los Angeles, 
where he works until Tuesday night. He then jets 
to Silicon Valley, where he spends Wednesdays 
and Thursdays at Tesla. Then it’s a flight back to 
L.A. There’s no way someone could commit to 
such a lifestyle without believing in what they 
were doing.