This week marks a big week for Tesla Inc. The electric car-maker has surpassed General Motors as the largest car company in the United States. Who is at the helm of all of this? Eccentric, South-African born, Canadian-American business mogul, Elon Musk. He is regarded as one of the world’s greatest tech leaders, and the way he runs his companies should be a lesson in leadership for others. Take a page or two from Musk’s book of eccentricities.
It is not surprising that Elon Musk brings a sleeping bag to work, and constantly moves his desk around the factory to oversee important processes. Musk is an involved leader, and has shown great care in tending to all of the production problems that Tesla has faced in recent years. His commitment to success is what is important here. Musk knows that without hard-work, and an extreme dedication to a cause, there cannot be success.
“SpaceX, an aerospace startup, was founded to lower the cost of space transportation and ultimately enable the colonization of Mars.” – Kirsten Korosec
Musk is a visionary, and always looking for the next move. His most recent start-up, Neuralink, which he is funding mainly with his own money, is looking to create a brain-computer interface – essentially connecting the human brain with computers. This kind of thinking makes Musk a visionary leader. SolarCity, which was acquired by Tesla, is also a company that has a progressive business model focusing on creating better renewable energy. Even SpaceX, the company looking to make space travel accessible to the common man, is disruptive in nature. Musk is continually pushing the ball in solving the world’s many problems.
Musk knows that he cannot please everyone, and instead, his leadership is firm in the face of non-believers. Investors in Tesla are afraid of the direction that the company culture is going since the board has remained largely unchanged since the company’s IPO. Musk, confident in his leadership abilities, demonstrated his commitment to the corporate culture he has fostered.
Musk’s leadership has even resulted in him receiving a seat on President Trump’s Strategy and Policy Forum. His visionary thinking toward solving the world’s problems leaves him as one of the greatest leaders of our time. Leaders should take note of Musk’s decisiveness, commitment to his vision, his work ethic, and confidence, to further their own leadership abilities.
