Speaker A
He's a billionaire entrepreneur who's the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla.
Discover Elon Musk's top 10 rules for success, including having a strong why, embracing failure, and taking risks to achieve extraordinary goals.
Ask about this video. Answers come from its transcript only — with the timestamp, so you can check them.
Generated from the transcript and can be wrong — check the timestamp.
Key Takeaways
- A strong purpose fuels perseverance and success.
- Failure is a natural part of innovation and should not be feared.
- First principles thinking enables breakthrough solutions.
- Sacrifices and hard work are often required to achieve big goals.
- Risk-taking and resilience can turn near failures into historic successes.
What the video covers
- Elon Musk emphasizes having a strong why, focusing on meaningful goals like making humanity a multiplanetary species.
- He advises not to fear failure, sharing how early setbacks with Tesla and SpaceX were expected but worth the risk.
- Using physics principles and reasoning from first principles helps Musk solve complex problems innovatively.
- Making sacrifices, including intense work hours, is sometimes necessary to overcome critical challenges.
- Taking calculated risks is essential, exemplified by SpaceX’s early rocket failures before eventual success.
- Asking the right questions and seeking meaningful impact drives Musk’s motivation and vision.
- Disrupting industries by innovating and challenging norms is a key part of Musk’s approach.
- Musk’s journey includes learning to code at 12 and building companies that push technological boundaries.
- He prioritizes long-term vision over money, focusing on sustainable space exploration and colonization.
- Persistence and resilience through near-death business moments highlight the importance of determination.
Full Transcript — Download SRT & Markdown
Speaker A
He learned how to code all by himself when he was only 12.
Speaker A
One of his main goals is to reduce the risk of human extinction by establishing a human colony on Mars.
Speaker B
Need motivation? What's your top 10 of belief nation?
Speaker C
Hey, it's Evan Carmichael and this channel was created to help you overcome the number one challenge that is holding you back.
Speaker C
A lack of belief in yourself, you watch these videos because you know there's something more inside you.
Speaker C
You've got Michael Jordan level talent at something.
Speaker C
So get ready to have a strong why, don't fear failures and make sacrifices with Elon Musk and my take on his top 10 rules of success volume 5.
Speaker C
Enjoy.
Speaker C
Okay, let's kick it off with rule number one, have a strong why.
Speaker D
The president's first space policy directive to me was, go to the moon.
Speaker D
And the word in there is sustainable.
Speaker E
Reusability is fundamental.
Speaker E
The if you a fully reusable vehicle
Speaker E
will cost a 100 times less per flight than an expendable vehicle.
Speaker E
I actually don't care at all about money.
Speaker E
At all, but I do care about us becoming a space-faring civilization.
Speaker E
And I do know that if we don't achieve full and rapid reusability, it will not happen.
Speaker E
And so that's why that's the only reason I actually want money at all.
Speaker E
What I really want to see is
Speaker E
a permanent base on the moon, permanently occupied human base on the moon and a sprawling city on Mars.
Speaker E
So that's like I can see the beginning of that before I die, I'll die happy.
Speaker C
Rule number two, don't fear failure.
Speaker E
We got to try to create an electric car company.
Speaker E
But it wasn't as though in creating these companies that we thought that we would be successful.
Speaker E
I thought that the most likely outcome was failure.
Speaker E
But but it was still worth doing even though the odds of success were low.
Speaker E
In fact, even for for for SpaceX, the originally what I started doing was not creating a rocket company.
Speaker E
But but actually was going to do a small mission to Mars, which was just a philanthropic mission.
Speaker E
Where you would send a small greenhouse with seeds and dehydrated gel.
Speaker E
It would upon landing hydrate the gel.
Speaker E
And you'd have this cool picture of green plants on a red background.
Speaker E
And the public tends to respond to precedents and superlatives.
Speaker E
So this would be the first life on Mars, furthest that life's ever traveled.
Speaker E
And you'd have this great money shot of green plants on a red background.
Speaker E
So I thought that would that would get people's attention.
Speaker E
So
Speaker E
but but the expectation for that was was no return.
Speaker E
So I thought we wouldn't get any you know, we just spend the money on that.
Speaker E
And it wouldn't wouldn't happen.
Speaker C
Rule number three, use physics principles in your thinking.
Speaker E
The way I tend to view problems is is from a from a physics standpoint.
Speaker E
I think I think physics is a good analytical framework.
Speaker E
And one of the key things in in physics is to reason from first principles.
Speaker E
This is contrary to the way most human reasoning takes place, which is by analogy.
Speaker E
Reasoning from first principles just means that you you figure out what what are the fundamental
Speaker E
what are the fundamental truths or or things that are pretty people are pretty sure of fundamental truths.
Speaker E
And and can you build up to a conclusion from from that?
Speaker E
Uh you know, from from those principles.
Speaker E
And and and certainly if you come up with some idea and it appears to violate one of those
Speaker E
fundamental truths, then you're probably wrong.
Speaker E
Or you should get a really big prize or something like that.
Speaker E
Um
Speaker E
So, uh this may seem like I don't know.
Speaker E
It may may seem sort of obvious when it's explained.
Speaker E
But it's actually not what people do.
Speaker E
Um you reasoning by analogy is helpful because it's a shortcut.
Speaker E
Yeah.
Speaker E
Um and and it's and it's mostly correct, but but it tends to be most incorrect.
Speaker E
When you're dealing with new things.
Speaker E
Because it's hard to analogize to something really new.
Speaker C
Rule number four, make sacrifices.
Speaker E
Well, I mean, Tesla really faced a severe threat of death.
Speaker E
Due to the Model 3 production ramp.
Speaker E
Essentially, the company was bleeding money like crazy and and just
Speaker E
if if we didn't solve these problems in a very short period of time, we would die.
Speaker E
And it was extremely difficult to solve them.
Speaker F
How close to death did you come?
Speaker E
We were within
Speaker E
single digit weeks.
Speaker F
22 hours a day?
Speaker F
Like what?
Speaker E
Yeah.
Speaker E
Yeah.
Speaker E
7 days a week.
Speaker E
Sleeping at the factory.
Speaker E
I worked in the paint shop, general assembly, the body shop.
Speaker F
You ever worry about yourself imploding?
Speaker F
Like it's just too much.
Speaker E
Absolutely.
Speaker E
No one should put this many hours into work.
Speaker E
This is not good.
Speaker E
People should not work this hard.
Speaker E
I'm not they should not do this.
Speaker E
This is very painful.
Speaker F
Painful in what sense?
Speaker E
It's my it's my brain and my heart.
Speaker C
Also, if you want to have more confidence, check out my 254 series.
Speaker C
It's free, the link to join is in the description below.
Speaker E
There are just times when something is important enough.
Speaker E
You believe in it enough that you do it in spite of fear.
Speaker C
Rule number five, take risks.
Speaker D
You started with a much smaller rocket.
Speaker D
Falcon 1.
Speaker D
And was your goal at that point when you started with Falcon 1 to get to the point where we had nine engines for Falcon 9?
Speaker D
Was that your goal at that time?
Speaker E
When I started SpaceX,
Speaker E
I I only thought there was maybe a 10% chance of getting Falcon 1 to orbit.
Speaker E
I did not at all expect that this would happen.
Speaker E
So this is for sure a dream come true.
Speaker E
Um
Speaker E
Uh but I I literally at the time I didn't know anything about rockets.
Speaker E
And I was I've been the chief engineer of SpaceX since day one.
Speaker E
And I didn't really know anything about rockets, which is why the first three rockets failed.
Speaker D
So so the first three Falcon 1s for SpaceX were failures.
Speaker E
Yes.
Speaker D
And then what tell me about the fourth one?
Speaker E
The fourth one.
Speaker E
So I I'd actually only had enough money for three flights.
Speaker E
Um so I had no more money left, but we managed to the team sort of rallied.
Speaker E
And we managed to put together enough spare parts to create a to do a fourth launch.
Speaker E
And that fourth launch was successful.
Speaker E
Um and
Speaker D
So what what would have happened if it wasn't successful?
Speaker E
Oh, we would SpaceX would have died.
Speaker D
So we would not be here right now at this moment getting ready to launch Crew Dragon to the International Space Station.
Speaker E
Yes.
Speaker C
Rule number six, ask the right questions.
Speaker G
When you were in college and developing these skills, you wanted to do some things that were of benefit to humanity.
Speaker G
Why did you think that?
Speaker G
Because not everyone does.
Speaker E
Yeah.
Speaker E
No.
Speaker E
Uh I I guess it was um I I sort of had a existential crisis.
Speaker E
Of like what does it all mean and what's the meaning, you know, what's the meaning of life and
Speaker G
Was this 3:00 a.m. over a beer or this was more seriously?
Speaker E
Well.
Speaker E
Probably goes back to to high school, I guess.
Speaker E
Uh I don't want to give a long answer.
Speaker E
But I was uh
Speaker E
I I had sort of a dark childhood.
Speaker E
It wasn't good.
Speaker E
Um probably partially brought on by by by reading some of the philosophers.
Speaker E
Like don't don't ever read Schopenhauer or Nietzsche if you're 14.
Speaker E
It's
Speaker G
Yeah.
Speaker E
It's not good.
Speaker G
Or Ayn Rand either.
Speaker E
Yeah.
Speaker E
Um
Speaker E
Yeah, so
Speaker E
Um I was just trying to find figure out what you know.
Speaker E
What does it all mean?
Speaker E
And um
Speaker E
actually.
Speaker E
Uh when I read the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which I think is a great work of philosophy.
Speaker E
Um
Speaker E
that that sort of highlighted the point that uh very often the issue is understanding what questions to ask.
Speaker E
And if you can properly frame the question, then the answer is the easy part.
Speaker E
Um
Speaker E
So I thought things that expand the scope and scale of the human consciousness.
Speaker E
Um and allow us to better ask questions and you know.
Speaker E
And and and achieve greater enlightenment.
Speaker E
Those are good things.
Speaker E
And so that's sort of what what what can we do that's going to
Speaker E
most likely lead to that outcome.
Speaker C
Rule number seven, disrupt the industry.
Speaker E
Back in '95, there weren't very many people on the internet.
Speaker E
And certainly nobody was making any money at all.
Speaker E
Uh most people thought the internet was going to be a fad.
Speaker H
A year ago, Musk sold his software company Zip2, which enabled newspapers to publish online.
Speaker H
For $400 million cash.
Speaker E
Receiving cash is cash.
Speaker E
I mean, those are
Speaker E
just a large number of Ben Franklins.
Speaker E
So this is an ATM.
Speaker E
What we're going to do is transform the traditional banking industry.
Speaker E
I do not fit the picture of a banker.
Speaker I
X.com.
Speaker I
This is Julie.
Speaker E
Raising $50 million is a matter of making a series of phone calls.
Speaker E
And the money is there.
Speaker E
I've sunk the great majority of of my net worth into X.com.
Speaker E
Which is the new banking and mutual funds company on the internet that I've started.
Speaker E
Big big X.
Speaker E
Exactly.
Speaker E
X.com.
Speaker E
I think X.com could absolutely be a multi-billion dollar bonanza.
Speaker E
Because if you look at the industry that X is pursuing, it's the biggest sector of the world economy.
Speaker E
What you've got going on with the internet is it's basically like an earthquake where the epicenter is Silicon Valley.
Speaker E
And it's it's shaking up the whole world.
Speaker C
Rule number eight, have people you admire.
Speaker J
You've been compared to Henry Ford, Richard Branson,
Speaker J
uh you know, Steve Jobs.
Speaker J
Uh who do you compare yourself to?
Speaker E
Um I I don't really compare myself to anyone.
Speaker E
Um I mean, it's not.
Speaker E
I mean, there's some people that I admire from history that I think are.
Speaker E
You know, I think are great.
Speaker E
Um sort of certainly many of the scientists.
Speaker E
And engineers and literary figures and so forth.
Speaker E
Um and
Speaker E
uh like I'm a big big fan of Ben Franklin.
Speaker E
You know.
Speaker E
He was a scientist and sort of thinker and.
Speaker E
Yeah, I mean, he was kind of guy who who did.
Speaker E
Did did what needed to be done.
Speaker E
You know.
Speaker E
So guys like that.
Speaker J
Right.
Speaker E
Wouldn't say I compare myself in any way, but I I certainly admire them.
Speaker C
Rule number nine, push the frontier.
Speaker E
I think part of the problem the reason people aren't as excited about space.
Speaker E
Is that we haven't been pushing the frontier as much.
Speaker E
Um and so you can only you can only watch the same movie so many times.
Speaker E
And it before it gets a little boring.
Speaker E
Um and you know, in in the 60s and early 70s, we were really pushing the frontier of of human space flight.
Speaker E
Um and and obviously those landing on the moon is regarded as one of the greatest achievements.
Speaker E
Of humanity of of arguably of life itself.
Speaker E
Um and and even though only a handful of people went to the moon.
Speaker E
Vicariously, we all went there.
Speaker E
Well, at least I wasn't alive at the time.
Speaker E
So.
Speaker E
But retrospectively.
Speaker E
Um.
Speaker E
And you know, and and it was it was just one of those really inspiring things that I think made made everyone glad to be.
Speaker E
You know, human.
Speaker E
You know.
Speaker E
It's like the things that we we don't there there are bad things humanity is.
Speaker E
And there there are good things.
Speaker E
And this is one of the good things.
Speaker E
Um and and I I do think it's important that that we have these inspiring things.
Speaker E
That uh you know, make you glad to get up in the morning.
Speaker E
And um and that that uh
Speaker E
and and glad to be a member of the human race.
Speaker E
Um and and we need to we need to push that that that frontier.
Speaker E
Um.
Speaker E
So, um and and I think the the great goal we should be trying to pursue.
Speaker E
Is trying to make life human make make life multi-planetary.
Speaker E
So to to establish a self-sustaining and growing civilization on another planet.
Speaker E
Uh Mars being the only realistic possibility.
Speaker E
Um.
Speaker E
And uh and I think that would just be one of the greatest things.
Speaker E
Humanity could ever try to do.
Speaker C
And rule number 10, the last one before a very special bonus clip.
Speaker C
Is make things happen.
Speaker K
From the first explorers who ventured off our planet.
Speaker K
To those who have risked their lives in pursuit of furthering our understanding of the universe.
Speaker K
The astronauts and engineers behind the US space program have spent decades advancing space technology.
Speaker K
But building rockets was expensive.
Speaker K
By the early 2000s, the US space program was struggling.
Speaker K
And a mission to Mars was hard to imagine.
Speaker K
Space Shuttle spreads its wings one final time for the start of a sentimental journey into history.
Speaker K
It was then that a young entrepreneur
Speaker K
had a revolutionary idea.
Speaker E
With SpaceX, what we're trying to do is
Speaker E
achieve a huge advancement in rocket technology.
Speaker E
If you look at rocket technology.
Speaker E
It actually got worse over time.
Speaker E
In 1969, we were able to go to the moon.
Speaker E
And then with the space shuttle, we're only able to go to low Earth orbit.
Speaker E
And then with the space shuttle went away and then we're unable to go to orbit.
Speaker E
From the United States.
Speaker E
See, like that's a negative trend line.
Speaker E
It's not like you can extrapolate that trend line into the future and it gets good.
Speaker E
It's a trend line to zero.
Speaker E
So if it's not going to come from the government,
Speaker E
then it's got to come from a private company.
Speaker C
Now, I have a special bonus clip from Elon on how to hire the right people that I think you're going to enjoy.
Speaker C
But before that, it's time for the three-point landing questions.
Speaker C
Let's go from just watching the video to taking action.
Speaker C
Here we go.
Speaker C
Question number one, what item on your to-do list do you just need to make happen?
Speaker C
Number two, what is the failure that you need to stop fearing?
Speaker C
And number three, what is your strong why?
Speaker C
And if you promise to take action after watching this video, we don't just watch videos anymore.
Speaker C
We do something after watching them.
Speaker C
Give me a hashtag believe down in the comments, make that promise to yourself.
Speaker C
And then get to work.
Speaker E
I've made several hiring decisions in the past.
Speaker E
Which where I valued intellect over heart.
Speaker E
And I I think that was a mistake.
Speaker E
Um and so I've tried to try to adjust accordingly.
Speaker E
Um you know, it it actually matters whether somebody is a good person.
Speaker E
Beyond just, you know, goodness itself.
Speaker C
If you want 10 more success rules from Elon Musk, check out the video right there next to me.
Speaker C
I think you'll enjoy it.
Speaker C
Continue to believe.
Speaker C
And I'll see you there.
Speaker E
The one thing I couldn't compress was the cost of launch.
Speaker E
Because there are only a few options.
Speaker E
And the US options were way too expensive.
Speaker E
Um and so I ended up going to Russia three times.
Speaker E
To try to buy.
Topics:Elon Musksuccess rulesentrepreneurshipSpaceXTeslafailurerisk-takingfirst principlesmotivationinnovation
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