AGAINST ALL ODDS - Elon Musk (Motivational Video)

Summary

In this inspiring transcript, an innovator reflects on the challenges of pioneering commercial space flight, despite opposition from American heroes like Neil Armstrong. The speaker shares personal anecdotes of risk-taking and perseverance, emphasizing the importance of pursuing bold endeavors. He discusses the pivotal decision to split resources between two companies, the failures and learnings from SpaceX's early launches, and the motivation behind starting Tesla. The narrative is a testament to the power of ambition, resilience, and the belief in a multi-planetary future for humanity.

Takeaways

• 🚀 Elon Musk expresses sadness over the criticism from his heroes, Neil Armstrong and Gene Cernan, regarding commercial space flight.
• 🤔 He wishes his heroes would visit SpaceX and see the progress, hoping it might change their perspective on commercial space endeavors.
• 🛠 Musk faced a tough decision in 2008, having to choose between investing his remaining funds into one company or splitting them between two, risking the survival of both.
• 💰 He chose to split the funds, and fortunately, both companies survived, illustrating the high-stakes decisions entrepreneurs must make.
• 🔥 The first three SpaceX launches failed, with the fourth being the make-or-break point for the company's survival.
• 🔧 Musk took on the role of chief engineer for the rocket at SpaceX due to difficulties in finding a suitable candidate, which may have contributed to initial failures.
• 🚀 Despite multiple failures, Musk never considered giving up, emphasizing the importance of perseverance in the face of adversity.
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Musk advises taking risks early in life, before family obligations make it harder to pursue uncertain ventures.
• 🛣 He believes in the importance of making a significant difference in space flight and making it accessible to more people.
• 🌱 Musk thought Tesla might fail but aimed to change the perception that electric cars had to be unattractive and slow.
• 🌟 He emphasizes the importance of pursuing ventures that are important and inspiring, even if they seem unlikely to succeed.
• 💡 Musk shares his early struggles, including working around the clock and living in an office, to highlight the dedication required for entrepreneurial success.

Q & A

What is the speaker's opinion on the views of American heroes like Neil Armstrong and Gene Cernan regarding commercial space flight?

The speaker expresses sadness that these heroes have testified against commercial space flight, as they are his heroes. He wishes they would visit and see the hardware to potentially change their minds.

What was the difficult choice the speaker faced in 2008, and how much money was involved?

In 2008, the speaker had to decide between investing the remaining $30-40 million into one company, risking the other's failure, or splitting it between two companies, risking both might fail.

How did the speaker's companies fare after he decided to split the money between them?

Fortunately, both companies survived after the money was split between them.

What was the speaker's biggest failure in the context of SpaceX, and how did it affect the company?

The biggest failure was the first three launches of SpaceX, which all failed. The company barely managed to scrape together enough resources for the fourth launch, which was critical for their survival.

Why did the speaker end up being the chief engineer of the rocket for SpaceX?

The speaker could not find a suitable chief engineer for the rocket. Good candidates wouldn't join, and hiring bad ones was pointless, so he took on the role himself.

What was the speaker's attitude towards failure, especially after the third failure in a row?

The speaker never considered giving up, despite the third failure in a row. He believes in not giving up even when faced with multiple failures.

Why did the speaker's friend show him videos of rockets blowing up?

The speaker's friend wanted to discourage him from starting a rocket company by showing the risks involved, as the friend was concerned about the speaker potentially losing all his money.

What does the speaker believe is the right time to take risks, and why?

The speaker believes that the right time to take risks is when one is young and without many obligations, as taking risks becomes harder once one has a family.

What was the speaker's initial expectation for Tesla, and what misconception did he want to address?

The speaker did not expect Tesla to be successful initially. He wanted to address the misconception that electric cars had to be ugly, slow, and boring.

How does the speaker approach decision-making when everyone tells him it's a crazy idea?

The speaker acknowledges his fear but believes in pursuing something if it's important enough, despite the fear and the opinions of others.

What is the speaker's advice for those starting a company, especially regarding their passion for the work?

The speaker advises that if you're starting a company, it's important to really like what you're doing because if you don't, life is too short and you won't be able to make it work.

Outlines

00:00

🚀 Pursuing Space Dreams Despite Skepticism

The speaker expresses sadness over the disapproval of commercial space flight by American heroes like Neil Armstrong and Gene Cernan. Despite being inspired by them, the speaker hopes they would visit and see the progress, believing it might change their minds. The speaker reminisces about a difficult financial decision in 2008, where they had to choose between investing in one company or splitting the funds, risking the survival of both. They recount the failures of SpaceX's initial launches and the struggle to find competent engineers, leading them to take on the role themselves. The speaker emphasizes the importance of perseverance, even when faced with the advice of many to abandon the endeavor.

05:04

🌟 The Importance of Taking Risks and Following Passions

The speaker encourages taking risks, especially when young and without family obligations, as it becomes harder to do so later in life. They recount their own journey, starting with Tesla, where they aimed to challenge the stereotype of electric cars being slow and unattractive. Despite not expecting success, they believed in the importance of the mission. The speaker reflects on the necessity of having a vision that excites and motivates, contrasting a future confined to Earth with one of interplanetary exploration. They share their early entrepreneurial experience, working tirelessly and living in an office, highlighting the importance of passion for one's work as a driving force for success.

Keywords

💡Commercial Space Flight

Commercial space flight refers to the use of spacecraft for profit-making purposes, such as space tourism or satellite launches. In the script, it is mentioned that some American heroes, including Neil Armstrong and Gene Cernan, have testified against the idea, indicating a debate over the commercialization of space exploration. The speaker, however, is developing commercial space flight with the intention of making space accessible to more people.

💡SpaceX

SpaceX is a private aerospace manufacturer and space transportation company founded by Elon Musk. In the script, SpaceX is used as an example of the speaker's ambition to revolutionize space flight. The company has faced multiple failures, including three failed launches, which nearly led to the company's collapse before the fourth launch was successful.

💡Risk Taking

Risk taking is the act of making decisions despite the possibility of negative outcomes. The speaker encourages taking risks, especially when young and without family obligations, as it is a time when one can afford to make bold moves. The script mentions that the speaker's friend tried to dissuade him from starting a rocket company by showing him videos of rocket explosions, but the speaker persisted despite the risks.

💡Chief Engineer

A chief engineer is the highest-ranking engineer in a project, responsible for overseeing the technical aspects of the project. In the script, the speaker mentions that he became the chief engineer of the rocket at SpaceX because he could not find a suitable candidate for the role. This reflects the challenges faced in finding the right expertise for a pioneering venture.

💡Electric Car

An electric car is a vehicle that is powered by electricity, often seen as a more environmentally friendly alternative to traditional combustion engine cars. The speaker discusses the perception that electric cars are slow and unattractive, and how Tesla aimed to change this stereotype by showing that electric cars can be both fast and stylish.

💡Failure

Failure is the inability to achieve a desired outcome or the termination of an attempt due to a lack of success. The script discusses the speaker's experience with failure, particularly the first three failed launches of SpaceX. These failures are used to illustrate the persistence and resilience needed to overcome setbacks and continue pursuing a goal.

💡Multiplanetary Species

A multiplanetary species is a species that has the capability to inhabit more than one planet. The speaker argues that becoming a multiplanetary species is crucial for the long-term survival of humanity, suggesting that spreading out among the stars could ensure the continuation of the human race in the event of a catastrophic event on Earth.

💡Adventure

Adventure is an exciting or unusual experience, often involving personal risk or the pursuit of discovery. The script uses the concept of adventure to describe the speaker's motivation for pursuing space exploration, as it creates a sense of excitement and inspiration about the future, contrasting a future confined to Earth with one where humanity is among the stars.

💡Obligations

Obligations are duties or responsibilities that one is expected to fulfill. In the context of the script, the speaker talks about how having a family can limit one's willingness to take risks, as decisions are not only for oneself but also for the family's well-being, making it harder to pursue uncertain ventures.

💡Inspiration

Inspiration is the process of being mentally stimulated to do or feel something, especially to do something creative. The speaker emphasizes the importance of having inspiring goals that make life worth living, using the idea of a multiplanetary future as an example of what can motivate people to get up in the morning and strive for a better future.

💡Hard Work

Hard work is the act of working with great effort and dedication. The script recounts the speaker's early days of starting a company, where he and his brother slept in an office and worked tirelessly, coding day and night, to illustrate the level of commitment and effort required to build a successful venture.

Highlights

American heroes like Neil Armstrong and Gene Cernan have testified against commercial space flight, which the speaker finds disappointing as they are his heroes.

The speaker wishes Neil Armstrong and Gene Cernan would visit and see the progress made, believing it would change their minds about commercial space flight.

The speaker was inspired by Neil Armstrong and Gene Cernan to pursue space flight, but is saddened by their opposition.

In 2008, the speaker faced a difficult decision to either invest his remaining $30-40 million into one company, risking the other's failure, or split it and risk both companies failing. He chose to split it and both companies survived.

The speaker believes making space flight accessible to almost anyone is a significant goal worth pursuing.

SpaceX faced multiple failures in its early launches, with the third failure nearly leading to the company's collapse.

The speaker had difficulty finding a qualified chief engineer for SpaceX, ultimately taking on the role himself, which may have contributed to the initial failures.

Despite the failures and opposition, the speaker never considered giving up on SpaceX.

A friend tried to dissuade the speaker from starting a rocket company by showing him videos of rocket explosions, but the speaker remained undeterred.

The speaker believes taking risks is important, especially when young and without family obligations, as risks become harder to take later in life.

The speaker encourages taking bold risks now, as one won't regret it later in life.

The speaker did not expect Tesla to be successful, but aimed to change the perception that electric cars had to be slow, boring, and unattractive.

Even if the probable outcome is failure, the speaker believes it's important to try if something is meaningful enough.

The speaker finds the idea of becoming a multi-planetary species and exploring beyond Earth crucial for humanity's long-term survival and inspiring for people.

When starting their first company, the speaker and his brother lived in their office, showered at the YMCA, and worked tirelessly day and night, demonstrating their dedication and hard work.

The speaker advises really liking what you do when starting a company, as it makes it easier to work hard and stay dedicated even when facing challenges.

Transcripts

you know there are American Heroes who

don't like this idea Neil Armstrong Jean

cernon have both testified against

commercial space flight in the way that

you're developing it and I wonder what

you think of

that I was very sad to see that uh

because those guys are

yeah you know those guys are heroes of

mine so it's really tough you know I I I

wish they would come and visit and and

see the hardware that would dring C and

and I think that would change their

mind they inspired you to do this didn't

they

yes and to see them casting stones in

your

direction it's

difficult did you expect them to cheer

you

on certainly hoping they would what are

you trying to prove to them what I'm

trying to do is is to make a significant

difference in in space flight and and

and help make space flight accessible to

to almost

anyone one of the most difficult choices

I've ever faced uh in life was was in

2008

um and um I think I had

uh like maybe $30 million left or 30 or

$40 million left in 2008 I had two

choices I could put it all into one

company

and then the other company would

definitely die um or split it between

the two companies and but if I split it

between two companies then both might

die um and you when you put your Blood

Sweat and Tears into creating something

building something it's like a child and

so it's like which one am I going to let

one starve to death I couldn't ring

myself to do it so I put I I split the

money between the two fortunately thank

goodness uh they both came

through what was your biggest failure

and how did it change you well there's a

ton of failures along the way that's for

sure except as as I said for for SpaceX

the first three launches

failed and uh we're just barely able to

scrape together enough parts and and

money to do the the fourth launch that

fourth launch and failed we would have

been dead so multiple failures along the

way um

I I tried very hard to to get the right

expertise in for for SpaceX I tried hard

to to find a great uh chief engineer for

the rocket but it not the good Chief

Engineers wouldn't join and the bad ones

well there was no no point in hiring

them so I ended up being chief engineer

of the rocket um so if I could have

found somebody better then we would have

maybe had less than three

failures that third failure in a row did

you think I need to pack this in never

why not I don't never give

up so many people try to talk me out of

starting a ro company it was it was

crazy one good friend of mine collected

a whole series of videos of rockets

blowing up and made me watch those he

just didn't want me to lose all my money

we're doing these things that uh seem

unlikely to succeed and we've been

fortunate and at least thus far they

have succeeded now is the time to take

risk you don't have kids as you get

older your obligations increase

and once you have a family you start

taking risk not just for yourself but

for your family as well it gets much

harder to uh do things that might not

work out um so now is the time to do

that uh before you before you have those

obligations so would I would encourage

you to take risks now do something bold

um you won't regret it how did you

figure you were going to start a car

company and be successful at it well I I

didn't really think Tesla would be

successful I thought we would most

likely fail but I thought that we at

least could address the false perception

that people had that an electric car had

to be ugly and slow and and boring like

a golf cart but you say you didn't

expect the company to be successful then

why try if something's important enough

you should try even if the probable

outcome is

failure or how do you think about making

a decision when everyone tells you this

is a crazy idea or where do you get the

internal strength to do that well first

of all I'd say I I actually think I I

think I fear feel fear quite strongly

um so it's not as though I just have the

absence of fear I feel it quite strongly

um but there are just times when

something is important enough you've

believe it enough that you do it in

spite of fear I I think about what what

technology solution is necessary in

order to achieve the particular goal and

then try to make as much progress in

that direction as possible I think the

being a multiplan species and being out

there Among the Stars is important for

uh the long-term survival of humanity

and uh that's one reason um but then the

part that I find personally most

motivating is that it creates a sense of

adventure and it makes people excited

about the

future um if you consider two Futures

one where uh we are forever confined to

Earth until eventually something

terrible happens or another future where

we are out there on many planets maybe

even going beyond the solar system um I

think that second version is incredibly

exciting and inspiring and there need to

be reasons to get up in the morning you

know life can't just be about solving

problems otherwise what's the point

there's got to be things that people

find inspiring U and make life worth

living when my brother and I were

starting our first company uh in instead

of getting an apartment we just rented a

a small office and we slept on the couch

um and we we showered at the the YMCA

and uh we're we're so hot up we had one

computer so the this the the website was

up during the day uh and I was coding at

night 7 days a week all the

time um and I I uh s briefly had a go

for in that period and in order to be

with me she have to sleep in the office

so I work hard like it I mean every

waking hour that's that's the the thing

I would I would say if if you

particularly if you're starting a

company what whatever area that you get

into um given that you know even if

you're if you're the best the best

there's always a chance of failure so I

think it's important that you really

like whatever you're doing um if you

don't like it life is too short if you

like what you're doing you think about

it even when you're not working I mean

it'll just it it's it's something that

your mind is drawn to um and and if you

don't like it you just really can't make

it work I

[Music]

think