Everyone likes to talk about Elon, mostly they miss the point
or why is ok to respect Elon Musk as a leader and never ever want to work for him
Ok I am gonna start with this, I think Elon musk is a dick and someone that is absolutely brilliant at what he does, and also affected by some god complex. I would never work for Musk and I am sure he would never want me too.
With that said, I think that the recent “leaked”1 Elon Musk’s email has the usual dick-isk tone but is nothing strange.
For the 5 of your that haven’t seen it, here you go:
'I never thought leopards would eat MY face,' sobs woman who voted for the Leopards Eating People's Faces Party.
There is nothing wrong with this decision. Elon Musk thinks that working remotely for a company in which most of the staff works in the factory is not acceptable.
More than that, Elon Musk thinks that remote working is stupid and is just a way to coast or pretend to work.
Somehow this is what was needed for MSNBC to say that he is a terrible leader.
Remember that Musk is still the same guy that literally slept in the gigafactory for months, fired people on the spot for the wrong answer, or forced people back to the factory despite a pandemic. I know, by direct account of people that reported to him, that working with him is risking burnout every day and that he churns staff very quickly.
And yet people’s take on this email is “he will lose all software engineers”. I really thought we were smarter as a collective, this email is probably a great example of why people “still” work for him and why I prefer directness (even if sometimes I am abrasive) over the murky directives of big co.
Your people want to know where you stand
Never forget this! Nothing is more exhausting and burn-out inducing than having to second guess your boss every minute. If you have a strong opinion on something, your people should know. Don’t be a dick like Elon, but let them know.
Paint red lines as early as possible
Have you ever angered your partner because they asked you “what you want to do for dinner?” and you gave the wrong answer? I did, and there is nothing more frustrating than being asked an open question that has only one right answer.
If something is not up for debate, you should tell your people immediately, let them know the red lines inside which they can move. They’ll thank you for that.
Own it
If you make a decision that is not popular don’t walk back in fear, listen carefully and take accountability for it. Answer questions and tweak your decision, you can walk back as you discover new information, but “people are angry” is not a reason for it.
Would I work for Tesla? No I probably wouldn’t, because I am not a fit for that culture. And you know what? Is great that I know!
Some people will walk out on this remote work policy, some people will want to be hired by such an innovative and fast pacing company.
But the winner is still Elon Musk
as in, most likely he leaked the email himself