Elon Musk - Be Less Wrong

Leaders of construction companies will likely never be at the same level of cutting-edge development as Elon Musk is between Space-X and Tesla.

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Except; of course for the first contractor on Mars!  

Quote: You should take the approach that you're wrong. Your goal is to be less wrong. Elon Musk.

Remember that Elon Musk came from a technical background where he was use to creating the future - things that did not exist yet.  His first couple companies were all software with light requirements on capital, relatively small workforce, a single engineering discipline, little government regulation and fewer stakeholders.  

As he is building Space-X and Tesla the complexity has been increased exponentially and he is having to learn to lead through that complexity.  He has had to get use to that constant feeling of uncertainty and refine his skills leading a team even in the face of opposition, failures and many unknowns. 

What construction leaders have in common with Elon Musk is that relative to the last few decades the industry is demanding changes at an exponential rate between technology, project delivery methods, talent shortages and industry consolidation.  

It’s worth learning how Elon Musk views the world and creates a vision for the future; especially how he deals with failure from an analysis and adjustment perspective.   

Elon Musk Biography

Continuous Improvement

Fail 9 Times to Succeed




Growth or Attracting Talent
It’s not enough to just build work effectively - that is just what’s required to play in the game. Contractors seeking sustainable growth must have aggressive and balanced strategies for acquiring work and building talent.
Increased Value by Lowering Variability
A construction business is capable of providing a very high return to the owners who have their capital at risk as well as the team members that work there. Contractors with lower variability in profitability are both more valuable and more sustainable.
Building vs Demonstrating Capability
Building a sustainably growing construction business is a huge challenge for everyone on the team. Building an effective project team across dozens of different companies with sometimes competing interest is incredibly difficult.