Musk and Mars

Former SpaceX Employee Explains What It's Like To Work For Elon Musk.
Richard Feloni
Jun. 24, 2014, 10:46 AM
http://www.businessinsider.com/what-...#ixzz362Z0sV00

What is it like to work with Elon Musk?
https://www.quora.com/Elon-Musk/What...rid=Ji&share=1


Bob Clark

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"David Spain" wrote in message
...

On 6/19/2014 5:30 PM, Greg (Strider) Moore wrote:
http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/1...-ahead-of-nasa


I'll be clear. I don't think Musk will get there by 2026 (at least get
there and get folks back, he may be thinking one way).

But then again, I don't think NASA will get there before 2035 either.

I do think Musk, or someone taking his sort of approaches will get
there, eventually.


There's a singular sense of purpose here. I truly believe Musk's model
is to use SpaceX's commercial business as a means to get to Mars via the
twins of innovation and revenue. There is no reason why his spiral
development model, as Jeff refers to it, has to stop with comsats,
defense payloads or trips to the ISS for NASA. Elon knows this. As long
as the regulators stay out of his way, he IS developing a pathway that
can realistically get people to Mars.

IMO Musk has personality traits shared with other major innovators of
times past. I am withholding names because I want this observation to
remain on the trait and not get sidetracked into other irrelevant
observations. One characteristic of such a trait is the single minded
pursuit of business that conforms to the innovators world view, other
approaches be damned. An example (good or bad, I'm not saying which,
just observing here) is Telsa's inability to reach an agreement with the
automobile dealers in New Jersey. To the point that Telsas can no longer
be sold in that state. I have to believe the ultimate decision for how
that came to be rests with Musk himself. Others would have likely
compromised and struck a deal long ago. No, in this case the
entrepreneur has a world view of how he or she desires the business to
work and will stick with the view even if it means profits be damned.
Sometimes this approach succeeds and does so in exemplary fashion.
However, other times it does not. But it *is* a trait. One that may be
necessary to get to Mars.

Dave
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In article ,
says...

Former SpaceX Employee Explains What It's Like To Work For Elon Musk.
Richard Feloni
Jun. 24, 2014, 10:46 AM
http://www.businessinsider.com/what-...#ixzz362Z0sV00

What is it like to work with Elon Musk?
https://www.quora.com/Elon-Musk/What...rid=Ji&share=1


Good stuff. The main take-away is that they're a start-up and as with
any start-up it's an uphill battle to succeed. You've got to make the
best products out there so that any potential customers will pick you
over any other competition.

As far as the work environment descriptions go, they're consistent with
other start-ups I've heard about. Long hours, sometimes even low pay,
with a chance of a big payoff some years down the road. If the start-up
succeeds, then everyone gets "rich". If it fails, you find another job.
It's a cut-throat work environment that's not for everyone.

And this is one reason why it can be very hard for an existing company
to counter an up and coming start-up. One way to easily counter them is
to buy them. But when the company is privately owned, and the owner
doesn't want to sell, fighting them means resorting to other measures.

Jeff
--
"the perennial claim that hypersonic airbreathing propulsion would
magically make space launch cheaper is nonsense -- LOX is much cheaper
than advanced airbreathing engines, and so are the tanks to put it in
and the extra thrust to carry it." - Henry Spencer