This is quite good advice for living, and for entrepreneur-ing. It’s an Elon differentiator.
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🔑 Elon Musk’s 5-Step Algorithm for Building (Almost) Anything
In an interview at Starbase, Elon Musk explained the method he uses to run companies and ship products, from EVs to rockets.
Here’s his algorithm in full (from Walter Isaacson’s biography):
1️⃣ Question every requirement – Know who set it. Never accept “the department.” Even smart people make dumb requirements.
2️⃣ Delete what you can – If you don’t add back at least 10%, you didn’t delete enough.
3️⃣ Simplify and optimise – But only after deleting. Don’t optimise what shouldn’t exist.
4️⃣ Accelerate cycle time – Speed matters, but only after fixing steps 1–3.
5️⃣ Automate last – Automation is a trap if applied too early.
Musk admits he made costly mistakes by doing this in reverse, automating flawed processes and optimising parts that didn’t even need to exist (like in the Model 3 production line).
💡 His point: smart engineers (and leaders) often fall into the trap of optimising problems that shouldn’t exist in the first place.
👉 Question for you: Which step do you see most overlooked in your industry?
Credit The VC Corner
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