Elon Musk is undoubtedly the richest man on the planet. This business titan has been successful in the various entrepreneurial endeavours he has embarked on, defying conventional wisdom, expectations and gravity itself. From multi-billion dollar companies to space exploration, Elon Musk has achieved remarkable feats at a relatively young stage in life. But the question remains; why is he the world’s richest man?
To understand the answer, it is important to look at Musk’s history first. Elon Musk was born and bred in South Africa and emigrated to the U.S. as a 25-year-old, armed with a degree in economics and a passion for disruptive innovation. After working for a succession of established technology companies, he co-founded a business called Zip2 with his brother Kimbal; a web software provider that supplied city guides to media companies. The company was sold to Compaq for an impressive $300 million and off he went on his fascinating journey of successes. From Zip2, he moved on to PayPal and ultimately, onto his innovative companies Tesla and SpaceX.
The success of SpaceX has further played a huge role in putting Musk on the world’s rich list. Founded in 2002, it is a private aerospace manufacturer and space transport services provider. Musk was confident in his ambition for SpaceX to be the industry leader, reviving public interest in space exploration; and his confidence was amply rewarded. This success poured money into his account, landing him at his enviable position as the world’s richest man.
A key factor that is worth mentioning is the way Musk handles money. Whereas many wealthy individuals are content to simply enjoy their wealth and make minimal effort, Musk is different. His investments, tax strategies, and management of money have allowed him to stay at the top of the list for some time now. Rather than spending money extravagantly, Musk invests it into his various companies and then re-invests the profits. This smart approach is something many wealthy people should be looking to emulate.
But it’s not just musk’s management of money that leads to his success as the world’s richest man. His unique talent as an entrepreneur and innovator has brought tremendous success to the various projects he has partnered in. He is a wizard when it comes to coming up with creative new ideas, and he is willing to back these ideas with his own money. Musk is an individual who doesn’t hold back and who boldly pursues what his instincts tell him. This bold type of visionary thinking has also helped to place him in the position he is in today.
Musk’s achievements should not be underrated either. As mentioned, he has played a significant role in transforming the auto industry with Tesla, and managed to achieve what several government space programs have been unable to with SpaceX. As a result of these achievements, he has gained a huge following of patrons and loyal fans resulting in a rise in the value of his personal and company brands.
Finally, Forbes’ Billionaires List gives definitive proof of how wildly successful Musk is with a net worth of $195.5 billion. This clearly makes him the world’s richest man and his success is an encouragement to anyone out there looking to pursue a dream.
Political Influence
Elon Musk’s influence and involvement in politics has also contributed to his current wealth. Musk has appeared at two important meetings with Donald Trump concerning the US economy 1, as well as being included in the President’s manufacturing jobs initiative 2. Musk has also held meetings with other political leaders such as Theresa May during the UK state visit and Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau on workforce advancements 3. Musk’s influence in the political world has undoubtedly been a major contributor to his wealth.
Controversy
Musk’s wealth has not all been built on good decisions. He was criticized in 2018 for his role in taking Tesla private 4, as well as negative comments aimed at British cave diver, Vernon Unsworth later that year 5. More recently, his response on Twitter to a lawsuit against him, did not go down well with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, who consequently sued Musk for ‘misleading tweets’ 6. Nevertheless, much of this controversy has had little to no effect on Musk’s rising wealth.
Tesla vs SpaceX
Tesla and SpaceX are two of Elon Musk’s major companies which have made him the world’s richest man. As mentioned before, Tesla helps in transforming the auto industry. On the other hand, SpaceX is a leader in aerospace technology and has managed to achieve what several government space programs have been unable to. Both of these companies have achieved remarkable success but Tesla is said to make up a majority of Musk’s net worth 7. This could be due to the fact that the electric car manufacturer is listed on the stock exchange, leading to an increase in its value over the years.
Lessons to Learn
The success story of Elon Musk is inspiring to say the least. He didn’t have anything handed to him on a silver spoon; yet he still managed to become the world’s richest man. This goes to show that anything is possible, with the right amount of hard work, dedication and courage. He has not just elevated his wealth, but influenced industry and science on a global scale. A key lesson we can take from Musk’s success story is to be courageous, passionate and persistent. It is those qualities that have made him the world’s richest man.
References
1https://www.ft.com/content/ba59bbae-fb7d-11e6-96f8-3700c5664d30
2https://www.cnbc.com/2017/07/20/elon-musk-of-spacex-tesla-contributes-to-american-manufacturing-council-.html
3https://www.england.ca/news/elon-musk-meets-Justin-Trudeau
4https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/26/elon-musk-faces-backlash-from-sec-on-his-plan-to-take-tesla-private.html
5https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-45141962
6https://www.cnbc.com/2018/12/11/sec-sues-elon-musk-for-musks-misleading-tweets-on-taking-tesla-private.html
7https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55325817
