There’s no one more Elon than Elon. Every breath he takes, every move he makes, every insanely logical thing that comes out of his mouth is just so him. And while Elon Musk is certainly one of a kind, his actions, words and methods have been endlessly studied, and there are elements to emulate if you so wish.
The way he runs his companies, organizes his day, works around the clock and doesn’t give a damn about what anyone thinks can be incorporated into how you live your life and grow your business. If you don’t care about offending, you just want to be more Elon, here are the prompts to try with ChatGPT, or your language model of choice.
How to be more like Elon Musk using ChatGPT
Lay down the law
In a 2022 email to staff, Musk told Tesla workers to return to the office or resign. He had a point and Tesla has big plans. “There are of course companies that don’t require this, but when was the last time they shipped a great new product? It’s been a while,” he said in another message. No beating about the bush, no nonsense, no remorse at all. When Musk wants something, he’s direct. Use this prompt to demand your team do something that you feel is absolutely necessary. Hit send if you dare.
“Compose an email to my team to explain that they are now required to [what they are required to do]. Give a compelling reason as to why this is compulsory. Explain that any variations have to be personally approved by me. Explain that anyone who doesn’t act accordingly will be assumed to have resigned. Copy the style of this email written by Elon Musk, which includes phrases like: [paste phrases from Musk’s original email here].”
Schedule in 5-minute blocks
Musk intentionally schedules his day in five-minute time blocks. Why? Because he’s running six companies and he wants to change the world. Most people block their time in 30 or 60 minute chunks, but that leaves far too much room for waffle and inefficient use of seconds. For Musk, each block is assigned to a specific task or activity. He can multiply his output by requiring others to prepare well and deliver information in the fewest words possible. Use this prompt to see what this looks like for your schedule.
“My mission in my business is [describe your mission or main goal] and my responsibilities include [describe your main responsibilities]. I have the following people to help me do this: [describe your team or contractors.] Every minute counts. Can you split my waking hours, from [time you wake up] to [time you go to sleep] into 5-minute increments where you outline what I should do in order to be as productive as possible with minimal wasted time. Make sure you include [describe the essential components of your day].”
Collect negative feedback
Great leaders ask for feedback. They view their personality and actions objectively, which allows them to study what they do and make tweaks. They don’t take anything personally. Musk said he pays close attention to negative feedback. He solicits it, even, and finds it incredibly helpful, especially from friends. Are you brave enough to ask for negative feedback from your friends? Overcome that emotional hurdle and unlock your biggest potential source of growth. Do as Musk does with this simple prompt.
“Write a casual email to my friend [their name] asking them to share negative feedback about me. Ask for criticism and critique about any aspect of my character, appearance, or what I say or do. Specifically, [describe a situation you want their feedback on]. Tell them it will help me improve and I value their opinion. Explain that they shouldn’t worry about offending me.”
Make improvements
Not only does he ask his friends to tear apart his character so he can put it back together, Musk utilizes feedback loops to improve in every area. “I think it’s very important to have a feedback loop, where you’re constantly thinking about what you’ve done and how you could be doing it better,” he said. Performing an autopsy every time something didn’t mark progress is a valuable exercise that very few do. Here’s the ChatGPT prompt that will help you reflect.
“In the last week, my main actions were [describe what you mainly did in the last week]. Can you create a set of reflective questions for each, so I can think about how I could improve in each one next time? My goal is to achieve [describe the main goal you want to achieve]in my business, so make the questions in line with that outcome.”
Cancel meetings
Musk is not a fan of meetings. He deems most unnecessary and says they are mainly ineffective. His advice to leaders is to, “get off all large meetings, unless you’re certain they are providing value to the whole audience, in which case keep them very short.” Being busy is not the goal; making a difference is. Filling your calendar with meetings is probably not the best use of your time, but so many people want them, it can feel difficult to turn everyone down. Here’s a prompt to help you do just that.
“Someone has asked me for a meeting because [reason they called the meeting]. They are important because [explain who they are and why they matter] but I don’t want the meeting. I would prefer to [how you’d prefer to solve the problem]. Write an email response to this person that suggests an alternative way of solving this problem in a polite way, that progresses us to a solution without me appearing rude. Include why it’s in their best interests to do it this way.”
Work twice as much
Productivity tips aside, you just have to work harder. The math makes sense. “If other people are putting in 40-hour workweeks and you’re putting in 100-hour workweeks, then even if you’re doing the same thing, you know that you will achieve in four months what it takes them a year to achieve,” Musk explained. “Work like hell.” What would your business look like if you worked double? How much could you get done, who could you overtake and where could you be in half the time? Use this prompt to channel Musk’s work ethic and find out.
“I currently work about [number] hours per week and my main focus is [describe what you spend your time doing]. My one business goal is [your main business goal] and I expect this will take [duration]. Act as a business expert and imagine I am your client. I have told you I will now work [number that is approximately double] hours per week. Suggest what I should do with this time in order to ramp up output and achieve my goals faster.”
Make fast decisions
Musk does not mince his words and he doesn’t delay taking action. At Tesla, X, SpaceX and the others, moving fast is celebrated. There’s no analysis paralysis. With a bias towards action, he and his team make quick decisions and move on. With such a logical brain, Musk’s decisions are grounded in reason and based on specific problem-solving techniques. Not every company is the same because not every leader is like him. Make quicker decisions in your organization with this ChatGPT prompt.
“Within my company we are currently deciding the following things: [explain the decision you are making]. We want to make these decisions faster, and then commit to them. Given our company, [company name and one-line explainer], in the industry of [your industry] with the main goal of [describe your main goal] for [describe your target audience], can you solve each decision with one definitive answer?”
Find the cause of problems
Solving the symptoms of problems is another inefficient use of company resources. Other entrepreneurs put band aids in place to paper over cracks. Musk rips them off. He finds the cause of problems and fixes that instead, and you can do it too. Identify the issue and keep asking why until you uncover the key problem central to its existence. For a quicker assessment and resolution, ask ChatGPT to figure it out.
“In my business right now the main problem is [describe the main problem in your business]. When we talk about it, we end up addressing the symptoms of this problem, rather than digging deeper and finding the root cause. Can you suggest what the underlying root cause of this problem is? Give 1-3 potential options and for each one explain how we solve the cause of the problem so that the problem may ultimately be solved.”
ChatGPT prompts to operate like Elon Musk
Be intentional about everything in your life and then outwork everyone else. Eliminate everything nonessential, including people, words, admin and workplace niceties. Carve away at your entire empire until you’re left with the simple components of a world-changing business.
Be more Elon Musk with these eight prompts, copy and pasting them in and personalizing with your information. See what comes out and see how it sits, asking for further edits to tone the plans up or down. Make bold moves and reap bold rewards. What would Elon do?
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