Amid the Model 3 hype, Tesla CEO Elon Musk gave Tesla fans a glimpse into his own turbulent lifestyle with a tweet yesterday.
The tech mogul said he was under mountains of stress.
The reality is great highs, terrible lows and unrelenting stress. Don't think people want to hear about the last two.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 30, 2017
While his Instagram account may reflect the “highs” of Tesla’s budding impact on the automotive industry, Musk went even further to say that he experiences crushing lows. It wasn’t long before one user likened it to Bipolar disorder, a claim Musk qualified by saying that the mood swings that accompany being an EV tycoon can be damning.
Maybe not medically tho. Dunno. Bad feelings correlate to bad events, so maybe real problem is getting carried away in what I sign up for.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 30, 2017
The tweets sparked major discussion on twitter over the stress Musk endures. Some users tweeted their support for Musk while many others expressed concern.
Either way, Musk felt that he had no one to blame for the high-pressure position he and his company are in.
If you buy a ticket to hell, it isn't fair to blame hell …
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 30, 2017
This isn’t the first time Musk has talked about the trials and tribulations of Tesla’s run on the electric vehicle industry. A few weeks ago, the tech CEO said at a National Governors Association meeting that starting a car company may not be the best way to live a happy and fulfilling life.
“I really wouldn’t recommend anyone start a car company. It’s not a recipe for happiness and freedom,” he said.
The stress can certainly be viewed as justified. While the final installment of the Tesla Model 3 event was rendered a major success, the company still has a lot to prove. Especially on Wall Street, skeptics are lying in wait for Tesla to fall short of its lofty production goals.
Some have tried to poke holes in Tesla’s seemingly vague and indirect marketing tactics, claiming that it is designed in part to help pump up a stock price around hype instead of true earnings.
Musk also addressed this fact at the panel discussion with the governors, saying that he believed the Tesla stock was the result of expectations that were running out of control.
“I’ve gone on the record several times in saying that the stock price is higher than we have any right to deserve,” he said.
He tweeted his support for the valuation a day after the statement, saying that he believed the company’s stock market valuation did not accurately take into account just how far the company is headed in the future.
I should clarify: Tesla stock is obviously high based on past & present, but low if you believe in Tesla's future. Place bets accordingly … https://t.co/4zbc6vqZSZ
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 17, 2017
Regardless of the external pressure, Tesla fans should hope — for the sake of himself as well as his company — that Musk is exploring options to better handle the insurmountable stress.
