Elon Musk has made some very smart startup moves — but he’s also made mistakes. We can learn from both his successes and his failures.
If there’s one person who embodies the idea of ‘entrepreneur,’ it’s Elon Musk.
He has been responsible for the development of a large number of high-profile technology companies, which include Zip2, X.com (later merged with Confinity to form PayPal), SpaceX, SolarCity, Tesla and many others.
What’s remarkable about Musk is the way he funded his start-ups, especially SpaceX and Tesla. While he has relied on external funding, he nonetheless had to face many setbacks that almost brought his companies to an early end.
As an entrepreneur, Musk can teach you a great deal about how to get funding for your start-up. Here are the three most important learnings you can get from his experience.
CONVINCE INVESTORS WITH YOUR COMMITMENT
The mid-nineties remind us of an era of unprecedented economic growth and a feeling of prosperity toward the country’s future, something that stands in sharp contrast with our present.
The context in which Musk raised venture capital to fund his first start-up represents another drastic difference compared to the present. In 1995, there was slightly over $8 billion available in the global VC market, a small piece of the current $155 billion that was raised last year.
In that same year, Musk launched his first startup, Global Link Information Network (which eventually got rebranded as Zip2), a company that provided directions across the San Francisco Bay Area. According to Ashlee Vance, author of Musk’s biography Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future, his beginnings were humble. Musk, his brother Kimbal, and a small sales team initially pitched the new company door to door.
この記事は Entrepreneur Magazine South Africa の June 2018 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は Entrepreneur Magazine South Africa の June 2018 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
Prepare For The Worst
The stronger your business is, the more you stand to lose. Here’s how to spot hidden weaknesses within your operation and steel yourself for unexpected battles.
Start Planning Today For Future Wealth
Q&A Budgeting is by far the biggest threat to wealth planning, says wealth coach Nelisiwe Masango. If you’re part of the majority of people who don’t have a monthly budget or who have one, but don’t adjust it regularly, you could be hindering your financial progress.
Beyond Banal Business Travel
Twenty-five-year-old South African automotive drivetrain repair company Rex Diff and Gearbox found a perfect match for its business travel needs when it joined kulula work’s client base, and never looked back. Dennis McLachlan of RDG’s Consumer Affairs and Marketing division explains why.
The Next Level Beckons
Rudolf Goosen is an ex-professional rugby player, entrepreneur, author, TV presenter and motivational speaker. Entrepreneur recently spoke to him about his new book, Taking Your Life to the Next Level.
Diversity Drives Board Performance
The composition of your board of directors can help you drive your company value and increase shareholder and other stakeholder returns.
Invest And Save 100% Of Your Tax Payable To SARS
Section 12J funds were created in response to the South African Government offering tax incentives for private investors to support funds that support SME growth in South Africa. Three experts unpack the benefits of investing in 12J funds — particularly for high net worth individuals.
Following Your Dreams? Nailed It!
Sorbet franchisee Kate Holahan went from corporate employee in 2015 to owning two franchise locations in just over two years. By September 2017, she had launched a new location, acquired new clients and was learning something new every day. It took a few learning curves and partnering with the right bank to lead her to successfully running her Sorbet and Sorbet Man stores at Benmore Shopping Centre in Sandton.
How To Build A Community Around Your Brand
There’s a way to build your market without spending a fortune on advertising and marketing — and it’s called community building. Here’s why this should be the cornerstone of your growth strategy.
Sealing The Deal
If you want to close more sales, you need to understand the three phases of the customer buying cycle.
No Limits
When Offlimit Communications faced its first downturn after ten profitable years in business, its leadership team didn’t even question that they would turn things around and make them better. With resilience and determination, they analysed the business, made some tough choices and took action. Within six months they took the business from massive losses back to profitability, and a year later doubled their pre-losses turnover — all in the middle of a recession.Here’s how Lisa Cohen, Jerome Cohen and Garon Bloom took lemons and made lemonade, building a R130-million sustainable business in the process.