Full podcast episode: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/l61_iZiDnLOVeqc.html Lex Fridman podcast channel: kzfaq.info Guest bio: Walter Isaacson is an author of biographies on Elon Musk, Steve Jobs, Einstein, Benjamin Franklin, Leonardo da Vinci, and many others.

This clip has inspired me to stop procrastinating and be more productive. Can't wait to start tomorrow.

3:20 Single task sequentially with a HARDCORE focus 4:55 Fierce urgency 6:20 Leonardo de Vinci 7:20 Savor the moment

I remember while in the car traveling towards the starbase location, the everyday astronaut was asking Elon questions about the oil rig. And he simply said "we're not considering that currently".. or something to that effect. But Tim still wanted to talk about the potential future of it, and Elon completely and coldly dismissed it again with no thought to the flow of the conversation at all. Elon seems to have a strong ability to completely filter out, what he considers to be, irrelevant thoughts/ideas. Like tunnel vision. It really stuck out to me, because most people, I think, would freely converse about future plans like starship being launched off an oil rig, but he had obviously completely sealed off that train of thought in his mind, and clearly didn't want it to be reawakened.

He doesn’t get distracted by the frivolous and unimportant things, like his 11 children.

🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation: 00:02 🕰️ Ben Franklin and Steve Jobs had remarkable time management skills, but Elon Musk's approach is unique. 00:30 🧠 Elon Musk's ability to switch his focus rapidly between various projects and tasks is exceptional. 02:14 🔄 Musk is a serial tasker who intensely focuses on one thing at a time, allowing him to avoid distractions. 03:49 🚀 Musk's sense of urgency and extreme focus drive his productivity and goals, especially in endeavors like space exploration. 05:49 💡 Even in mundane tasks, Musk's intense focus and ability to switch tasks provide valuable lessons for productivity. 06:32 🖼️ Different people have different approaches to productivity; some thrive on intense focus, while others excel at seeing patterns across various domains. 07:26 🌟 Musk's intense work ethic comes at the cost of not always being able to savor success and quiet moments. Made with HARPA AI

Moral of the story: With intense focus you can achieve great things. Me: What’s this Polytopia game?

The difference between Elon and other CEOs / Business people is - Elon is working on solving the real engineering problem. Others are focused just on revenue and profit. Elon is passionate about his work. Others are interested only in money. Elon is a decent and humble man. Others might not have these qualities when they move higher up Elon is a self-taught person and he learns/schooling everything at home. Others are products of slave mentality schooling. Elon does not spend money on advertising because his products are excellent. Others sell ordinary products/services through marketing. Elon is working on future products and services. Others are just trying to survive the current market situation and share market manipulation

I need to learn from this. I've noticed that, when there's several issues in my life requiring my attention, they paralyse me. All the issues are screaming at me at the same time, in my head, and i can't focus on any one of them. I think i need to work on time management/time boxing, to allow me some period of times to only think about ONE thing.

He does have real efficiency in maintaining at least 5 debates on X at the same time.

Fierce urgency isn't for everyone. I'd rather enjoy a large part of my life than just be in 'fierce urgency' mode all the time. Do I get a lot done? Sure. Do I 'experience' a lot? Not so sure...

Excellent counterpoint. See also Marc Andreessen on Jobs/perfection versus Gates/iterate-&-improve. From the Greeks, who first saw the duality; Apollonian versus Dionysian.

Sure, his time management is exquisite. But his direct reports must be amazing too, because if they don't present him options for on-going issues he can't just quickly decide and move on.

He has Aspberger’s, which explains a lot of his ability to focus entirely on things and compartmentalize.

This is insightfully good stuff! Multitasking is not the mistake, it’s just divided 100 percent of focus and spending at least some of that energy and focus on multitasking itself. Very good when alone, but teamwork makes the dream work! Imagine dedicating all your focus on a task WITH another person! That’s way less energy cost and way more focused focus than two people multitasking together.

I have the same fear and delegence and I always feel I didn’t achieve much in my life and I always need more and always curious. The great thing about Musk is that he is so brave to enter fields that nobody before him had ever done. That’s Musk uniqness.

Another amazing clip from this interview. Great job, Lex!

There are two types of shared attention in the WAIS-IV intelligence test given by neuropsychologists. First is trying to focus on one specific beep trough a large variety of other noises and count them. Second is to focus on several different beeps and noises. Being intensely focused is the former, being multitasking is the latter. Also, when your mind is very reactive to any subtle changes in the context, sometimes it goes too quick, and you do not remember much from your working memory, while still being able to have a fully able and strong long term memory.

Can’t wait for his new book to come out. Benjamin Franklin is one of my favorite books of all time.

Multi-tasking is just doing multiple things sub-optimally. Elon knows this.

*When you have more than one motivating entrepreneurship and shift from one to another is exactly the effect of taking a rest. That's it. The clue is to be focused, organised and people that does not being you problems when you are in other businesses. It not a miracle.*

There are tremendous similarities with every captain of industry. The biggest of which is that they all had daddy issues which became the cause of their success. When Edsel was building the Trimotor his father was against it and when the company had to be scrapped Henry Ford said of his son that all he really wanted out of Edsel was to take a stand against him. I have begun to realize that there are parents who are argumentative and simply want their child to stand up and challenge them as if it is an indicator of success to them.

When you find your "purpose," every energy within you is skyrocketing.

Elon is amazing but I like to watch my kid drawing on the sidewalk for 30 minutes

Other ultra-successful people developed the habit of not dwelling on successes. Read somewhere how Jennifer Lopez doesn’t allow herself to reminisce because she would be overwhelmed by the what she was able to accomplish and stop moving forward. Talent and luck is important but hyper-performers in any field are very intelligent and supremely driven.

Intensity an inability to savor the moment is a thing. I always try to do more, work more, learn more. And I can't remember when I actually felt I had achieved something. Achievements feel good for a day maybe. Even something other people celebrate a lot, I just rushed though. And I felt it a lot when I was in a relationship with a girl - she was very focused and worked a lot, but also loved simply relaxing. And I just couldn't 'relax'. I could pretend. I could enjoy a hour or two by pool, but I felt we are simply wasting time. Never said it to her, but felt like it. We later both went through a very complex separation - it is like two people who have everything good - friends, extreme passion, aims,.. but we just were off in terms what we wanted from life. I so tried to change. I thought a girl like that was what I needed. Someone calm. I'll be the james bond kung fu daddy and she will be the peaceful mom. Long story short sometimes being too eager to get more out of life means sacrifices.

Fierce Urgency is important! Urgency can help you focus ...

There's a lot to be said for Elon musk's way also multitasking is useful but only when it doesn't interfere with the other thing you're working on.

“On a given day he will focus serially sequentially on many different things” sounds so familiar

1. Lex (kind of) licks anything Elon says 2. Walter wants to sell a book about Elon no conflict of interest whatsoever

I feel like I was in school class listening in the room 😂

Mujhe 4RA ke events pehle bhi pasand the, ab Finch ke saath aur bhi maza aayega

This was a great video. Thanks.

Serial tasker huh, i wonder if there's a way to switch to this kind of mode of operation

The flip side of hardcore intensity is not being able to savor a moment... that sounds so tragic. I see why Elon says, " you wouldn't want to be me."

Know thyself. I like that. Everyone is different, just leverage your strengths optimally. You don’t have to be the next Elon, but the next YOU.

The flip side of hardcore intensity. Great quote

“Even the mundane can be full of richness” - The great and powerful Lex Fridman

Savoring sounds like a wasteful preference anyway. Not savoring should be counted as a plus.

I’m reading Isaacson’s bio on Musk and I have to say it’s impacting my opinion. I think Musk was right when he said you wouldn’t want to be him.

We ALL benefit from his inability to savor the moment, as he knows he could use those all for moving forward

This is the only the second time I’ve listened to Issacson talk about Elon, AND this is the second time I’ve heard Issacson criticize Elon for his tweets.

Lex: incredible, what a great guy, so many life lessons Isaacson: its not that great

Yes Elon is smart but more importantly he knows how to attract top talent. When management does this, they seem to have more time and less issues.

Forget time management, I'd like to hear more about how people like Musk prioritizes tasks.

Called loving work because theirs an outcome worth loving. Not work as work like a chore.

4RA ka interface aur Finch ka participation, dono milke events ko next level pe le gaye hai

Wow, you rarely see Lex this animated about a topic.

Took me 45 minutes to pick a KZfaq vid to watch. Glad I chose this one. Onwards and upwards!

He can´t savor the moment because he´s pedal to the metal at all times. A truly rare individual.

He can afford to focus sequentially because he’s chosen great teams to run and report back on each of his businesses.

the years go by fast and the days go by slow

JUST DO IT. That's it. Just get started and do it.

Because Tweeting is not a distraction.

It’s a bit sad. Not being able to savour the moment. Lying on a beach. Eating at a great restaurant (he can afford the best of the best). But that’s who he is.

How is not being able to savor success or the moment a failing dude

Additionally besides the many other things, there is also the training for the cage fight.

Its funny hearing people talk about the ideas they have of the self of others that doesnt even exist

4rabet ke events hamesha se amazing the, Finch ke saath ab aur bhi awesome ho gaye hai

4rabet pe Finch ke saath events aur bhi bright ho gaye hai, real fun

It's ok to delay your enjoyment of results.

“Musk’s big failing is he can’t savor the moment or success…” Immediately reminds me of another person who can’t savor the moment- Nick Saban

He doesn't do things he like to or want to do he do things which is needed to be done.

Dude is just awesome.

“Thought switching at will”

Where can I get the salt and pepper shrimp recipe? Oh pray tell ❤

Imagine getting to your first long vacation and elon just calls you in for sense of urgency. What a nice fella! 😊

Fierce urgency

He single tasks sequentially with a focus that's hardcore

Elon is really one of a kind. We've never seen someone like him. And he really knows how to build a great team that matches his management style.

So Elon is a human like OS kernel that “multi” processes different tasks, following a priority scheduling algo?

Bhai 4rabet pe Finch ke saath betting karna alag hi thrill hai, pura maza aayega

That is how genius work, his Brian run million miles and minutes❤❤❤❤❤

Aw man i thought this guy would’ve know more about all these people

The flipside of hardcore intensity is not savor the moment. Well start savoring,.....😂

Basically he works like the president of the country

Cool talk

Stop being a fanboy Lex and ask genuine questions…

I spent more time playing Polytopia in year 11 and 12 than I did studying, that gives me confidence to be like Elon Musk!

Did I understand correctly that Elon Musk plays Polytopia?? 😂❤

0:02: ⏰ Ben Franklin, Steve Jobs, and Elon Musk are all known for their exceptional time management skills. 3:05: 🕒 Elon Musk is a serial tasker who intensely focuses on one task at a time for about an hour before moving on to the next task. 5:25: 🚀 Elon Musk emphasizes the importance of a fierce sense of urgency in achieving goals, even in mundane tasks. Recap by Tammy AI

This is the only interview of the author which say’s positive things about Elon, but then he ruins it at the end by interpreting Elons behavior as a fault. What qualifies him to judge! He is making money big time off Elons fame.

Sorry...viewers. there is no trick, cheatcode or method. Elon is a engineer and coder with a big brain...

I worry he more like Howard Hughes

Mr.Musk is unsurpassed!! ONE OF A.KIND!!! Difficult to find superlatives to do him right!!!❤

Twitter definitely distracts him

He has a method. Be sure of that. The number of hours invested in a filed , I suppose.

I think both here missed the mark, Elon isnt doing many tasks, or serial tasks. Hes focusing on two things only: design and decisions. Design is building something cool, making it go smoothly, and directing it in the right direction. For elon, he's designing the future of humanity. One task. The vehicles he uses to design, are 6 companies, which are run by very competent teams, and their direction is led by...you guessed it... the design. I think Elon sees everything through that 1 lense. This should allow him to think about solving a valve issue, as well as the direction of twitter, because they fall under the same role: design.

Noone knows what Elon is actally doing except his public apperance.

risk takers

Its called uppers/nootropics.

This material is a catalyst for growth and self-discovery. A book with like-minded subjects transformed my perspective. "Dominating Your Clock: Strategies for Professional and Personal Success" by Anthony Rivers

LEX!!!!! Both of you and Walter! Hey. Um. Can you contact me? I'm in Boulder Denver Lafayette areas. On the subject.

Leslie Nielsen's looking well

6:21 Leonardo Da Vinci

When you look at our brain, there is no such thing as multitask, in the sense that computers perform multitasks. We're single threaded machine, and people who think they're multitasking are just simply switching between multiple things quickly. Elon is simply switching not so quickly, and choose to switch after several hours. So it's a myth that people can do multitask. We can't. Someone can be better at switching quickly, and someone might be worse at it, and this depends on how fast your brain can supply you with information needed to do a different task. But, it's still a single thread.

I beg to differ, sir. Looking at his facial expression, his lightness, almost sweet, childness, even when he talks about very sophisticated, mind boggling technical.aspects, like there is a piece of cake, while you can see and hear his voice that shows he does savor what is doing to the most.When I watch him talking I tend to get much closer to his face, almost like wanting to see how his mind works and also having the drive to embrace his SOUL❤

Multitasking has been proven to be highly inefficient by professor Paul Kirschner among others.

4:30

Is this about the guy that spends his time arguing with people on Twitter?