It’s not easy being Elon Musk

I’ve never found the time to listen to Joe Rogan’s two-plus-hour podcasts. But I just made an exception for his 2018 interview with Elon Musk.

Rogan: "You must admire my Samurai sword!"
Elon: "Love is the answer."

As one of the world’s most creative and daring entrepreneurs, Elon Musk is normally an enigma surrounded by jargon-infused mystery. But on this show he relaxed, sipped whiskey with his garrulous host, and even puffed on a joint. (Which Elon says he doesn’t normally do.)

There are very few “gotcha!” moments in this video. Rogan takes Elon on a leisurely tour through Tesla, Space X, the Boring Company, solar roof panels, electric jets and other projects. (Sadly, nothing about Hyperloops.) 

One highlight: About the 55-minute mark, Elon talks about slipping Easter eggs into Tesla technology just to surprise and reward his customers. “The Model X can do this ballet thing to the Trans-Siberian Orchestra,” Elon says. “It's pretty cool.”

It’s an unexpected moment, and an intriguing glimpse into Elon’s fun side.

But if you have any interest in entrepreneurship, innovation or technology, listen to the last 15-20 minutes, where Elon drops all pretence and talks about the pain and pressure of being a genius… and why he just wants to make you happy.

So click on the video below and click to the 2:16 mark to hear:

Why no one else would want to be Elon Musk. (“It’s very hard to turn it off.”)

2:18: “I know a lot of people like weed, and that's fine. But I don't find that it is very good for productivity.”

2:22: Why Elon can’t stop his brain from thinking, questioning and ideating: “It's like a never-ending explosion.”

2:23:20: Elon felt different, strange, as a child. He tried to hide it: “I hoped they wouldn't find out, because they might put me away or something.”

2:25:10: Elon’s objectives for the rest of his career: “My goal is to try to do useful things, try to maximize the probability that the future’s good, and make the future exciting… We’re trying to make things that people love.”

2:26: Mankind’s future in space: “A future where we are a space-faring civilization, out there among the stars, I think that's very exciting. Whereas if you knew we would not be a space-faring civilization, but forever confined to earth, that would be very sad.”

2:30:20: “This may sound corny, but love is the answer… Spend more time with your friends and less time on social media.”

2:35:30: “People should be nicer to each other. People are nicer than you think. Give people more credit.”