Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

What Elon Musk Is Doing to Twitter Is What He Did at Tesla and SpaceX
NYT ^ | NOVEMBER 21 2022 | By Ryan Mac and Jack Ewing

Posted on 11/21/2022 3:02:16 PM PST by SmokingJoe

Firing people. Talking of bankruptcy. Telling workers to be “hard core.” Mr. Musk has repeatedly used those tactics at many of his companies.

Elon Musk was sleeping at the office. He dismissed employees and executives at will. And he lamented his company was on the verge of bankruptcy.

That was back in 2018 and the company was Tesla, as Mr. Musk’s electric automaker struggled to build its mass-market vehicle, the Model 3.

“It was excruciating,” he told The New York Times at the time. “There were times when I didn’t leave the factory for three or four days — days when I didn’t go outside.”

The billionaire’s experience with what he called Tesla’s “production hell” has become a blueprint for the crisis he has created at Twitter, which he bought for $44 billion last month. Over the years, Mr. Musk has developed a playbook for managing his companies — including Tesla and the rocket manufacturer SpaceX — through periods of pain, employing shock treatment and alarmism and pushing his workers and himself to put aside their families and friends to spend all their energy on his mission.

At Twitter, Mr. Musk has used many of those same tactics to upend the social media company in just a few weeks.

Since late last month, the 51-year-old has laid off 50 percent of Twitter’s 7,500 employees and accepted the resignations of 1,200 or more. On Monday, he began another round of layoffs, two people said. He tweeted that he was sleeping at Twitter’s offices in San Francisco. And he has applied mission-driven language, telling Twitter’s workers that the company could go bankrupt if he wasn’t able to turn it around. Those who want to work on “Twitter 2.0” must commit to his “hard core” vision in writing, he has said.

(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: musk; twitter
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-98 next last

1 posted on 11/21/2022 3:02:16 PM PST by SmokingJoe
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: SmokingJoe

Well, he’s made Twitter almost fun again.


2 posted on 11/21/2022 3:05:49 PM PST by Fireone (When they pry them from my cold, dead, unvaccinated hands.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SmokingJoe

Rare candor from the New York Slimes. What Musk is doing is a wonder to behold.


3 posted on 11/21/2022 3:06:25 PM PST by poconopundit (Hard oak fist in an Irish velvet glove: Kayleigh the Shillelagh we salute your work!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SmokingJoe
Need to point out the difference between Tesla, SpaceX and Twitter:

Musk built Tesla & SpaceX. From the ground up. They both have his influence in their DNA.

Not so with Twitter.

Musk didn't build it, he bought it. The DNA of Twitter is one of entitlement.

That's what Musk is up against. Can he change it? Sure. Will it be painful? Yup.

BTW: the Twitter account I opened when Musk bought it was perma-banned today for calling Kamala Harris a whore who slept her way to the top. That statement of fact was deemed "harmful hate speech" by Twitter "censors" and my account NewbombTurk was permabanned.

Good times! LOL!

4 posted on 11/21/2022 3:06:29 PM PST by usconservative (When The Ballot Box No Longer Counts, The Ammunition Box Does. (What's In Your Ammo Box?))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SmokingJoe

no different than george eastman and kodak. you punched a time clock...and that’s the way it was..


5 posted on 11/21/2022 3:06:54 PM PST by Sacajaweau ( )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: usconservative

i think he wants free speech...but also expects you to be nice...works for me...


6 posted on 11/21/2022 3:09:29 PM PST by Sacajaweau ( )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: usconservative

“You have the right to free speech
As long as
You’re not dumb enough to actually try it”

The Clash, “Know Your Rights”


7 posted on 11/21/2022 3:12:32 PM PST by kosciusko51
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: Sacajaweau

I was being nice, I told the truth. Kamala Harris is a whore who slept her way to the top. She’s a disgrace to any right-thinking woman, sadly there are very few of them left anymore.


8 posted on 11/21/2022 3:13:13 PM PST by usconservative (When The Ballot Box No Longer Counts, The Ammunition Box Does. (What's In Your Ammo Box?))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: SmokingJoe

fringe benefits are

red bull on tap

and bowls of no doz


9 posted on 11/21/2022 3:13:25 PM PST by joshua c (to disrupt the system, we must disrupt our lives, cut the cable tv)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Sacajaweau

Exactly. Keep the facts. Forget the name calling. Might have gotten banned anyway


10 posted on 11/21/2022 3:13:34 PM PST by Freee-dame
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: Fireone

If the NYT has their panties in a wad, I’m happy.


11 posted on 11/21/2022 3:13:50 PM PST by sauropod (Fascists also buy Comcast cable packages" - Olby - Wanna buy mine?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: kosciusko51

“𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘻𝘦.” -Voltaire


12 posted on 11/21/2022 3:14:12 PM PST by usconservative (When The Ballot Box No Longer Counts, The Ammunition Box Does. (What's In Your Ammo Box?))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: SmokingJoe

I’m surprised that there have not been any comparisons to “Neutron” Jack Welch at General Electric who streamlined the company in the 80s.


13 posted on 11/21/2022 3:14:51 PM PST by ProtectOurFreedom (If you're not part of the solution, you're just scumming up the bottom of the beaker!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: usconservative

One of the few times I agree with him.


14 posted on 11/21/2022 3:16:12 PM PST by kosciusko51
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: SmokingJoe

Right= made them successful.


15 posted on 11/21/2022 3:17:04 PM PST by God luvs America (63.5 million pay no income tax and vote for DemoKrats...)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: usconservative

The problem with your post was your inaccuracy.

She blew her way to the top. The top of her head is a better view and one does not have to hear her talking/cackling


16 posted on 11/21/2022 3:17:49 PM PST by ChildOfThe60s ( If you can remember the 60s.....you weren't really there..)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: SmokingJoe

Musk utilizes the “Golden Rule” .... he who has the gold makes the rules.

The Twit snowflakes/wokesters, don’t understand that rule and they won’t be able to function in an environment where that is the rule. The 8 hour coffee breaks/endless meetings that made up their “work” day are gone.


17 posted on 11/21/2022 3:21:15 PM PST by Qiviut (I'm not out of control, I'm just not in their control. $hot $hills: Sod Off)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: usconservative

you don’t call anyone a whore...what’s wrong with you...you want to say it to yourself...fine...


18 posted on 11/21/2022 3:22:19 PM PST by Sacajaweau ( )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: ChildOfThe60s
She blew her way to the top.

That was but one of the things she did with Willie Brown ...

19 posted on 11/21/2022 3:22:36 PM PST by usconservative (When The Ballot Box No Longer Counts, The Ammunition Box Does. (What's In Your Ammo Box?))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]

To: Sacajaweau
you don’t call anyone a whore...what’s wrong with you...you want to say it to yourself...fine...

She is a whore. It's fact.

20 posted on 11/21/2022 3:23:08 PM PST by usconservative (When The Ballot Box No Longer Counts, The Ammunition Box Does. (What's In Your Ammo Box?))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-98 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson