What inspires you and why? What moves your heart? What is it that makes you feel alive? For SpaceX CEO & Founder Elon Musk, it’s making life multi-planetary. It’s a mission that some have criticized and deemed impossible or ‘sci-fi,’ yet he has put all of his wealth and energy into making this happen.
It’s easy to overlook the value of this type of thinking especially from someone who has already has been incredibly successful in other domains. However, we should all participate in this type of thinking.
For many, day-to-day life can be intimately challenging. Especially post-pandemic where it can be hard to focus on lofty ideas when so many of us are wondering if the economy is even going to survive. Who has time to worry about colonizing space when people are not even sure if their future is secure anymore?
But that’s exactly why we have to think about these things now — because of how we’re going to survive and the future is going to be secured. Life innovates and moves forward — and whatever doesn’t will die. So it’s practical to think about space exploration because we have to ask ourselves, how is America going to be relevant in the new global economy?
People who dream big are the only ones who keep us prosperous and secure. It’s not so much a matter of who is Elon to do this, but a matter of, why we are not all doing this?
Why are we not all dreaming big? Why have so many people given up on their dreams only to embrace cynicism?
As Elon stood on that stage and laid out his plans to get to Mars while speaking of the importance of making life multi-planetary, I could feel the hope that he has for humanity. And that hope is contagious.
It’s very fashionable in certain circles to mock Elon for having wild fantastical dreams. But why don’t the rest of us have those kinds of dreams? Are we so afraid of being mocked and ridiculed that we give up and project our insecurities onto those like Elon Musk who are succeeding?
Never Giving Up No Matter What
One thing that I’ve learned from Elon Musk is that if you truly want to succeed, then you must never give up on yourself. Whatever it is you wish to do, you need to be strong enough to believe in yourself especially when those you would think would support you suddenly shoot you down.
In Elon’s case, even his own heroes tried to shoot him down. Apollo astronauts, Neil Armstrong and Gene Cernan — the first and last men to ever walk on the moon, were highly critical of commercial spaceflight and thought that it could threaten America’s dominance in space exploration. They opposed SpaceX.
The journey of SpaceX is one of hope, passion, and endurance in the face of criticism and doubt and it shows that if you believe in yourself and in your dreams, then you can make them come true.
The Starship presentation tonight was not just another milestone in a long journey, but another reminder to believe again. Sometimes we need these reminders. These celebratory moments remind us of what we are fighting for. For Elon, it’s humanity.
Elon said that we should secure the future of life. This is so important that it takes priority over the negative press, the doubt, the uncertainty, and the loud voices of the naysayers who say that it’s not possible.
“I think this is just an incredibly important thing for the future of life itself.”
“Life can’t be just about solving problems. There have to be things that inspire you, that move your heart, that makes you excited about the future.”
Certain circles may cast doubt upon Elon and say that he can’t get to Mars all by himself and they’re right — he can’t. It’s going to take all of us coming together, dreaming together, innovating together, and working together to get to Mars.
After all, what have we’ve got to lose except the whole fucking global economy if we don’t?
As Elon said during the presentation,
“Let’s make this real.”
