I think a lot of this discussion about the supercharger team firing (and the re-hires reported to have taken place), and it's potential PR impact, effect on employee morale, possible indication Tesla is getting out of the charging business, etc... misses what happens with many of the moves that Elon makes: the context of Elon's m
otivation is not factored in.
Looking at these actions in the context of "How typical businesses are run", "the immediate share price", "people's opinions or feelings", "his personal net worth", etc... is not how Elon looks at things.
He doesn't care about share price - He's said, i
f the near-term stock price concerns you, please sell our stock and don't buy it.
He doesn't care about how rich he can get. When he surpassed Bezos as richest man, he said: "
Huh.. interesting. OK, back to work.."
He doesn't care about carrying dead weight. He's said "
The longer it takes to fire somebody, the longer it's been since you should have fried them"
He's not overly sentimental - He fired his long time loyal personal assistant simply because he thought it represented an inefficiency.
He doesn't care about "sunk costs". If you've put lots of time, effort, and $$$ into an endeavor that appears to be the wrong direction, he'll scuttle it regardless if you are 95% there.
Here's what he
does care about. What he considers "correct". Keeping ourselves from making the planet uninhabitable. The ultimate goal of preserving "the light of consciousness".
He also is of the opinion that because these are such laudable goals, in the long term they'll inarguably provide such value that they can be sustained, and he won't have to live to sleep on a friend's couch again, but will if he has to.
So, if the team reached 90% and there's no valid reason for not reaching 100%, that's not an A. It's a failure to reach what should have been, He's not afraid to fail (see also:
how not to land an orbital rocket). But if you can't reach a reachable goal, he'll find someone who can.
If folks find that demoralizing rather than recognizing he's serious about getting things done, you probably aren't right for the team.
If people on the outside want to moan and groan, he doesn't really have time to spend arguing with them, he'd rather execute his
better plan, and in time people will shut up when they recognize the value.
He's on the spectrum. He's a bit of a cyborg. He doesn't have time to be nice. He can't tolerate mediocrity, or even excellence that still falls short. He's driven by what he sees as a
threat to the entirety of the human race.
The lens of
he's got sh!t to get done, explains a lot, IMO.