Profile: Elon Musk's personal assistant
What would it be like to be Elon Musk's right hand? As you would expect, working for the richest man in the world is like being a real-life PA to Iron Man's Tony Stark. The internet is full of half-true anecdotes, so we have this resource for job seekers because the Web is rife with rumors.
Mary Beth Brown was Elon Musk's assistant
All the bogus anecdotes
When Elon Musk was still in Silicon Valley, he had Mary Beth Brown as his amazing assistant. By all accounts, she was considered a great contribution to SpaceX and Tesla.
Musk has tried to shoot down all the bogus anecdotes about Mary online, even posting comments on his Twitter page. In a tweet, Musk told his side.
So, according to Musk himself, his PA was just one generalist, and he needed several specialists instead. Actually, it makes sense. As the company's complexity grew, one PA couldn't handle the volume required to manage such a heavy workload. Pepper Potts can do it in a fictional movie, but Business Insider has different thoughts about it.
Musk has tried to shoot down all the bogus anecdotes about Mary online, even posting comments on his Twitter page. In a tweet, Musk told his side.
So, according to Musk himself, his PA was just one generalist, and he needed several specialists instead. Actually, it makes sense. As the company's complexity grew, one PA couldn't handle the volume required to manage such a heavy workload. Pepper Potts can do it in a fictional movie, but Business Insider has different thoughts about it.
What does Justine Musk say about Elon Musk's assistant?
It's said that Elon Musk fired his PA
Several news outlets reported that Justine Musk told her side of the story on Quora. Referring to Mary Beth as MB, she only praised Mary Beth as an amazing assistant.
The former wife of Musk didn't say anything specific about MB's departure, which leaves Ashlee Vance's biography open to speculation, but what she did say was that MB was an exceptional and employee and a remarkable woman. In short, Justine Musk has tremendous respect for the former PA and her comments were on a very personal level.
The former wife of Musk didn't say anything specific about MB's departure, which leaves Ashlee Vance's biography open to speculation, but what she did say was that MB was an exceptional and employee and a remarkable woman. In short, Justine Musk has tremendous respect for the former PA and her comments were on a very personal level.
Ashlee Vance says Elon Musk fired his assistant
The biography
The Elon Musk biography has an account that tells a story different from what Musk told.
The SpaceX and Tesla owner said that the entire book isn't truthful. Since much of this happened over thirteen years ago, it's hard to get to the truth, but Musk said the stories about his PA are "total nonsense."
Elon Musk is a rational thinker, so the idea that his PA asked for a raise and was fired makes no sense. Simply put, billionaires don't do that.
After all, Ashlee Vance wants to sell her book, so she needs a great story to get people to buy it.
The SpaceX and Tesla owner said that the entire book isn't truthful. Since much of this happened over thirteen years ago, it's hard to get to the truth, but Musk said the stories about his PA are "total nonsense."
Elon Musk is a rational thinker, so the idea that his PA asked for a raise and was fired makes no sense. Simply put, billionaires don't do that.
After all, Ashlee Vance wants to sell her book, so she needs a great story to get people to buy it.
What's it like to assist Elon Musk?
Imagine being Musk. You've never taken a two-week vacation in your life. Your schedule is booked from morning to night -- seven days a week -- and you want Tesla to be the greatest company on Earth.
VIDEO: A look inside the mind of Musk and his business prowess
When you think of things along those lines, it's easy to understand why his former PA wouldn't work anymore unless you can put in 14 hours a day. Being a long-term assistant and putting in twelve years of service is nice, but at some point, even a high salary won't justify losing your life over it.
If Musk created a system to use several specialists instead of just one generalist, it would show just how brilliant Elon is because the role required more than just one person could do.
If Musk created a system to use several specialists instead of just one generalist, it would show just how brilliant Elon is because the role required more than just one person could do.
Being a long-term PA comes at a price
As a small firm assisting billionaires in finding the perfect "right hand," we often look for "lightning in a bottle." Our headhunters have firm data supporting that a confidant to a billionaire can pay the same pay as an executive. Still, a human being only has so much bandwidth, and eventually, one gets burned out. In short, a vacation for only two weeks a year won't cut it. When you sign up for jobs to work for a billionaire, know that it's an incredible sacrifice.
Ashlee's footnotes about an incompetent house manager and an anecdote about being fired because of a request for a raise don't make sense. Regardless of what you have heard, terminating a loyal PA for an absurd reason isn't good for business and would hurt a company.
Is this just Ashlee's public relations team at work? Is she creating hype to sell books? If you take Elon's word, it is.
Ashlee's footnotes about an incompetent house manager and an anecdote about being fired because of a request for a raise don't make sense. Regardless of what you have heard, terminating a loyal PA for an absurd reason isn't good for business and would hurt a company.
Is this just Ashlee's public relations team at work? Is she creating hype to sell books? If you take Elon's word, it is.
Filed Under: company complexity grew, and an event on the same side of that week's visit tells different sides.
