Elon Musk once scolded a staff for skipping a work event to watch the birth of his child. WTF?

Look, I admire Elon Musk. He’s truly one of the world changing entrepreneurs out there. But then this article came out, containing an email Elon Musk sent after a staff skipped a work event to witness the birth of his child:

“That is no excuse. I am extremely disappointed. You need to figure out where your priorities are. We’re changing the world and changing history, and you either commit or you don’t.”

What an asshole. I’m probably prejudging here, and I really want to hear what Elon Musk has to say about this, but I find it hard to tolerate this attitude. 

Let’s look at it from both sides. Elon Musk is no ordinary human being. He works incredibly hard, and it’s because of his gumption and daring that he is where he is today. He sets the tone for his employees, and defines the culture he wants. Even if it’s not family friendly. He’s working on world-changing ideas, so by and large people might be willing to make the necessary trade-offs just to work with him.

So as a potential employee, you know what you’re in for. You sign a contract, which means you accept what the company has to offer, both good and bad.

But here’s the thing. Elon is worshipped by many, and how he behaves sets the tone for the rest of the industry. Do we really want to tolerate a non-family-friendly culture just because he’s a demi-god? And does allowing a father to attend a a once-in-a-lifetime family moment really detract from productivity? I don’t think it does, and in fact, it might contribute to their productivity in the long term.

So all in all, I don’t think I can accept this. My respect for him went down a notch.