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Elon Musk Slept on the Tesla Factory Floor for 3 Years. Here's Why.

By Elon Musk · Startup Growth · 2 min read

Musk lived in the Tesla factory for 3 years. He moved from the couch to sleeping under his desk — so the shift-change team could see him.

Key Points

The Tesla factory was his primary residence for 3 years — not a metaphor, literally
He stopped using the couch and slept under his desk so the team could see him during shift change
Since the team could see him there, they gave it their all

Since the team could see me sleeping on the floor during shift change, with nothing, they knew I was there. And that made a huge difference. Then they gave it their all.

Three Years in the Factory

Musk: I was living in the factory in Fremont and the one in Nevada for 3 years straight. It was my primary residence. Not kidding. Literally.

I slept on a couch at one point. In a tent on the roof. And then for a while I was just sleeping under my desk, which is out in the open in the factory. It was damn uncomfortable sleeping on that floor. When I woke up I'd always smell like metal dust.

I was living in the factory for 3 years straight. It was my primary residence. Not kidding. Literally.

Why He Chose the Floor Over the Couch

Musk: There was a little conference room with a couch. I stopped using the couch and just slept on the floor under my desk so that during shift change the entire team could see me.

If the team thinks their leader is off somewhere having a good time, drinking mai tais on a tropical island — which I could definitely have been doing and would have much preferred to do, I'm not a masochist — but since the team could see me sleeping on the floor during shift change with nothing, they knew I was there. And that made a huge difference. Then they gave it their all.

Since the team could see me sleeping on the floor during shift change, they knew I was there. They gave it their all.