Elon Musk, billionaire entrepreneur and CEO of Tesla Inc., recently found himself in hot water over an interview he participated in where he smoked marijuana for the first time with comedic podcast host Joe Rogan. 

Prior to that, Musk garnered attention just weeks before for calling one of the scuba divers involved in the rescue of a Taiwanese soccer team a “pedo guy,” all the while sleeping at the Tesla factory as he slaves over malfunctioning equipment at odd hours of the day. 

The reaction to these stunts will likely depend on what we individually deem “appropriate” behavior, but the backlash has been well-documented. 

The Tesla stock has been a rollercoaster ride mostly on the downward with stock having dropped some 5 percent after struggling to recover from earlier that week, when recently-appointed Chief Accounting Officer Dave Morton abruptly quit.

 What’s worse, certain insider “sabotage” has had Musk threatening to take the stock private, all the while tending to his malfunctioning equipment himself. “There were times when I didn’t leave the factory for three or four days – days when I didn’t go outside,” he recently told The New York Times. Among other things, sleep deprivation can lower white blood cell count, lead to chronic disease or cancer, and ultimately a shorter life span, though that seems to be the least of his worries.

 His erratic behavior has been worrisome to many, calling to question whether or not he is mentally fit for his entrepreneurial endeavors. Despite this, many fail to realize that this behavior may be “normal” for someone of Musk’s intelligence and innovation.  

 Melissa Schilling’s “Quirky: The Remarkable Story of the Traits, Foibles, and Genius of Breakthrough Innovators Who Changed the World,” includes chapters on Musk, reporting on his erratic behavior and what it means for him and others. “A lot of [these individuals] are . . . ‘low self-monitors,’ meaning they don’t monitor their persona or the way they present themselves very carefully,” Schilling says. “This is actually relevant to their ability to generate unusual ideas and to persist in the face of criticism.”

 It would make sense that visionaries like Musk, Steve Jobs, or Nikola Tesla would thrive in the face of adversity due to the fact that they simply do not care what others think of their behavior. Steve Jobs’ daughter, Lisa Brennan-Jobs, published an entire memoir outlining the many ways in which her father was an utter and outright, infamous . . . well . . . jerk.

With the money invested in the fossil fuel industry worldwide, it is easy to see why some are rooting for the downfall of companies like Tesla.

 The most troubling idea in all of this is that, with Musk’s public persona becoming a bit off-putting to some, he will struggle to get the support necessary for the kind of work he wants to do, namely: Save the planet and all its inhabitants. A big, big task to speak of, but apparently not too much for him. 

 Whether or not Musk’s companies become very profitable in the long run, if at all, is anyone’s guess, but Schilling hopes that they ultimately do. 

“I wouldn’t lay odds on it, not with Musk at the helm,” she says. “But having said all that, I’m really glad he’s doing it. I’m glad someone like him is bold enough to do the kinds of projects he’s doing.”