All about Elon Musk’s five-point “simple algorithm” to avoid mistakes

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk recently shared his “simple algorithm” that helped him make “fewer stupid mistakes.” Recently, a representative of X Tesla owners in Silicon Valley shared a photo of an “algorithm” taped to a wall supposedly located at SpaceX.

“I wonder if @DOGE will embrace this like @SpaceX did,” reads next to the image.

Musk, who has been a strong supporter of Donald Trump throughout this year’s US presidential campaign, was previously nominated by the US president-elect for an important role in his incoming administration.

Along with Vivek Ramaswamy, Musk will lead the Department of Government Efficiency, informally called “DOGE”, which hopes to reduce excessive government spending.

I wonder if @DOGE I’ll take it as @SpaceX has pic.twitter.com/iEPxyhZs5A

— Tesla Owners in Silicon Valley (@teslaownersSV) November 29, 2024

The algorithm mentions five points:

Make demands less stupid

Delete a part or process step

Optimize

Acceleration

Automate

In response to the post, Musk wrote: “This simple algorithm I came up with to help me make fewer stupid mistakes in the future is incredibly powerful.”

In the comments section, several social media users said that this algorithm could help DOGE improve its “efficiency.”

“Remember when Elon Musk said the Twitter Code needed to be completely rewritten? For the same reasons, there needs to be a complete rewrite of the way the US government operates,” one person wrote.

Another added: “I think this would be great to implement in DOGE too!”

A third person wrote: “I really can’t imagine how great our government could be if we eliminated waste and optimized productivity. About $4 trillion in taxes are collected annually. This power is just ridiculous.”

Various points in the algorithm begin with “Make requirements less stupid”, which clearly emphasizes the need to consider requirements on an individual basis. To make communication easier and faster, the requirement must be accompanied by a specified name or prompt.

Another feature of Musk’s algorithm is the removal of any part of the process, accompanied by advice on simplification and optimization.