Take the Meeting: The Apple–Tesla Lesson About Missed Opportunities

Send us Fan MailSome of the most expensive business decisions are the conversations we choose not to have.In this short solo episode, Peter Boolkah reacts to Elon Musk’s public claim that he once approached Tim Cook to discuss the possibility of Apple acquiring Tesla, only for Cook to decline the meeting.At the time, Tesla was struggling to increase production of the Model 3. By the end of 2020, its position and valuation looked dramatically different.Using that story as a starting point, Peter asks an uncomfortable question:Which apparently insignificant calls, meetings, or opportunities have you dismissed only to regret the decision later?You’ll discover:Why an opportunity’s value is not always obvious when it first appearsHow quickly a struggling company’s prospects can changeRefusing a conversation can close the door before an opportunity has been evaluatedHow hindsight changes our interpretation of past decisionsWhy successful leaders still experience missed opportunitiesThe danger of assuming that today’s circumstances will continue indefinitelyWhy can it be cheaper to examine an opportunity than dismiss it automaticallyWhich previous decisions may deserve a second lookThe lesson is not that every opportunity should be pursued.Leaders need enough curiosity to investigate potentially valuable opportunities before rejecting them and clear criteria for deciding which conversations deserve their attention.This has particular relevance in a founder-dependent business. When one overloaded founder personally filters every idea, relationship and strategic possibility, important opportunities can disappear simply because the founder lacks the time or headspace to consider them.A scalable business needs a decision process that allows opportunities to be assessed, delegated and escalated without everything waiting for the founder.ARCHIVE NOTEThis episode was recorded in January 2021 and responds to a claim Elon Musk posted publicly in December 2020.Musk said he approached Tim Cook during the “darkest days” of the Model 3 programme to discuss the possibility of Apple acquiring Tesla for one-tenth of Tesla’s December 2020 value. Apple and Tim Cook did not publicly confirm Musk’s version of events, and there is no evidence in the episode of a formal acquisition offer.The episode associates the approach with 2016. Musk did not specify a date, and Tesla did not begin delivering the Model 3 until July 2017. The most difficult production-ramp period followed those initial deliveries.References to Tesla’s valuation, market position and vehicle-sales rankings describe the situation around the end of 2020 and should not be interpreted as current statistics.CONNECT WITH PETER BOOLKAHWebsite: https://www.boolkah.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/boolkahInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/pboolkah/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BoolkahX: https://twitter.com/boolkahABOUT PETER BOOLKAHPeter Boolkah is a business coach, author and speaker who has spent more than 20 years helping business owners build stronger, more valuable businesses that do not depend on them for everything.He is the creator of The Hamster Wheel Trap® and author of Your Business Sucks: Build a Business That Works Without Destroying Your Life.Peter works with founders and leadership teams on the issues that ultimately determine whether a business creates freedom or becomes another job: leadership, founder dependency, people, profit, execution, scaling, exit readiness and enterprise value.His approach is direct, practical and built around one simple question:Do you own the business, or does the business own you?Learn more at https://www.boolkah.com