馬斯克五步工作法

馬斯克五步工作法（順序嚴格不可調換，為特斯拉、SpaceX內部強制執行準則）

#### 1. 質疑每一項需求（Make your requirements less dumb）

- 所有需求**必須追溯至實際提報者**，不接受「法務／安控／某部門」這類模糊來源；就算是馬斯克本人提出的需求，團隊也有權全面質疑。

- 預設多數需求本就不合理，聰明人、權威人士提出的需求風險反而更高——眾人容易盲從而不敢驗證；核心是以**第一性原理**追根究底：這件事真的有存在的必要嗎？

#### 2. 大刀闊斧刪除多餘環節／零件／流程

- 寧可誤刪，絕不保守；馬斯克的判斷標準：**事後需要恢復的內容不到一成，代表刪減力道不足**。

- 扭轉人們「多留步驟以防萬一」的本能，砍除所有非核心、可替換、舊制遺留的多餘設計與流程。

#### 3. 簡化與最佳化（僅可於刪減完成後執行）

- 工程師最常犯的致命錯誤：**去最佳化一個原本就不該存在的事物**。

- 僅保留必要項目後，再進行架構精簡、參數調校、方案取捨，讓留存的內容達到最精簡合理的狀態。

#### 4. 提升運作速度、縮短時程

- 流程精簡、方案確認無誤後，全力加快作業流轉速度、壓縮交付時程；先以人工跑出最快節奏，再考量機械化提速。

#### 5. 自動化（永遠放在最後一步）

- 馬斯克在特斯拉工廠曾蒙受重大損失：早年貿然全面導入自動化，耗資數百萬美元的機器人最後全數拆除重做。

- 自動化會將錯誤流程永久定型；唯有人工運作順暢、流程極簡、速度達標之後，自動化才具實質價值。

### 核心底層邏輯

一般人往往跳過前兩步，直接進行最佳化、提速與自動化；這套五步驟強制先行**評估必要性、執行減法**，才著手提升效率，八成的效益都來自前兩步的質疑與刪減作業。Musk's 5 Step Design Process

How do you design, build and launch a rocket into space in a radically different way from past attempts? That’s the question that faced Elon Musk’s SpaceX, and he recently revealed the process he has embedded into the organisation to make it possible. 

Musk’s 5 Step Design Process consists of making the requirements less dumb; delete the part or process; simplify and optimise the design; accelerate cycle time; and automate. 

THE 5 STEPS.

This model was revealed by Musk in an interview after he was asked whether the grid fins of his latest rocket design fold in (see the Origins below for the full interview with Everyday Astronaut).

Musk explained that they didn’t, but then expanded by outlining the 5 step process SpaceX was aiming to “apply rigorously”, and which led to the grid fin decision. See the Origins tab below for the original video interview and view the following points for each step in more detail: 

• Make the requirements less dumb.

Musk notes that “your requirements are definitely dumb, it does not matter who gave them to you.” Similar to Framestorming and its reminder to ‘question the question’, Musk uses this step to test assumptions, pointing out that requirements from a ‘smart person’ are often the most dangerous since you might not question them enough. 

• Delete the part or process. 

“If you’re not adding things back in at least 10% of the time, you’re clearly not deleting enough.” Musk suggests starting lean and building up when and if required, but warns that the bias will be to add things ‘in case’, “but you can make ‘in case’ arguments for so many things.” He goes further, arguing that each requirement or constraint must be accountable to a person, not a department, because you can ask that person about its relevance and purpose, rather than having a requirement that nobody owns and persists for years despite being redundant. 

• Simplify or optimise the design. 

“Possibly the most common error of a smart engineer is to optimise a thing that should not exist,” Musk explains, emphasising the importance of working through the first two steps before trying to optimise. To do this effectively, Musk argues that each engineer needs to take a holistic view of the project, pointing to previous mistakes where engineers had invested enormous resources into reducing the weight of the rocket’s engine but hadn’t adequately addressed the equivalent problem of reducing payload weight. 

• Accelerate cycle time. 

Musk embraces the drive to go faster but warns against pointing your efforts in the wrong direction, saying “if you’re digging your grave, don’t dig faster.” He seems to recommend an accelerated Agile approach, but only after the first three steps of his process are satisfied to ensure that you’re moving faster in the right direction. 

• Automate. 

Musk warns against automating before the earlier points are addressed. He relates the story of streamlining a robotic process to build battery mats in the Tesla Model 3. He describes investing massive time and effort to automate and streamline that problematic process before he finally asked what the mat was for. He discovered that it had been created to reduce sound but was no longer required. 

IN YOUR LATTICEWORK. 

Musk’s design process stems from an engineering perspective to streamline and rethink rocket design but can be applied to almost any design project from UX, a marketing campaign, or product design more broadly.