Elon Musk's daily schedule: 5-minute work slots, no breakfast, few emails

Elon Musk has been known to work 85 to 100 hours a week, and he estimates that 80 per cent of his time at work is spent ...
Elon Musk has been known to work 85 to 100 hours a week, and he estimates that 80 per cent of his time at work is spent on engineering and design. Flickr
by Áine Cain

Elon Musk is one busy guy.

The Tesla and SpaceX founder generally spends a full workweek at each of his two companies, wolfing down lunch in five minutes and skipping phone calls for productivity's sake.

So it's not surprising that his daily life is pretty jam-packed.

Based on previous interviews, Business Insider pieced together an estimation of what an average day looks like for this real-life Tony Stark. Take a look at a day in the life of Elon Musk:

Elon Musk and his ex-wife Talulah Riley. On Saturday, he either works at SpaceX or spends time with his five young sons.
Elon Musk and his ex-wife Talulah Riley. On Saturday, he either works at SpaceX or spends time with his five young sons. AP

Musk kicks off his day bright and early, rising around 7am In a Reddit AMA, he said that he usually gets six hours of shut-eye.

Musk usually skips breakfast. Occasionally, he will slow down long enough to grab a quick coffee and an omelette.

One thing he always makes time for, no matter what? Showering. He once told Reddit it was his most important daily habit.

Once he's up, Musk launches into a blistering schedule that breaks his time into a series of five-minute slots.

The entrepreneur has been known to work 85 to 100 hours a week, and he estimates that 80 per cent of his time at work is spent on engineering and design.

On Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, he heads to the Bay Area to work at Tesla.
On Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, he heads to the Bay Area to work at Tesla. The New York Times

No two days are the same for Musk. He spends Mondays and Fridays at SpaceX in Los Angeles.

On Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, he heads to the Bay Area to work at Tesla.

Quartz estimates that he spends an average of 42 hours a week working at Tesla and 40 hours a week working at SpaceX.

He also told Y Combinator that he usually spent about half a day working at the artificial intelligence nonprofit OpenAI.

Quartz estimates that he spends an average of 42 hours a week working at Tesla and 40 hours a week working at SpaceX.
Quartz estimates that he spends an average of 42 hours a week working at Tesla and 40 hours a week working at SpaceX. RYAN ANSON

On the weekends, it's more of a toss-up. Sundays are usually spent traveling or staying at his Bel Air mansion. On Saturday, he either works at SpaceX or spends time with his five young sons.

Speaking about his kids in 2013, he said: "What I find is I'm able to be with them and still be on email. I can be with them and still be working at the same time ... If I didn't, I wouldn't be able to get my job done."

Multitasking is a crucial part of Musk's strategy - as is working for as many hours as possible.

To keep his work day on track, Musk forgoes most phone calls.

Elon Musk with CTO Martin Halliwell, SES Satellites, at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, after a SpaceX ...
Elon Musk with CTO Martin Halliwell, SES Satellites, at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, after a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket blasted off from the space center. RED HUBER

He also prefers to use an obscure email address to prevent people from spamming his inbox.

He doesn't spend much time on meals.

Musk usually takes his lunch during a meeting, and he manages to wolf it down in just five minutes.

He ends up getting most of his calories later in the day.

Elon Musk with his current partner, actress Amber Heard, this year on Australia's Gold Coast. Sundays are usually spent ...
Elon Musk with his current partner, actress Amber Heard, this year on Australia's Gold Coast. Sundays are usually spent traveling or staying at his Bel Air mansion.

"Business dinners are probably where I eat way too much," he told Auto Bild.

When it comes to food, one of his favourites is Diet Coke, thanks to "some infernal ingredient".

Musk told Auto Bild that he had since cut back on the soda.

CBS previously reported on the tech mogul's preference for French food, barbecue, and whiskey.

To stay in shape, Musk usually hits the gym about once or twice a week.

Despite his busy life, he also carves out enough time to read.

Some of his favourite titles include the fantasy classic The Lord of the Rings, biographies of innovators like Benjamin Franklin and Albert Einstein, and an obscure 87-year-old history book on adventurers called Twelve Against the Gods.

Musk may be a bookworm, but that doesn't mean he can't party.

Once he's up, Elon Musk launches into a blistering schedule that breaks his time into a series of five-minute slots.
Once he's up, Elon Musk launches into a blistering schedule that breaks his time into a series of five-minute slots. ChinaFotoPress

The entrepreneur's legendary bashes have included a birthday party at an English castle that turned into a big game of hide-and-seek, and inviting a knife-thrower to pop balloons that he held between his legs.

When all is said and done, Musk usually doesn't crash until 1am.

That late bedtime isn't too surprising for a man who's busy trying to do things like revolutionise the way we drive and send humans to Mars.

Get the latest Tesla stock price here.

This story first appeared in Business Insider. Read it here or follow BusinessInsider Australia on Facebook.

Elon Musk prefers to use an obscure email address to prevent people from spamming his inbox.
Elon Musk prefers to use an obscure email address to prevent people from spamming his inbox. Jason Merritt

BusinessInsider.com.au