What happened to Elon Musk's assistant when she asked for a promotion

In his 2015 book, "Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future," Ashlee Vance shares the story of how Musk stopped working with his longtime executive assistant in early 2014.

According to Vance, the assistant, Mary Beth Brown, asked Musk for a significant raise after she'd been working with him for 12 years. In response, Musk told Brown to take two weeks off, during which he would assume her responsibilities and see whether she was critical to his success.

When Brown returned, Musk told her he didn't need her anymore.

Musk also told Vance that he offered Brown another position at the company but that she never returned to the office after that.

He continued: "Mary Beth was an amazing assistant for over 10 yrs, but as company complexity grew, the role required several specialists vs one generalist."

"MB was given 52 weeks of salary & stock in appreciation for her great contribution & left to join a small firm, once again as a generalist," Musk said.

The idea of proving your worth to a company through a test of this type is pretty extreme, but it's a solid lesson in knowing what you're worth to your organization.

According to Lynn Taylor you'll want to do an "audit" of your responsibilities. Take 15 minutes one day to think about what exactly you're working on.

Above all, Taylor said, "you want to make your boss need you — not just have you on board." So consider what makes your boss successful and how can you align yourself with that, she said.

Source: Business Insider

Junior Trader Stefan Panteleev

Business Insider: Elon Musk reportedly gave his assistant a 2-week test when she asked for a big raise — what happened to her is an important career lesson

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