Kathy Furgang - Elon Musk: Entrepreneur

His mother, Maye, is from Canada. She was a model and dietician. His father, Errol, was an . Elon has a younger brother named Kimbal and a younger sister named Tosca. When Elon was young, his parents divorced. His mother moved back to Canada.

Elon lived with his father. They did not get along. Elon lived with his father, Errol, after his parents divorced. The two have always had a rocky relationship. LEARNING THE COMPUTER Elon had a difficult time at school in South Africa. He was bullied by classmates.

Once he was hurt so badly that he ended up in the hospital. One thing that helped Elon feel good growing up was the computer. When he was ten years old, Elon taught himself a computer language called BASIC. Elon Says:I like video games. Thats what got me into software engineering when I was a kid. At sixteen, Elon and his brother tried to open a video game arcade near his high school. At sixteen, Elon and his brother tried to open a video game arcade near his high school.

The city stopped the plan before the arcade opened. AN EARLY PROJECT Elon used his new knowledge of the computer language to create a video game. He called it Blastar. It was similar to the classic video game Space Invaders. After making the game, Elon sold it to a magazine for $500. He was only twelve years old at the time. CHAPTER 2 AN ENTREPRENEURS SPIRIT In South Africa, young people must train in the military.

Elon wanted to avoid this. He wanted to live in the United States instead. Elon did some research. He found out that he could first move to Canada because his mother lived there. Then he could move to the United States. So at seventeen, he moved from South Africa to Canada.

Elon went to college in Canada. As planned, he then switched to a college in the United States. During these years he started to plan for a future in science, technology, and business. Elon with his mother, Maye. She taught her children to be independent and work hard. During school, Elon made extra money fixing and building students computers in his dorm room. Elon started his first successful company with his brother, Kimbal.

STARTING OUT IN THE WORLD After graduating from college, Elon moved to California. He wanted to make an impact on the world. He decided on three major areas where he wanted to make a difference. These areas were the internet, , and space exploration. Elon started with the internet. In 1995, he worked with his brother, Kimbal, to start a software company.

It provided maps to newspaper companies. After four years, the brothers sold the company for hundreds of millions of dollars. Elon used some of that money to start his next business. It was the first online money transfer company. This company, PayPal, is still popular today. Elon with Peter Thiel, the CEO of PayPal, in 2000 Elon Says:If somethings important enough, you should try. Elon with Peter Thiel, the CEO of PayPal, in 2000 Elon Says: If somethings important enough, you should try.

Even if the probable outcome is failure.