Elon Musk-Thinking Forward | A tale of the man who made magic

People take risks, consider the impossible, and dream extraordinarily daily. El
on Musk has made these tasks his everyday reality. Through his innovation and pr
ofitability with companies like PayPal, SpaceX, Tesla Motors, and SolarCity, Mus
k consistently proves his ability to think outside the norms. As a revolutionary
entrepreneur, Elon Musk ponders every minute detail in his larger-than-life ide
as. Musk has the unprecedented ability to recognize a hurdle with humanity, such
as renewable energy, and then innovate. He refines his ideas, and then he profi
ts: both monetarily and humanitarianly. Elon Musk is a forward thinker. Elon Mus
k showed signs of who he would become at a very young age. His father, a South A
frican, "generally disliked technology and especially computers" (Elon Enthusias
t). Elon was born in Pretoria, South Africa in 1971, and by age twelve he had ta
ught himself computer programming. Musk saved up funds from his allowance and pu
rchased his own computer because his parents "refused to use computers and said
they would never amount to anything" (Elon Enthusiast). Soon after he bought hi
s computer, he sold the code to his first project, a video game called Blastar,
for $500. This would be his first of many profitable projects.
Elon Musk graduated from Pretoria Boys High School in 1988 and then
moved to Canada. There, he attended Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario for
two years. Following that, Musk transferred to the Wharton School at the Univers
ity of Pennsylvania. There, he received undergraduate degrees in physics and bus
iness and then moved to California to begin his doctorate from Stanford Universi
ty. He attended classes for "exactly two days" (Elon Musk Profiled) before decid
ing to pursue his entrepreneurial interests.
Elon Musk's first web project was a company called Zip2, a company h
e founded with his brother. Zip2 created and marketed white-glove Internet "city
guides" that he sold to newspapers around the country. Musk's skill and ability
in securing contracts with both The New York Times and the Chicago Tribune woul
d set the standard for many business deals in the future. On the coattails of Zi
p2's success, in March of 1999 Musk co-founded X.com. "X.com was a revolutionary
online financial services and email payment company" (Gergson) that was later r
e-named PayPal. Much of PayPal's early success was credited directly to Musk, wh
o "spent hours and days in the basement, formulating and implementing viral grow
th campaigns" (Gergson). When PayPal was acquired by eBay in October of 2002 for
$1.5 billion, Musk owned 11.7% of PayPal's shares. He became an overnight multi
-millionaire. From this sale, Musk founded his next company, a space company: Sp
ace Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX.1192-1816-3237-2620-1227-7583
SpaceX was a perfect playground for Musk to show the world he was no
t just in the business of developing and manufacturing space vehicles, but that
he also had an interest in furthering the human race. "Elon Musk recognized that
although we took hundreds of millions of years to evolve as humans, we humans a
lso invented nuclear and ballistic technology that could extinct the planet in a
matter of seconds" (Gergson). Sooner or later, "we must expand life beyond this
green and blue ball-or go extinct" (Elon Enthusiast). Elon Musk decided to do s
omething about it, and made SpaceX to develop and manufacture space vehicles wit
h an emphasis on advancing space technologies. Musk noted that cost is this sect
or's greatest challenge, and vigorously attacked the idea of bringing the cost o
f space flight down low enough to make for-fare space travel (and eventual inter
planetary habitation) feasible.
Elon Musk was not done yet. In 2008, shortly before the financial cr
isis, Musk entered into agreements to lead the Series A financing of Tesla Motor
s. After said crisis, Musk assumed leadership as CEO and also Chief of Product D
esign. Musk set out to build a road vehicle that not only was extremely energy e
fficient, used renewable sources, and was fun to drive, but one that would also
make living on Earth easier. Enter the Tesla Roadster. The Tesla Roadster was th
e world's first completely electric car. The Roadster went on sale in 2009 to pr

ivate buyers for $100,000. Musk was doing something else revolutionary: "rather
than having consumers go through the awful practice of using car dealerships, I
want them to buy directly from us" (Elon Musk Profiled). This new form of auto s
ales infuriated dealership owners and fueled Musk's passion for furthering innov
ation. On June 22, 2010, Tesla began delivery of its $50,000 four-door Model S s
edan, and again offered it only directly to consumers. "Our next vehicle will be
priced for the average consumer at $30,000, and it will change everything" (Elo
n Musk Profiled).
Part of Musk's unique skillset is the ability to accept criticism an
d explain. When asked how he expected consumers (and the marketplace) to accept
a vehicle that had no alternate fuel source; he simply shows his statistics. "Th
e Model S can go over 200 miles without a recharge. That means that when a typic
al consumer takes a trip in their Model S, they will be able to drive for around
three hours before having to recharge" (Elon Enthusiast). When faced with the t
ime comparison of a traditional gasoline fill-up versus a full vehicle battery c
harge, Musk again chose to innovate: he invented a charging system "that will ch
arge a vehicle good for another 160 miles in a little over twenty minutes. You c
an plug your car in, eat lunch, and have enough energy to drive across the state
afterwards" (Elon Enthusiast).
Looking forward, Musk remains optimistic about his continued profita
bility and his successes in furthering humankind. His latest project is an energ
y company called SolarCity. SolarCity aims to free consumers from the electricit
y companies by installing solar fixtures on their homes. "We will offer complete
ly free installation, free equipment, and a lower monthly bill than anyone is pa
ying now for electricity. Human's ability to harness the sun's enormous amount o
f energy will ensure our sustainable existence" (Elon Enthusiast). It is not coi
ncidental that his car company's products consume the same energy his power comp
any provides. If SolarCity expands like Elon Musk plans, solar energy will be th
e plurality in only eighteen years.
It is not often a game-changer like Elon Musk comes into the world.
Through Musk's extraordinary risks, "the world has literally become a better pla
ce and it will continue to do so long as Musk is inventing" (Elon Enthusiast). H
e sees solutions in things that most consider impossible. "Musk is an astute bus
inessman" (Gergson) and is ready and willing to overcome any obstacle tossed his
way. Elon Musk is a forward thinker.