Good Afternoon, and welcome back to ToTheUnknown,
The newsletter that does more for humanity than colonizing Mars.

So, let me explain—this post was supposed to drop yesterday.

But, uuuh… I forgot yesterday was Wednesday.

I know, unacceptable.

Call the police.

But I didn’t write it in my journal (yes, I have one, where I keep—daily, monthly, yearly goals, the whole thing), so my brain just… deleted the task.

I’m sorry 😅 

Shit happens…

But don’t worry—I’m making it up to you.

Right now, I’m literally writing this in school. I should probably be studying history, but hey, priorities.

And today’s priority?

The mith, the legend – Elon Musk.

If anyone makes real life feel like a sci-fi movie, it’s him.

The guy went from getting bullied as a kid to becoming the richest person in the world, launching rockets, building electric cars, and trying to put a chip in your brain.

Love him or hate him, you cannot ignore him.

And today, I’m breaking down his entire journey—stage by stage—so you can steal his mindset, learn from his struggles, and (maybe) build your own empire.

Here’s how he did it:

• 👶 Elon the Kid (0-17): The Nerd Who Didn’t Fit In

• 👦 Elon the Hustler (18-24): Eating Hot Dogs to Survive

• 👨 Elon the Entrepreneur (24-31): The First Millions

• 👨‍🔬 Elon the Mad Scientist (31-40): Betting It All on Space & Cars

• 🌍️ Elon the Visionary (40+): Taking Over the World (and Mars)

• 🤓 What We Can Learn from Elon: Final Takeaway

👶 Elon the Kid (0-17): The Nerd Who Didn’t Fit In

Born in June 28, 1971 (this makes him 53 rn. TBH, looking alright for his age) in Pretoria, South Africa, Elon was that kid—the one who read sci-fi books instead of playing outside, got lost in his own world, and constantly annoyed his parents with deep questions.

He was smart, but also socially awkward (Musk himself has mentioned that he has Asperger's syndrome, which may have contributed to his social challenges during childhood) and bullied in school.

Like, badly.

He once got thrown down a staircase and had to be hospitalized.

Instead of crying about it, he turned to computers.

At age 12, he taught himself to code and created a video game called Blastar, which he sold for $500.

His first business deal before he even hit puberty.

Lesson: 

Pain can either break you or fuel you. Elon didn’t fit in, so he doubled down on what made him different—his brain.

👦 Elon the Hustler (18-24): Eating Hot Dogs to Survive

At 17, Elon left South Africa with one goal: get to America, the land of opportunity.

Musk attended the University of Pretoria for only five months before moving. He managed to sneak into Canada (his mom was Canadian, so it wasn’t illegal), worked odd jobs—cleaning boilers, shoveling grain, and cutting logs—until he made enough money to get into Queen’s University, and later transferred to UPenn in the U.S.

He lived like a broke college student, renting a small house with his brother, turning it into an illegal nightclub to make extra cash (one of his early entrepreneurial experiments).

Instead of partying, he spent most nights reading books about physics and business.

Then came a crucial decision: he dropped out of Stanford after just 2 days to chase the internet boom.

Lesson: 

Be willing to take risks. Elon could’ve played it safe, but he bet on himself. No risk, no reward.

👨 Elon the Entrepreneur (24-31): The First Millions

1995: Musk co-founded Zip2 with his brother Kimbal and Greg Kouri, a company that helped newspapers move online.

He had no apartment, slept in his office, showered at the YMCA, and worked 7 days a week.

The hustle paid off—he sold Zip2 for $307 million in 1999.

His cut?

Only $22 million.

Instead of retiring, he reinvested everything into his next company: X.com, which later became PayPal.

The guy was relentless.

In 2002, eBay bought PayPal for $1.5 billion.

Musk walked away with $180 million in his bank account.

Time to chill?

Nope.

Lesson: 

Most people would stop after making millions. Elon doubled down. When you have momentum, push harder.

👨‍🔬 Elon the Mad Scientist (31-40): Betting It All on Space & Cars

With his PayPal money, Musk did something insane: he invested everything into three companies—SpaceX, Tesla, and SolarCity.

That’s right, he went broke again after being a multi-millionaire.

• SpaceX (2002) – Because NASA wasn’t ambitious enough.

• Tesla (2004) – Because gas cars suck.

• SolarCity (2006) – Because the world needs clean energy.

The early years were brutal.

SpaceX’s first three rocket launches failed.

Tesla was losing money.

He had to borrow money for rent. In 2008, he was days away from bankruptcy.

Then, a miracle:

• SpaceX’s fourth rocket worked. NASA gave him a $1.6 billion contract.

• Tesla found investors and launched the Model S, the car that changed everything.

Musk had officially cheated death.

Lesson: 

Success isn’t instant. SpaceX failed 3 times before it worked. Most people quit after the first or second failure. Musk didn’t.

🌍️ Elon the Visionary (40+): Taking Over the World (and Mars)

By 2012, Tesla was skyrocketing.

By 2015, SpaceX was landing rockets.

By 2020, Musk became the richest person in the world.

By 2022, he bought Twitter for $44 billion and rebranded it as X in 2023 – Because he loves chaos.

But he didn’t stop there. He launched:

• Neuralink (brain chips)

• The Boring Company (tunnels)

• Starlink (global internet)

Oh, and he’s still planning to colonize Mars.

Lesson: 

Big goals attract big results. Musk doesn’t think small, and that’s why he’s unstoppable.

🤓 What We Can Learn from Elon: Final Takeaway

1/ Be obsessed. The guy reads entire textbooks for fun.

2/ Take big risks. Dropped out of Stanford, reinvested everything, almost went broke.

3/ Fail forward. 3 failed rocket launches didn’t stop him. Neither should your failures.

4/ Think long-term. Most people want quick money. Musk thinks 50 years ahead.

Elon Musk isn’t perfect (far from it), but his mindset?

That’s something worth stealing.

That’s a wrap!

Yeah, yeah, I know—it was supposed to drop yesterday. But hey, late is better than never… unless we’re talking about parachutes.

The good news? You still got your weekly dose of knowledge, inspiration, and just enough chaos to keep things interesting.

The even better news? Sunday’s post is coming in hot (assuming I remember what day it is this time). Expect news, notes, and some life updates—on time (hopefully).

See you then.

P.S. Go check out Jacob Blanchet on X. Smart dude. Good friend. And if there’s one thing you need in life, it’s a solid network. Because at the end of the day… your net worth = your network.