Inside Elon Musk’s Candid Biography: Secrets, Struggles, and Surprises
Tesla Chief Elon Musk has opened up like never before in his new biography that has been making headlines ever since its release. Penned by Walter Isaacson, the book offers a behind-the-scenes look into the life of the world’s richest man. Titled ‘Elon Musk,’ the book sheds light on the billionaire’s childhood, love life, children, relationship with parents, and much more.
According to publisher Simon and Schuster, Isaacson spent two years interviewing Musk himself. He also spent this time speaking with his family, friends, and colleagues.
“He didn’t have the emotional receptors that produce everyday kindness and warmth and a desire to be liked. He was not hardwired to have empathy,” Isaacson writes while describing Musk. “Or, to put it in less technical terms, he could be an asshole,” he further explains. Now, why did Isaacson give such a harsh description? Let’s find out.
Musk Cuts His Own Hair
The world’s richest man sometimes prefers to cut his own hair rather than pay a professional for this tedious task. In one of the chapters, Isaacson describes Musk sitting in a SpaceX conference room, “sporting a stark fade haircut that looked like it was done by a soon-to-be-executed barber of a North Korean leader.” Musk admitted to cutting this hair by himself. However, he got someone else to trim the back of his head.
Musk Has a Secret Third Child With Grimes
The names of Musk and Singer Grimes’ children have been a topic of interest every now and then. The duo welcomed their first child, a son, in May 2020. He was named X Æ A-Xii and the entire internet was talking about how to pronounce the name of the new baby boy. After this, the duo welcomed a daughter named Exa Dark Sideræl Musk in December 2021. The world believed that the couple were parents to just these two kids. However, a new revelation was made through the excerpts of this biography. The third child of Musk and Grimes is named Techno Mechanicus Musk, which means Circumference/Diameter. The secret child was birthed by a surrogate mother last year.
Relationship With Father
Isaacson describes Musk’s relationship with his father, Errol Musk, as a source of trauma that remains with him. “He developed into a tough yet vulnerable man-child with an exceedingly high tolerance for risk, a craving for drama, an epic sense of mission, and a maniacal intensity that was callous and at times destructive,” he explains. A friend states that when Musk agreed to meet his father in 2016 it was the only time he saw his hands trembling. Mr Isaacson writes, “There are certain people who occupy a demon’s corner of Musk’s head space. They trigger him, turn him dark, and rouse a cold anger. His father is number one”.
Musk Suffers From Mental Health Crisis
In 2017, Musk had to be persuaded into giving one Tesla earnings call. Just when they were about to proceed, the then-Tesla president Jon McNeill found him lying on the floor of a conference room in dark. It took about 30 minutes to get Musk to move. Musk said that he could not do it and claimed that he was bipolar. His friends describe his crisis as “open loop.” “He came from a comatose state,” McNeill explained in the book, “to a place where we could actually get him in the chair, get other people in the room, get him through his opening statement, and then cover for him.”
Musk’s 19-year-old Daughter Does Not Want to Spend Time With Him
In the book, Musk opened up about the rift between him and his 19-year-old daughter. She has previously made headlines for being granted permission to legally change her name to Vivian Jenna Wilson in 2022. Musk has claimed that Jenna developed a hatred for wealth and capitalism. She often had clashes with Musk saying, “I hate you and everything you stand for.” Musk further mentions that his situation with Jenna became more complicated after she became a “full communist” who thought that “anyone rich is evil.” Musk partly blamed a “progressive woke indoctrination” that infiltrated Jenna’s school. “I’ve made many overtures but she doesn’t want to spend time with me,” he explained.
Bullied As a Child
When Elon Musk was a kid in South Africa, he was regularly beaten by bullies, states the description of the book. One day he was pushed down some concrete steps by a group of miscreants. They kicked him until his face was swollen. To recover from all the injuries, he had to stay at the hospital for weeks.
Musk Had a Near Death Experience in 2001
In 2001, Musk was diagnosed with falciparum malaria, the most dangerous variant of the disease. The worst part was that it took so long to diagnose the disease that Musk’s condition deteriorated more than expected. The high white-blood-cell count was initially mistaken as viral meningitis. Isaacson writes that Musk felt dizzy, experienced recurring chills, and started throwing up in an emergency room. As per the book, his “pulse was barely perceptible.” It got so bad that a former colleague wrote in a company email, “He was actually only hours from death.”
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- Elon Musk’s Haircut
- Elon Musk’s Secret Third Child
- Elon Musk’s Relationship With Father
- Elon Musk’s Mental Health Crisis
- Elon Musk’s Relationship with His Daughter
- Elon Musk’s Childhood Bullying
- Elon Musk’s Near Death Experience