Born in Edmonton in Canada in 1941, Ebbers spent his early years there and enrolled at the University of Alberta, but left after one year. Several years later he enrolled at Mississippi College in the United States and graduated in 1967 with a degree in physical education. In later life he was grateful for the education he had received at Mississippi College and was very generous to it in terms of financial support. Ebbers married in 1968 and for several years did a variety of jobs, including coaching basketball at a local high school and working in a garment manufacturing company. After a few years he left the garment factory to buy a motel and restaurant
In his early business career, Ebbers acquired a reputation for being careful with business expenses and being skilful in making deals. He bought more motels and successfully built up a sizeable motel chain, Master Corporation. His early business model was based on the theory that a motel could double in value after five years and in the meantime aim to show a reasonable operating profit. But in 1983 another business opportunity presented itself. In that year, a court ruling ordered AT&T’s Bell System to allow competition in the long-distance telephone market. AT&T was forced to lease long-distance phone lines to small regional companies, who could then sell the capacity on to other users.