Tuesday, May 12, 2015
So You're Off to Make Millions...
So what will you do with your money? Very few people make millions and KEEP making millions. Its usually for a short period of time. Often it is a one shot chance from selling a company, inheritance, lottery, etc. Here is an interesting article that found the top 25 NFL draft picks 25 years ago to see where they are now. Since they and you were confident they would make lots of money.... take a look.
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AHirani, Prd 9
ReplyDeleteI read somewhere that the skill doesn't matter - only the scarcity of that skill does. I guess that's true too considering that not everyone can play football at that level. In hindsight, I guess it's justified to assume that the players will make lots of money, and to some extent, I'm sure they do generate that kind of revenue. I guess what that statement forgot to mention was the money management behind the incoming flow of money. I don't expect to make millions every year nor do I expect many of the people I know to do the same, but I guess what will differentiate me among with everyone else would be how we manage our money. It would've been nice to see the specifics of how these NFL players managed their money so maybe we could emulate the successes too.
It's interesting to see what life is like for those who have experienced what it's like to be rich. It's kind of interesting to see what some people would do with all that money, and it's also sad to see the destruction that happens to some people when they have more money than they know what to do with. This is great at showing how money isn't everything and how it can't buy happiness. Obviously, some of these guys were smart with their money and listened to people's advice when they were told not to just spend it all. We ALL have to be careful with how we spend our money, even people with more money than they could have ever imagined. I definitely don't see myself making lots and lots of money in the future, but I think it's important for everyone to remember once we start making our own money.
ReplyDeleteThis is not suppressing to me most players earn a lot of money but were raised with no money. They don't know how to handle the situation, they just going on spending sprees, they save nothing because they think oh ill make more next year. They don't think about eventually they have to stop playing football. I know that eventually i wont want to be a program developer and make tons of money but i will be smart enough to save for my self and not make the same mistake.
ReplyDelete-Thomas F
I don't think I get this article. I don't find it surprising that football players have normal lives after their careers. Football athletes are often depicted as some sort of ridiculous beasts that only know football and don't care about anything else. The article didn't really talk about how each player handled their money. It just briefly mentioned some individuals and where they are now, but not how they get there. AA Per 9
ReplyDeletethe point is not how you make money, instead, it is how you manage money. when we think about money, we should treat it as a long run. we often see basketball players make millions a lot and go bankrupt a few years after their retirements. why? because they do not know how to manage their money. they can spend a few thousand in a club for one night. they can buy lambos, ferrari, whatever you name it. they are not insightful. we should think if a player make five millions a year for 15 years. it will be 75 millions. from their entry to nba to their retirements, they have to spend 75millions.evenly, so it is roughly a million a year. if they think like this, they have a very high quality life for the rest of their lives, instead of wasting all the money in a few years.
ReplyDeleteper 9 Yan
I thought this was a fun article to read and it portrayed these once famous athletes as regular down-to-earth human beings. It's nice to hear that a lot of them continued to live their lives and didn't become as caught up in the fame and money as celebrities nowadays seem to be. The fact that they can casually carry on a regular conversation with the reporter and not constantly refer to "the glory days" says a lot about their characters and shows that their years in the spotlight may have been the most exciting years, but weren't necessarily the best years of their lives. They can look forward to the future and what's to come.
ReplyDelete- VL Period 8
If I do become wealthy, I think that I would save more than half of it for future spending. With the rest, I might invest some of the money in stocks or buy real estate property. Additionally, I will also have a disposable income to delve into for miscellaneous spending on food and clothes shopping.
ReplyDeleteOn a side note, I really enjoyed reading a follow-up on the top athletes in the nation. It was cool to see the different lives the athletes are living after having such a grandiose lives as NFL player's.
Avital B.
This article is really eye-opening. Many people believe that once they get millions of dollars, they will be financially set for the rest of their life. However, many stories show that that is not the case. These football players had millions of dollars, which was worth so much more 25 years ago. Now, they're living like the average American. Some of them are even in a worse financial state than many ordinary families.
ReplyDeleteK.K. Period 8
Robert Lis - Pd. 9
ReplyDeleteThis article was very interesting to me because it made me realize how money affects each person in a different way. Just like these former NFL players, some people might invest the money and save some, and other people might just blow it all and turn to drugs. It is important to know how to manage your money, and put it to good use rather than spending it all in one day on pointless things. It was also interesting to read about how each of the former NFL players turned out to be years later. I never expected any of these players to end up as they did. I never would have thought that people with millions of dollars could end up on the streets and committing suicide. It is shocking to me how each of these players ended up having lives that were completely different from each other. I would have expected them all to be living in mansions, and living a luxurious life. This article opened my eyes to reality and I will definitely think about how to spend my money wisely in the future.
This article pertaining NFL players sheds light on the reality of professional sports players after retiring from the league. While athletes are ostensibly living in the lap of luxury during their careers, the truth of the matter is that life after sports can be financially troubling as they become "regular people". The last line of the article really hits home as the author makes a good point that the fame comes at a great cost.
ReplyDelete-K.C. Per. 8
This article is very eye-opening. Everyone thinks that everything is easy after making it to the NFL, but this article shows that this is clearly not the case. Sure, a lot of players make a ton of money when they over the course of their careers, but if they do not manage their money correctly, they can easily lose it all, like many of the players on this list have. NFL careers are also extremely short, with players who are most definitely out of work by the age of 35. Players leave the league with a host of nagging injuries as well, ones that will plague them for the rest of their lives, just like the player who went to his mother's house, expecting her to be there even though she died 6 months earlier. If they do not manage their money correctly, they will have to file for bankruptcy like so many players have. This once again highlights the importance of managing money correctly and not spending crazily if you happen to strike it rich in a short amount of time.
ReplyDeleteIf I had millions of dollars right now I would go on a shopping spree. This mindset is what drains the millions people have won or earned in the long run. With millions in the bank, people think they can live extravagant lifestyles: expensive cars, mansions, vacation homes, etc. It is possible if the money supply was constant but for athletes who have a limited career, their money is limited as well. These football players were used to making profound amounts of money but when it was time to retire, some became depressed or committed crimes. They became dependent on the large income that came with playing for the NFL but did not plan for a future without football. As a result, they had to start their “second lives” of a life without football and its financial advantages
ReplyDeleteAB pd. 9
I think the stories of all these players are so tragic. After they spent all of their youth destroying and working their bodies to make it in the professional leagues and now they have so little or nothing at all. Some live regular lives but others end up permanently injured and unable to live normally. Now with all of the lawsuits, players are getting more back for what they’ve given to the NFL, but it’s still not enough. Before anyone goes into professional sports I think they should read this article and know what’s ahead of them. –A.L. Period 8
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion being first round means you probably get a longer, harder look and maybe second and third chances, but expectations are also higher for you and you still have to perform. Everything that figures in life in general, including hard work, luck, injuries, favoritism, etc., comes into play, but in the NFL, and probably most pro sports in general, it is more about merit and less about bias, politics and prejudice than in other human endeavors. At least, relatively speaking.- Yash Shah Pd 8
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion being first round means you probably get a longer, harder look and maybe second and third chances, but expectations are also higher for you and you still have to perform. Everything that figures in life in general, including hard work, luck, injuries, favoritism, etc., comes into play, but in the NFL, and probably most pro sports in general, it is more about merit and less about bias, politics and prejudice than in other human endeavors. At least, relatively speaking.- Yash Shah Pd 8
ReplyDeleteI think that this article shows an important lesson that you should not just take what you are given at the time for granted or it could come back to burn you. Just because you win the lottery and get a large amount of money once doesn't mean you can just waste it all and still expect to have a large amount of money. Karan L. Period 8
ReplyDeleteThis article basically addresses one of my major decisions to make in life- once I start making money for myself, what am I going to do with it? I guess I better start thinking about that soon, because this article, along with discussions we've had over the year, all hone down to one message- time is money. Thus, once I start making money, it's important that I allocate it wisely and start saving it early, otherwise, my money won't have enough time to multiply and financial security in the future may not be a possibility. Thus, this article has me starting to think about my financial future.
ReplyDelete-M.S. PD 8
I think the real lesson learnt from reading this article is that even people with millions of dollars, such as these NFL football players, are just normal people living normal lives. Some are successful with businesses after their NFL careers, some are living their life with family and friends, and some are in depression or serious debt. Nevertheless, the article is a telling piece of how life moves on from that "short period of time" or "one shot chance" of being rich or famous.
ReplyDeleteI also must commend how long this article must have taken to actually publish. The research must have been over years. Evidence? The picture of Junior Seau, who was one of the "more easily tracked players after he retired. Junior Seau died in 2012. Yet the article was published April 30, 2015.
Period 8 Jim Tse
I think that it is smart to invest in other things when your career in supports is starting to come towards its finish line. If many aren't smart, they end up in a lot of financial trouble and if many are smart, they can live comfortably. Reading thus article reminded me of Kobe Bryant who is towards the end of his career and has made over $320 million dollars. He is still looking for business after his career so he can stay afloat. And that's why he created Kobe Inc. to help him after his career. Although Kobe hasn't gone to college, he is a smart financial person and knows he will succeed after he hangs up his shoes and calls it quits.
ReplyDelete- Noved G Period 9
I read a statistic that most of the people that end up winning the lottery end up bankrupt because of how overwhelmed they are by the money. This is very similar to the early draft picks. This also relates to how my bank account automatically puts 25 dollars into my savings account every month just to make sure I continue saving. I think people get overwhelmed by the amount of money they are receiving and start spending blindly only to lose everything they have earned. Chirag Soni. Pd.8
ReplyDeleteI think its interesting to see how some of these players wound up losing a lot of their money, despite making millions in their early twenties. It shows the importance of managing your finances and planning for the future. This is especially true for NFL players since for football players, salaries are often less and careers are often shorter. In addition most of these players do not have great money making options after their career. Those who plan for the future are the ones who keep their riches.
ReplyDeleteE.S. per 8
A lot of people look up to these famous NFL players because they “have it all”- the money, the cars, the houses, and the ladies. But do these idolized people really have it all? Maybe temporarily, but as their careers end only a good few names are remembered along with their stats, and it is unfortunate and also not their fault. These football players along with majority of Americans are financially illiterate and can easily take advantage of the money right in front of them. Who is to blame? The football players are too busy playing football and other Americans are too busy making a living for themselves. I think this article is not written to reflect on former athletes and their unsuccessful or successful retirements because no one actually cares, it is actually to teach civilians that famous people can “have it all”…until they don’t. And from there, do people even bother to remember them? Probably not as much. This article should be a wake up call to people so they can be more aware of what they have and how they can manage it. I wish the article went into more depth with this sentence…” the players were far more than football players, able to reflect on their fame and the hard work it took to achieve it, but also cognizant that it was at times illusory and came at great cost.” There is more to take away from it, I believe. -SS, Pd 9
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion these players are living the dream. as long as you don't mess up your life by getting arrested or being stupid with your money, you can live well and still prosper. These people are able to go on vacations, fulfill life goals, follow hobbies etc.. because they made a good amount of money for a time and now they are being smart about spending it. If i were a player who had the luxury of making millions a year, i would be smart about it. I would always put a large portion of my earnings into a savings account, and then with what money i allowed myself to spend i would use for fun. - Yash Shah Pd 8
ReplyDeleteI think its really cool how they ran "normal" lives after making millions. It must have been a difficult adjustment at first. But, you end up getting there. You get involved with kids, and their activities. It must also be a little sad that you had so much fame but now people don't even recognize you. I'm not sure what I would do with my millions. I don't think I would want my kids to get used to having so much. I'm not sure.
ReplyDeleteJanvi Pd 9
It’s weird seeing what happened to these football players after their fifteen minutes of fame. I think it goes to show you that anything can happen and all good things come to an end. I’m happy they were able to stay perseverant and bounce back up. For me I’ve always wanted to become a doctor. Hopefully things will pan out how I hope they will, but if they don’t it’s good to know that I can still move forward if my dream job doesn’t fall through.
ReplyDelete-TB
In terms of personal finance, I think the biggest takeaway from this article is that financial fulfillment is a moving goal. Reading the interactive feature portion of the article, I noticed that these players generally made several million dollars during a relatively short period of time, but many of them still had financial troubles (seemingly at a rate not much lower than that of the average person). Though I’m sure their salaries were highly taxed, most of these players made enough money to quite comfortably retire after their careers, and yet some of them were probably very financially irresponsible. This is probably also a lesson about personal finance in our own lives for the same reason.
ReplyDeleteKaran Singhal
AP Econ Pd. 9
Would you wish to attain your wildest dreams, but only fleetingly? Peaking early, forced to settle in for a lifetime of resting on old laurels and nostalgic memories of the golden days? Some of the players seem satisfied; others have had a rougher time settling back into the world of normal men. The successful seem to find solace in having something to do, a family to care for, and the world at ease. Relatively simple, without lavish spending or chasing the spotlight. Might be something to learn from there.
ReplyDelete-JW
Period 8 AP Economics
I think it's so interesting that these people aren't living lavishly for their whole life. I was always under the assumption that these major league athletes basically would have anything they wanted for as long as they wanted. I thought that they would continue to be as rich as they were after they retired. It's really weird to read about this because it gets me thinking about where I'll be. Ideally, I want to be a Computer Scientist until my kids get into college, and then retire from that to become a teacher. Now, teachers have a lower median income than a Computer Scientist, and considering that I'll be starting from scratch, I probably won't make as much. I was hoping that the wealth I acquired from my time as a Computer Scientist would help me, but, after reading this article, I'm not so sure now. I'm not sure if it was just a misuse of their wealth and whether or not the same will apply for me, but I'm definitely much more cautious of what the future will hold. I see now that even the most famous athletes who made more than I could ever dream aren't safe from the dangers of financial troubles.
ReplyDeleteBelal Taher Period 8 AP Econ
"The Class of ’90: Where Are They Now?" perfectly portrays the author's conclusion that those with millions can become nothing if they follow poor money management. Comparing players like Cortez Kennedy, who lived on a rigorous budget and today lives comfortably in an upscale golf community in Orlando, and Mark Carrier, who did not buy a car until after his rookie season, using the bonus he had received for winning the Defensive Rookie of the Year Award and now lives a successful life in coaching, to players like Percy Snow, who broke his ankle, failed to return to his starting spot, and endedup filing for bankruptcy, for poor planning of what to do after football. I think the biggest lesson to be learned is to invest a substantial amount of time now into planning for the future and you will be rewarded with a comfortable life.
ReplyDelete- Jugal
R.L. Period 8
ReplyDeleteI think it’s surprising to a lot of people to think that a person who once used to be so famous and wealthy is no longer living that same life after retirement. In my opinion, it’s especially harder for athletes and celebrities to stay in shape and maintain their success after retiring because their fame and fortune come quickly but disappear even more rapidly. They have to find other means of getting money other than playing football, which is a type of lifestyle that is hard to get used to. They are not immune to the harshness of the real world.
I think that this article is interesting because it show how important it is to keep track of money. The short lived nature of the wealth of these people demonstrate that having money means nothing if you don't know how to keep it. Eventually, it will run out. The lesson that I take away from this article is that with the procurement of wealth come temptations that gradually pick away at it, and without proper education as to how to maintain the wealth, a person can be ruined.
ReplyDeleteAP Econ PD. 8
Danny Cheng
After reading this article I was surprised to see that many of these first round picks from the 1990 NFL Draft, even those whom had relatively successful playing careers chose to or were forced to hold jobs after their playing days were over. You would think that most of these men who had big money contracts coming straight out of college would be set for life but as it seems some came across troubles throughout the rest of their adult life and money became harder to come by than a luxury. This just goes to show how important it is for everyone to get a college degree, including athletes as you never know what life may have in store for you down the road and if push comes to shove and you need another job later in life, a college degree will certainly aid with that.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if I already submitted a comment, so I will submit one more.
ReplyDeleteThis article was particularly interesting because it shows the downfalls with both conventional stereotypes, that athletic drafts will either make millions or plummet economically. It is nice to see that most athletes fall somewhere in the middle financially after they are drafted. On a more personal note, it is definitely reassuring to see that most people who are financially responsible eventually find means to some sort of positive end. All high school seniors have that fear that they have peaked in high school, similar to one of the more common stereotypes associated with athletes -- its nice to see that it is not the case.
Shweta Lodha
AP Econ Pd: 9
I was expecting the article to be about 25 players who made it big in the NFL but failed financially afterwards. It was somewhat true for a couple of them, but the majority seemed to be living a stable, fulfilling lives with their children. In the end, they're really not so different from everyone else; the stereotype that athletes are terrible financial managers, that they'll throw away all their money in the name of their former fame. This article really brought out their inner lives and that while some of them do fail, most will move on with their lives like everyone else.
ReplyDelete-Ben Jung pd. 9
It's crazy to see the drastic change in these players' lives. No one would even give them a second thought if they weren't playing for his/her favorite team, so I give my respect to the author of this article. But, seeing them move past their time in fame and live in the real world was definitely inspiring. They had it all, but had to work to make it all back after they left the League. I envy them because they (most of them) got to do what they love and make money doing it. Yes, they went through some hardships, but everyone does. I just cant imagine the transition itself from fame to almost invisible - its like culture shock in a way. I don't think I'll be a professional athlete (hey, but who knows) so I will probably start saving money from my first paycheck to protect myself incase of further emergencies.
ReplyDeleteKevin Chand
AP Econ Pd. 8
Honestly this wasn't too much of a surprise. Yeah I know that NFL players make millions of dollars, but I also understand that if you're not carful with it, then before you know it, its gone. I always used to hear stories of lottery winners just wasting all their winnings because they don't know how to handle that kind of cash. When your poor, or even middle class, and you suddenly win millions of dollars, you probably won't know what to do with the money. Logic dictates that you try to get rid of all your debt and save the rest for a rainy day. But when you have so much money, logic sometimes goes out the window. So seeing how these players live normal everyday lives isn't surprising at all. Also, they probably grew out of the the extravagant lifestyle. They have families now and probably have slowed down a lot. Personally, I think they're doing really well in life. They lived it up when they had all the excess cash, and now they're just slowing down and enjoying life. ~ TM Pd 8
ReplyDeleteIts interesting that players sometimes go bankrupt after their career is over. I guess its because they are too used to their life style when they were making millions.If I was making that kind of money i would have no idea on what to do with that kind of money. But the people that adjust to a normal life. It must be hard not wasting millions of dollars and not bat an eye
ReplyDelete-Eric C 9th period
Ken Belson’s article “N.F.L. First Round Picks, 25 Years Later and Hiding in Plain Sight” truly showcases the concept that at the end of the day, people are people. Although these athletes experienced moments of great fame that my peers and I are unlikely to ever witness for ourselves, that phase of their lives is now over. Consequently, they must adapt and carry on rather different lifestyles. Belson’s piece also highlights the importance of being financially literate. During their relatively short careers, these football players earned large sums of money, which, if managed with care, could last a lifetime. Nonetheless, this simply was not the case, and as a result, many of these former stars struggle to sustain healthy lives.
ReplyDelete- ZA (Period 8)
What I take from this article is that financial stability must be continuously worked on. You will not always be in your prime earning years. You must prepare for your future. It really is a learning process and you must be careful with your money -Won Park period 9
ReplyDelete