I know what you’re thinking; “What? But Jobs passed away due to poor health?” This may be true, but consider this: Steve Jobs was a hero to millions of people, and probably the world’s best-loved CEO (and gave way to the idea that we can “fall in love” with a CEO). When he died last year, there was an outpouring of public sympathy that has never been seen for any other business person.
A few weeks ago my wife and I watched a really inspiring documentary with a depressing title: “Fat Sick and Nearly Dead.” The documentary tells the story of Joe Cross, a man from Australia who was overweight, in his forties, unhealthy, and on steroidal medication to treat an auto-immune disease related to his diet and weight. Joe was a fun-loving guy who loved to eat, and it showed – unfortunately he had gotten to a point in life where he was in constant discomfort and facing the prospect of long-term damage to his health (and long-term reduction in his life expectancy).
Professional basketball is on hiatus as the NBA lockout continues, with sputtering negotiations between the players and owners. The players are demanding what they see as a fair share of the revenues generated by their talents and hard work, while the owners are asking players to take a pay cut in order to correct what they feel are structural problems with the NBA business model.
Even though the NBA lockout is a dispute between millionaires and billionaires, whether or not you’re a basketball fan, there are several personal finance lessons here for all of us:
Maximize your peak earning years. The average NBA career lasts only a few years, and most players will never make this much money again in their lives. If the 2011 season gets cancelled and the NBA players miss out on a full season of basketball, those are millions of dollars that they’re never getting back. Most “regular” people who are not professional athletes hit their peak earning years during their 50s. This is when you’re at the peak of your career; you’re experienced, you might be a manager or supervisor, and you’re more valuable to your company than ever before. So if you’re in your peak earning years, it might not be the best time to lose a job or quit your job to start a business – the risks and opportunity costs are greater than ever before.
