Why do so many NFL players go bankrupt?

[Schneed10]

Let's not sugarcoat it, you don't need an MBA, CFP, or read any financial self-help books to manage your money. You simply need basic arithmetic.

I have X amount of money. I spend Y per month. It will take me X divided by Y number of months before I run out of money. That simple.

The bottom line is these guys aren't thinking, at all. They simply WANT things. Want want want, with no regard to "should I".

[GMScud]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Let's not sugarcoat it, you don't need an MBA, CFP, or read any financial self-help books to manage your money. You simply need basic arithmetic.

I have X amount of money. I spend Y per month. It will take me X divided by Y number of months before I run out of money. That simple.

The bottom line is these guys aren't thinking, at all. They simply WANT things. Want want want, with no regard to "should I".

That's the thing though- a lot of them aren't even smart enough to care to divide X by Y, as you say. Not that they can't grasp the concept, they just don't give a shit. Zero foresight, and an inability to look even months into the future, let alone years. A lot of it is a lack of education and/or good parenting, and a lot of it is, as GusFrerotte mentioned, the Hip Hop Culture so to speak. Every single hip hop video/song you see/hear nowadays talks about nothing except jewelry, cars, money, drinking at the club, and other shortsighted possessions that do nothing to build wealth, rather just bleed it. But hey, if that's cool, trendy, and will get you laid and recognized, why not right?

Also, a lot of these guys who end up broke genuinely thought they were doing the right thing by investing and diversifying, only to be taken advantage of by attorneys, agents, representatives, etc who fed them BS promises of high returns only to milk them for every cent. Gotta surround yourself with the right people.

When I think about what I would do with wealth like this, it really, really annoys me to hear about these wasted fortunes.

[joethiesmanfan]

Originally Posted by GMScud

That's the thing though- a lot of them aren't even smart enough to care to divide X by Y, as you say. Not that they can't grasp the concept, they just don't give a shit. Zero foresight, and an inability to look even months into the future, let alone years. A lot of it is a lack of education and/or good parenting, and a lot of it is, as GusFrerotte mentioned, the Hip Hop Culture so to speak. Every single hip hop video/song you see/hear nowadays talks about nothing except jewelry, cars, money, drinking at the club, and other shortsighted possessions that do nothing to build wealth, rather just bleed it. But hey, if that's cool, trendy, and will get you laid and recognized, why not right?

Also, a lot of these guys who end up broke genuinely thought they were doing the right thing by investing and diversifying, only to be taken advantage of by attorneys, agents, representatives, etc who fed them BS promises of high returns only to milk them for every cent. Gotta surround yourself with the right people.

When I think about what I would do with wealth like this, it really, really annoys me to hear about these wasted fortunes.

Once again hip hop does not claim these clowns. If not for their benevolent benefactors they would be nothing. These fools are spoon fed what do you expect.

[GMScud]

Originally Posted by joethiesmanfan

Once again hip hop does not claim these clowns. If not for their benevolent benefactors they would be nothing. These fools are spoon fed what do you expect.

I'm not saying hip hop itself is solely responsible. It's more of a way of thinking that's perpetuated by the "hip hop culture" so to speak. The whole "look at how much money/material goods/women I have" mindset. Anyone watch the Mayweather/Mosley 24-7? Mayweather is a prime example. Goes to the mall with $20k in cash in his pocket just for fun, and brags about it the whole time. He said it comes from watching his father always have "knots of dough" in his pocket. You think anyone could convince Floyd that that's a poor lifestyle choice?

A lot of these guys grew up with nothing, so as much as it may be about the hip hop influence, a lot of it could be about an over-compensation for past insecurities. They were raised with no material goods, so now they have to have every toy imaginable to prove to the world that they made it.

[tryfuhl]

Originally Posted by GMScud

Also, a lot of these guys who end up broke genuinely thought they were doing the right thing by investing and diversifying, only to be taken advantage of by attorneys, agents, representatives, etc who fed them BS promises of high returns only to milk them for every cent. Gotta surround yourself with the right people.

Very true.

[saden1]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Let's not sugarcoat it, you don't need an MBA, CFP, or read any financial self-help books to manage your money. You simply need basic arithmetic.

I have X amount of money. I spend Y per month. It will take me X divided by Y number of months before I run out of money. That simple.

The bottom line is these guys aren't thinking, at all. They simply WANT things. Want want want, with no regard to "should I".

We're talking about people who aren't even aware they need to manage thier money themselves...people who can't detect a poor investment from a good one. When it comes to finances these guys are truly handicapped. They don't have the basics down let alone the ability to manage millions of dollars.

[skinsfan69]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Let's not sugarcoat it, you don't need an MBA, CFP, or read any financial self-help books to manage your money. You simply need basic arithmetic.

I have X amount of money. I spend Y per month. It will take me X divided by Y number of months before I run out of money. That simple.

The bottom line is these guys aren't thinking, at all. They simply WANT things. Want want want, with no regard to "should I".

A lot of what you say is true. People buys multiple cars, houses and so on. But we can look no further than our own Joe Gibbs to see that it can hapopen to anyone. I read Joe's first book and couldn't believe some of the bad investments he made. He created quite a mess for him and his family.

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by skinsfan69

A lot of what you say is true. People buys multiple cars, houses and so on. But we can look no further than our own Joe Gibbs to see that it can hapopen to anyone. I read Joe's first book and couldn't believe some of the bad investments he made. He created quite a mess for him and his family.

Fair point, and proves that you can be considered an intelligent person yet make big mistakes. But I only consider Gibbs intelligent because he's made so many smart moves and done so many smart things. His huge number of smart moves and decisions outweigh the big mistake.

After all he found a way to make the money back and then some. He followed a big mistake with smarter investments and smarter choices.

But man, you've got to do a lot of impressive things to recoup your reputation after doing something like these athletes are doing.

[GusFrerotte]

True, that is why I said it also is the culture. Those guys never were taught the value of a buck, and are absorbed in a culture of excessive consumerism.

[GusFrerotte]

If a guy gets all that dough for playing a game, he is going to be tempted to blow it by living the fantasy/illusion that has been "programmed" into him.

[joethiesmanfan]

Originally Posted by GusFrerotte

If a guy gets all that dough for playing a game, he is going to be tempted to blow it by living the fantasy/illusion that has been "programmed" into him.

An we have a winner.

[Longtimefan]

Originally Posted by GusFrerotte

If a guy gets all that dough for playing a game, he is going to be tempted to blow it by living the fantasy/illusion that has been "programmed" into him.

"Easy come, easy go" is a saying that grips so many young athletes. It's prevalent in all sports and mainly because of reasons others have already expressed.

When it comes to squandering wealth, I always felt there was no greater example than Roberto Duran. Guy made enough from three fights with Sugar Ray to last the average person several lifetimes. However, spending eight thousand dollars a night in bars is a typical example of not knowing what to do with it.

[SmootSmack]

A lot of these athletes put their trust in people they shouldn't. Even if they should, you should never put 100% trust in anyone else when it comes to managing your money. I've also seen a lot of these people invest money in their friends' businesses or even just business ideas. And if/when they try to get out of it they're faced with the guilt trip of "Aw man, you've changed. Forgot about us"

[Giantone]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

A lot of these athletes put their trust in people they shouldn't. Even if they should, you should never put 100% trust in anyone else when it comes to managing your money. I've also seen a lot of these people invest money in their friends' businesses or even just business ideas. And if/when they try to get out of it they're faced with the guilt trip of "Aw man, you've changed. Forgot about us"

Good Point,I've worked with a few former athletes and one even had a degree from Georgetown.Yet they all listen to their friends and put money into things they never checked out.
In the old days before sports became a fulltime job these guys had to get jobs after the season was over so most were prepared to go on after their careers were over.Now these guys think that when they are retired ....they can go another 50 years with out working ........and with some of the amounts they make the're right yet you still must be prudent with your money.If you make 10 mill your agent gets 10% off the top,IRS gets 4 or 5,then you take care of Mom or Mom and Dad ...another 1 or 2...leaves you 1 or 2 for yourself and if you have kids or a wife that will be gone quick.

[Daseal]

If I were an agent, I'd make it mandatory for my clients to have a financial adviser before the draft. I'm not great with finances, luckily my bank is always very good at helping me out.

If you're eligible for USAA -- there's not a single thing I haven't loved about the company.

I still think the most amazing thing, is the pure number of lottery winners who blow the money in no time.