Former NFL star Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson has offered some sage advice to professional athletes with regard to saving and spending.
Johnson made roughly $50 million during his career and, if what he says is true, he still has a lot of it left. Given that he’s a regular big tipper and even offered to pay a fine for a Bengals player a few weeks ago, we’re inclined to believe him.
Johnson was a recent guest on Shannon Sharpe’s Club Shay Shay podcast and discussed his spending habits with the three-time Super Bowl champion. The former wide receiver revealed he never flew private and never even bought real jewelry when he was in the NFL.
“Fly private? I ain’t flying private,” he said. “Put me on Spirit. Exit row. Window seat. That’s all I need. As long as I get from point A to point B. I don’t need private.”
Johnson insisted that he didn’t have to spend money on flashy brands because his own name was bigger than anything he could have bought.
“If you can get to a point in your career where your name becomes bigger than anything you can purchase, there’s your value,” he explained.
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“I never bought real anything when I was playing. Never. What was the point? I went to Claire’s. For what? What am I doing it for? The women are going to deal with you anyway because of who you are. And then the other women, who are really doing their homework done Googled how much you making already. Why am I buying a $50,000 watch, $80,000 watch?
“Everybody is caught up in image and looking a certain way and being rich. It’s me. It’s pointless,” he added. “You know how hard it’s to live like that all the time, consistently, and be fly every day?”
Johnson estimated having saved 83 percent of his earnings as a professional football player.
While he refused to splurge on himself, the former star is very generous with others and is known for leaving four-figure tips at restaurants.
