Shaquille O’Neal quotes: retired pro basketball player “Shaq” takes us to school on money management.
“Aspire to be great. Aspire to be different. Never give up and follow your dreams.”
“The only person who can really motivate you is you.”
“I really get motivated when I have doubters.”
“Excellence is not a singular act, but a habit. You are what you repeatedly do.”
“Everything happens for a reason. I’m used to it, I prepare for it. Like I say, at the end of the day, those in charge of their own destiny are going to do what’s right for them and their family.”
“I was taught and raised to never give up, always persevere, and no excuses.”
“Before you succeed, you must first learn to fail. Keep going.”
“I don’t believe in pressure. Pressure is when you don’t know where your next meal is coming from.”
“We’re focusing on the whole pie, not a slice. A slice is good, but it’s not good enough to get you fat. We’re trying to get fat.”
“I never worry about the problem. I worry about the solution.”
“Because I grew up with a drill sergeant in my life, I respect order and it really gave me the discipline to be a leader and not a follower. It also helped me stay out of trouble.”
“Before I became the ‘Great Test of the West,’ I was the ‘Beast of the East.'”
“But hey, I did everything the right way and earned my spot in this game, nothing was given to me.”
“I had to learn at an early age to turn criticism into motivation.”
“The biggest thing that will define my legacy is how I’ve done it, and what I’ve done, and who I am. I’m a weird big guy. Doing rapping, doing movies. Do a lot of stuff. But always do things the right way. Went to the police academy to become a police officer. Got his master’s in criminal justice, stayed out of trouble. Played for three different teams. Changed three different franchises around. This is a guy who they would have secret meetings about to change the rules. So, that’s going to be my legacy: the most dominant player ever.”
“Me having a beautiful wife and great family and friends around me, all the money I’ve got, all the things that I’ve got, a Ferrari that I just ripped the top off of and turned into a convertible, the rings I got, the two mansions on the water, a master’s in criminal justice, I’m a cop, plus I look good. So me shooting 40% at the foul line is just God’s way of saying that nobody’s perfect. If I shot 90% from the line, it just wouldn’t be right.”
I want to be known as ‘The Big Shakespeare.’ It was Shakespeare that said, ‘Some men are born great, some achieve greatness, some have greatness thrust upon them.'”
“I’m just a regular guy that just listened to the right people.”
“Look up the word role in the dictionary and you’ll see it means playing a part. That’s why I call myself a real model.”
“I think I have done enough to remain successful, but I don’t think I’ve made it yet.”
“I endorse only products I actually use. Like Wheaties keeps offering me money, but I don’t eat Wheaties, so I can’t do it. Now, if Rice Krispies or Frosted Flakes offered me a deal, I’d take it right away. Apple Jacks, I’d be on the box in a heartbeat. Apple Shaqs. Yeah.”
“Last time I looked at a paycheck, I said to myself, ‘Who the hell is FICA? And when I meet him, I’m going to punch him in the face. Oh my God, FICA is killing me.'”
“It is not about how much money you make. The question is: are you educated enough to keep it?”
“After college, even after being slightly educated, I spent $1 million in one day. One day – 30 minutes. I got my first contract, and it was $1 million. If you’re educated, you’ll understand that $1 million is not really $1 million. You’ve got FICA, you’ve got state tax… but I wasn’t thinking.”
“You know how it is, fellas, I had to go get that whip. Got me a black Mercedes Benz and then I got some ice, got some jewelry, and it cost me around $200,000. So I get home, and my father said, ‘That’s a nice car. Where’s my car?’ And I’m no dummy. One million minus $150,000? I said, ‘I have $850,000 left. Let’s ride.’ So I rode and I got him one and then I got my mother one and then did some more shopping. I got a call from the banker the next day, I was $200,000 in the hole. All in one day.”
“I said, ‘You know what, I never wanted to be part of the statistic that states 80% of all professional athletes, when they’re done, have nothing. Zero.’ I didn’t want to be part of that. So I had to go back and educate myself again.”
“Education is not all about going to school. You can educate yourself every day.”
“I made a lot of money. Got a contract for $40 million, got another one for $30 million, got another one for $20 million. I did my favorite movie Kazaam for $10 million (that was a joke, you were supposed to laugh at that).”
“I don’t believe that I personally have been changed by the money. The bad thing is people assume you’ve changed because now you have money.”
“No matter how much money you make, it’s going to be a very small window of your life.”
“My children, every time they ask me for something, I tell them to round their old stuff up.”
“Some things you just can’t question. Like you can’t question why two plus two is four. So don’t question it, don’t try to look it up. I don’t know who made it, all I know is it was put in my head that two plus two is four. So certain things happen. Why does it rain? Why am I so sexy? I don’t know.”
“Y’all reporters like my quotes, don’t you. Yeah, my quotes are Shaqalicious.”
