Friday, October 07, 2011

Dying Thoughts

Steve Jobs, a true mensch, left an estate worth around $6.5B. Nevertheless:
“Steve made choices,” Dr. Ornish said. “I once asked him if he was glad that he had kids, and he said, ‘It’s 10,000 times better than anything I’ve ever done.’ ”

I think those of us who love our kids are better off than childless billionaires. More importantly, the value of our children is 10,000 times more important than any financial fortune.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/10/07/steve_jobs_dianamania/

David Merkel said...

I agree entirely. Even though one of my children hates me, and another is wasting his life, the remaining six are a joy to me.

I look forward to meeting you in Chicago next week.

Dave Pinsen said...

Just curious, Eric: why do you consider Jobs to have been "a mensch"?

As for his view on kids, he seems to not have had that view when his first kid was born, but he eventually came around to it.

Dave Pinsen said...

"I look forward to meeting you in Chicago next week."

It would be interesting to see a video of you two having a wide-ranging discussion over dinner. Not just about finance, but also about religion, philosophy, politics, etc.

Eric Falkenstein said...

David: having 8 would seem to require a different attitude towards your children than when you have 2 or 3...statistically you can expect more outcomes, good and bad.