How much is enough ??? Ask yourself Raheem Sterling

Headlines scream out that Raheem Sterling has refused a new contract that could earn him in excess of a 100,000 Pounds a week. That is 400,000 a month and a whopping 4.8 Million Pounds a week. Or 7 Million USD or 42 Crores in INR. I can go on and on. He is all of 20 years, and I really wonder why on earth he would be refusing such a good offer. 

Having been closely associated with sport I have had this conversation with a couple of cricket superstars in India and fully get it when they say that there is limited lifespan and career and that they need to maximise their earning to see out the rest of their lives.  Having said that I can also see that even these larger than life sportspeople can also  get drawn into comparisons with others. Why is player X able to get 2 times the amount I get for an endorsement ? And so on and so forth. Will this ever stop, I doubt it.

I think the question I ask is not just relevant to Raheem Sterling but to all of us, me included. I have personally gone through the entire spectrum from being insanely insecure about the amount of money I make to being very happy and contented with what I have. I realise that it is not about the amount but the state of mind. And the state of mind refuses to 'rest in peace'. Even today within this overall state of contentment, there are periods of insecurity. 

I wonder what drives this state of mind and I realise it is a lot of 'greed' rather than insecurity. All these things of 'needing to have enough for old age' or ' what if my daughter needs to go the US to study' etc etc are all just a series of justifications for action. The one and only reason for wanting more, many times is pure Greed.

And it is not just money - it is that piece of cake, or chocolate or piece of meat or that extra 'free drink'. The end is very apparent right in the beginning. Meaning that even though we claim we do not know where we are going, I think we are. And the end is most of the time very nasty.

So I ask myself - why is it so difficult to accept that I have enough and be at peace.

So should not Raheem Sterling be asking himself just this simple question - Am I happy playing for Liverpool and if the answer is yes, then just sign ?? 

I am back.

Inspired by a cousin who stumbled across my blog, enjoyed reading it and they asked me why the heck I stopped writing I am back after what has been a 3 year hiatus. A lot has happened in my world of sport since then - where should I begin

Manchester United is no longer the kings of the EPL - I am not happy about it off course but all good things have to come to an end - it should have ended in 2013 itself but we got a bonus title thanks to the others - We now face the 'clear & present danger' of going the way of our fellow reds from Anfield - more about that later...

The enth edition of IPL just got over an what a come from behind win by Mumbai Indians - The punter backed the right horse and all credit to him !!

The NBA play offs began and what's his name ??? from the Chicago Bulls or was it LA Lakers is no longer the hottest property in the NBA, - shoot I can't even remember his name - James Harden, Stephen Curry and Lebron James are top of mind now -

Kevin Petiersen shot his mouth of one too many times and is now history. However brilliant you are, there comes a time when you have to just shut up and do what you are told.

Serena Williams is back and has somehow captured the imagination of my now 13 year old daughter - Man U no longer means the same to her - it is all about Serena - more about  that later ,,,,,,

Closer home the Bengaluru Football Club is looking to dominate the I league - win the title last year and now in a do or die season ending clash with Mohun bagan coming up this weekend - I am actually already excited about going and watching the game with my friends and hoping that Serena Williams is not playing the French open at the same time so I can convince my daughter to join me too.

What else - oh yes, Lewis Hamilton is back and finally won his first drivers championship - is the age of Red Bull domination over or can they find a way back. Mercedes seems to be running away with this years title too.

And off course, saving the best for towards the end how can I not talk about the resurrection of Saina Nehwal and Sania Mirza - two amazing sports women who have battled all odds and the Chinese/Americans to make a mark on the worlds stage - No1 players both of them -way to go. Hope they inspire many more.

As I pen this piece, it seems that I have so much to write about - some of the questions that are running through my mind are ....

1. Why is Raheem Sterling not happy with a deal that could earn him over 100,000 pounds a week ?
2. How will life change for the little town of Bournemouth as they make the move into the big league ? What could it mean for life in the small town with a stadium of 12000 ?
3. Is Manchester United's era over ? Who will the next decade belong to ?
4. What does Manchester United need to go back to its glory days ?
5.Why do women cricketers get paid ridiculously low wages ? What will the new contract system mean for the world of womens cricket in India ?
6. What will I do for the next 3 months till the EPL season begins again ?
7. Would it ever be possible for me to take a year off and just do and watch sport ? What will it take and what could my year look like ?
8. What is it about sport that makes me go so crazy about following it on a minute to minute basis ?
and much much more...........

thanks Sai for getting me back to writing -

more tomorrow and the day after and the day after that hopefully !!!!!