FPLAXI

Peter Lynch quit his career at 46. He was at the top. At Fidelity, he had grown the Magellan Fund from about $18 million to about $14 billion. Over 13 years the fund returned about 29% a year. He was not tired of stocks. He was tired of missing his life. He worked six or seven days a week, often 12 or 13 hours a day, and visited hundreds of companies a year. He had three young daughters. His father had died of cancer at 46, when Peter was ten. When Lynch hit the same age, the math of a life suddenly felt short. He said he wanted the next 21 years to be different from the last 21. At the age of 46, Boston magazine put his wealth at around $25 million. He is 82 now. His current wealth is estimated at around $500 million. He and his family have also given away a huge sum of around $200 million through the Lynch Foundation, into education, health, culture, and Catholic causes. What has he done after quitting his career 36 years ago? He never ran outside money again. He stayed at Fidelity as vice chairman, a few days a week, teaching younger analysts. He wrote more, spoke now and then, and spent much of his time with family, giving, helping charities manage their money, and living a private life. He still invests his own money. He does not publish a scorecard. He once said he has completely stopped calculating his returns. He no longer cares. That is the rare part. Most achievers leave when the edge is gone. Lynch left while he still had it.