A Money Lesson From Gold Medalist Nastia Liukin

Gymnast Nastia Liukin's road to her historic gold medal performance can teach everyone an important lesson about being prepared for the unexpected in your career.

On Friday August 15 Liukin, 18, beat out teammate Shawn Johnson in the women’s all-around. She is the third woman in U.S. gymnastics history to win the gold medal, following in the footsteps of training partner Carly Patterson and Olympic icon Mary Lou Retton. (Her father, former gymnast Valeri Liukin, also won two gold medals for the Soviet Union 20 years ago.)

But winning the gold medal was no easy task for Liukin: Last year she was considered washed up, her 2006 ankle injury was slowing her down. But after winning the gold, Liukin told the Dallas News, “"I think this makes it a little sweeter, just knowing I've been through some pretty big injuries and some doubters. But honestly, I think it made me so much stronger and it made me the person that I am today.”

If you get hurt on the job, whether you are an Olympian or a teacher, a sous-chef or a sanitation engineer, a key to landing on your feet professionally is having short-term disability insurance. Having such insurance means that when you recover from illness or injury, money still comes in for a fixed period of time, usually ranging from 13 to 104 weeks.

Doubt that you would ever need to use disability insurance? Think again. The American Council of Life Insurers reports that nearly one-third of all Americans will suffer a serious disability between the ages of 35 and 65. “People need to think about how they will be able to bankroll their bills when they are out on disability,” says Robelynn Abadie, president of the Association of Health Insurance Advisors. What's more, according to Abadie, is that people cannot buy this insurance after they are disabled, so it is important to make this investment when you are still in good health.

To learn more about how you can overcome an injury and preserver in your career read MainStreet’s article about short term disability insurance.

USA!

Related Articles:

What You Can Learn From Tiger’s US Comeback

Video: How to Work Out Like An Olympian

Finance Lessons Olympians Can Teach You