just learned something wild about social security that actually blew my mind. so barbara corcoran, the shark tank investor worth like $100 million, probably gets around $5k a month in social security checks if she waited until 70 to claim. sounds like a lot until you realize there's literally a cap on how much wealthy people can collect, no matter how much they earned.

basically, social security is calculated from your highest 35 years of earnings, but there's a maximum income amount that gets taxed for it. so even if you're a billionaire, you're not gonna get some crazy monthly payment. the system kind of levels the playing field that way.

what's interesting is that corcoran probably delayed claiming until at least her full retirement age (66 for people born in 1949) because she didn't need the money. if you start early and keep working, they actually dock your benefits. made me think about how even ultra-wealthy people have to play by the same social security rules as everyone else. kind of a trip honestly.