Shaquille O'Neal revealed the one word he was taught which drastically changed his fortunes in business

Shaquille O’Neal has a net worth of more than $500m – but he’s had help from an unexpected source.

The NBA legend has a diverse range of business interests, such as investments in Lyft and Vitaminwater, as well as owning franchises of businesses like Papa John’s and Five Guys.

Since retiring from the NBA, Shaq has also made money from films, reality TV and releasing four rap albums.

As a player, he made close to $300m from big money contracts with the Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Lakers, while his stellar career also led to broadcasting work. O’Neal is currently an analyst for Inside the NBA.

He also now hosts a show called ‘The Break’ on his YouTube channel, where he gives advice on financial management, among other topics.

But he wasn’t always so savvy about money, and on an episode of the YouTube show, Shaq revealed he asked for help from a stranger.

“I used to see this rich guy, really rich, older – like 80 – driving a Rolls-Royce,” said Shaq.

Curious about his wealth, the basketball legend asked for the secret, and the man taught him the word ‘annuity’.

Shaq admitted that at the time, he was making lots of money, but didn’t have a concrete plan for his later years. But the man’s advice led him to discover how he could save and invest his money while he was young, and get guaranteed money later when he was making less.

Shaquille O'Neal (Getty)

“I was making so much money from commercials and all, I didn’t know what to do with it,” he explained.

“All this money you’re making, if you save it, you can invest it and start collecting at 50, 60 and 70.”

O’Neal clearly isn’t afraid of taking business advice from people he feels may know more than he does. The NBA icon also revealed that he invested in Campus, an online community college start-up, after listening to pointers from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.

“I heard Jeff Bezos say, if you invest in things that’s going to change people’s lives, you’ll always get a great return on your investment,” O’Neal said. “But this particular investment is not about great return because I feel that everyone should have access to world-class education.”