Not bad for someone who wants his epitaph to read: "I tried hard and led a good life."
Turner, now 70, addressed a packed ballroom of 450 attendees at CSP's Outlook Leadership 2009 conference, tossing out quips, insight and challenges like a man who has made and lost fortunes many times over.
"I don't believe in wasting time," he said. "I wear loafers...because it takes a few seconds to lace up shoes. [Saving time is] how we won the America's Cup...by saving a second here and a second there."
Turner (pictured, with CSP's Paul Reuter) touched mainly on his varied achievements and outlook on life, but for this petroleum-retail and convenience-store audience, still had clear thoughts on the nation's energy futureone he believed will involve solar, wind and other renewable resources. When asked his opinion about nuclear energy, he said, "I'd rather have a nuclear plant than coal. One might kill you; the other one will for sure."
Turner, however, was more passionate about President Barack Obama's recent trip to the United Nations and what he believed to be the inevitable, global disarmament of nuclear weapons. "This is a wonderful, exciting time to be alive and watch humanity take a turn [for the better]," he said. "Twenty years ago, Switzerland didn't belong to the U.N. And here, [at the threshold of nuclear disarmament], will hopefully be one of the greatest weeks in human history."
When asked about his best attribute, he noted his "analytical mind," saying that it was something he needed to develop. "I didn't have a genius I.Q.," he said, jokingly adding that he slipped into his principal's office as a kid and looked up scores. "I spent a lot of time thinking, and reading, but mainly just thinking. You need to develop brain muscles just as you develop the muscles in your body."
He went on to say, "If you train your brain, you'll be smarter...than the average bear. That was Yogi Bear. I used to own him. And Gone with the Wind and The Wizard of Oz. And I used to be married to Jane Fonda. Not bad for a boy from Georgia."
His biggest mistake in terms of business, he said, was his decision to merge his media company with Time Warner. "I never thought...I'd lose control of the situation, but when they merged with AOL, I was diluted down to where they could phase me out. But that's okay. It gave me time to work [on] nuclear disarmament, global climate change, overpopulation and environmental destruction...things I care about."
Click hereto view a video wrap-up of the Outlook Leadership.
Click herefor information about the 2010 Outlook Leadership conference, which will be held in Salt Lake City.
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