Shortly after Morgan Stanley CEO John Mack anointed Zoe Cruz as his heir apparent, he fired her. Wall Street is notorious for its mercurial ways, but this was a particularly swift reversal of fortune. What happened? This feature article in New York Magazine explores the question.

Some argue that Cruz was a convenient scapegoat when Morgan Stanley's losses from the subprime crisis began to mount, soon after she secured her place in the firm's succession. Others insist that she made key decisions that led to those losses, and thus deserved a large slice of the blame. Read the article and decide for yourself.

Besides being a case study in the treacherous politics of Wall Street, this article should get you thinking about managing your finances. How so? According to the article, Zoe Cruz pulled down a cool $30 million in pay in 2006 alone. From my own experience, too many high fliers in finance spend their princely pay as fast as it comes in, leaving them no savings cushion should they unceremoniously get booted. Thus, when thinking about compensation plans, also plot strategy for building your own personal financial reserves, just in case.