Now what?

“You know, a town with money’s a little like the mule with a spinning wheel. No one knows how he got it, and danged if he knows how to use it!”

―Lyle Lanley from “The Simpsons”

A few weeks back everyone was getting excited about one of the big lotteries.  The sum total had climbed over $600 million and people were in a state of hysteria buying up more and more tickets.

Inevitably on the news channels came the man on the street interviews asking people what they would do with all that money and the answers ranged from “not working ever again” or buying some expensive item or paying off bills.

Good enough for a thirty-second news piece but really have these folks pondered what they would really do with all of that money?  Let’s imagine a winner that gets a modest jackpot of 50 million.

Pay debts – An investing website in September reported that the average American was about a quarter of a million dollars in debt.  A good chunk of this is of course mortgage debt.  That’s all gone with a few strokes of the pen.  bye-bye debts and bye-bye $250,000

Buy things – So of course the average person is going to go on a spending spree and of course hold some parties for his family and friends.  He will no doubt purchase cars, televisions, furniture, clothes, and most certainly one or more properties.  So there goes another 3 to 4 million.

Travel – Jet set around the world and see those places and things you’ve heard about all of your life.  Another million or so.

Invest – So now that you’ve slaked all the urges you can think of, someone (usually a friend or family member) suggests that you invest in something and they usually have a good idea of where to invest and oddly enough it involves them.  So here goes another 5 to 10 million or more.

(A side note, in researching this I found that 44% of all lottery winners spend all their winnings in 5 years or less.  Where does it all go?!?!)

But now what?  You’ve done it all and seen it all but that’s about as far as most people get.  If even that far.  We look at the short-term prize and say to ourselves “wouldn’t that be great if we had that?”  But most people never stop to think and then what?

I think it’s a telling difference between people who earn their money and those that win or inherit their money that the people who earn their money through hard work and planning are able to answer this question.

They’ve obsessed, planned, and strived for their dreams for so long that they know exactly what they need to do next.  Those that suddenly have good fortune dropped on their laps don’t.

But it’s not just money.  Some people dream about being celebrities, some dream about being athletes, some about marrying some attractive person or some other seemingly impossible dream.  But these people never stop and consider or plan on how they get from here to there.

I’m not saying that it’s impossible.  What I am saying though is rather than just dream or lust after some unattainable goal, why not plan and work for it?  And then consider what you will do after you get it.