Mega Millions Winner: Here's My Advice

Dear Lottery Winner,

Congratulations on winning $640 million! You must be feeling great right about now, and my hunch is that you also are feeling a bit overwhelmed and anxious about what to do next. As a financial advisor, let me give you a bit of unsolicited advice. Claim your winnings. Then do nothing.

Yes, that may seem like an odd message from someone who makes his living by investing other people's money, but for the sake of your happiness -- wait.

Before you spend a dime, take stock of your current personal wealth, and by "wealth," I don't mean just your finances. That's a mistake far too many people make, and if you're not careful, you can win a fortune and wind up losing everything that really brings you happiness. No matter your financial situation before hitting the jackpot, you already had far more wealth than just money. In fact, there are six areas of wealth that we can use to create happier, more meaningful lives:

1. Money: Of course, money is one aspect of wealth. For most people, that is where the discussion starts and ends. You have plenty of money now, but money alone -- even millions -- likely will not bring you happiness. In fact, it could bring you lots of headaches. The road to happiness is littered with lottery winners who won and lost it all by making one key error: mistaking pleasure for happiness. Don't be one of them. Pleasure is great, but it's no substitute for happiness.
2. Time: Time is a unique resource. Time is the one resource that can never be renewed. If you waste time, that time is gone forever. Each of us, rich and poor alike, has the same 168 hours each week, but no one knows how many weeks we have left. If you use your time and your money to help others, chance are you'll be amazed at how much happier you will become.
3. Talents: You have special talents, whether you realize it or not. Each of us is blessed with God-given talents and talents we have spent a lifetime honing. Some of our most fulfilling times in life are when we are fully engaged in an activity that uses our best talents. If you use your financial windfall to fuel your special talents, you may find it will increase your happiness.
4. Wisdom: As we get older, we get wiser. We learn critical life lessons from our own experiences and from observing others. I often tell people that knowledge is a commodity, wisdom is priceless. Share your wisdom with others. It's a way of sharing your winnings and it won't cost you a dime.
5. Your Body and Your Mind: We literally navigate the world using our bodies and minds. As my grandmother used to say, "If you don't have your health, you have nothing." Keep that in mind. Money and time spent eating better, exercising and staying mentally active can pay huge dividends, even to someone as rich as you.
6. Your Network: All of us are connected to a network of family, friends, col­leagues, professionals and business associates. These people are what make the other elements of wealth worthwhile, and they can help you navigate the road ahead. Choose and use your network wisely and you'll be well on your way to paving your own road to true happiness. Isn't that why you bought a lottery ticket in the first place?

This last area of wealth poses an imminent threat to you. Psychologists who have studied lottery winners say this new-found wealth has a terrible effect on social relationships. To some people, money changes everything. Friends and family may get jealous, demand you share your prize, or sever connection with you. You might even use your money to buy access to a whole new group of friends. Don't let this happen! Nurture the relationships that mattered the most to you before you hit the jackpot. If those people were your true friends and family before, you can use your money to enhance those relationships, and studies tell us that quality relationships are a key to creating happier lives.

So before you begin spending your millions, take a look at what makes you happy now. Then use your $640 million to make sure you stay happy. Happiness isn't just having the money to buy a Lamborghini. It's having the time to drive it, the skill to handle sharp curves, the wisdom to slow down and watch your speed, the health to enjoy driving it for a long time, and a friend to share the ride.

Again, congratulations and be careful.

Sincerely,
David Geller

David Geller is the author of Wealth & Happiness: Using Your Wealth to Create a Better Life. He also serves as a motivational speaker and the CEO of Atlanta-based GV Financial Advisors. His new book is available through www.amazon.com or at www.gvfinancial.com.

For more by David Geller, click here.

For more on happiness, click here.

 

Comments

[livingbettertherapy]

03:56 PM on 03/31/2012

loftypeoview: I hear your heart. Consistently wise decisions when I had very little have brought me to successful places as I became older. Imitate successful people. Most of them invested wisely from day one. Associate with people more successful than yourself; they are usually not found at the Lotto counter. I would like to see you bet on a sure thing, consistent, daily wise choices that will bring the prosperity you desire. Make smart choices with a few dollars and you will begin to see opportunities that others don't see that have become blinded to by things like the lottery.

[TimeMaster]

08:38 PM on 03/30/2012

Win or lose the best advice is to try and live the best life you can to maintain health, comfort, security and giving back to others or society where you can. Be kind to friends, family and strangers - they may be fighting hard to make in life like everyone else, hopefully appreciate the good fortune you get everyday when you wake up.

[livingbettertherapy]

02:48 PM on 03/30/2012

You may actually do wonderful things with that lottery money if you win it but I wonder if you really will. You may have been saying for years, if I win those millions I will help my family and give money to the poor. If you weren't using the few dollars wisely that you had before winning the lottery, what has prepared you to use millions wisely? Good business people know that if you can't trust someone with small things they won't be trustworthy with big responsibilities. If all the people who bought lottery tickets recently spent half that money on hungry and homeless families in this country, would there be any hungry and homeless in this country? Many of the toys you buy with lottery winnings may come with batteries included but know this, that money you win does not come with wisdom included. Ironically, one person that wins the huge prize, who is certain that they will help others, has actually contributed to the poverty of millions of others who didn't buy necessary food staples and foolishly contributed to that prize. I have never bought a lottery ticket and never will. Every time you buy a lottery ticket, you may actually be taking the bread off the tables of untold heads of households who are "inspired" by all the sensational lottery publicity. The money without wisdom that you already had may already have taken you places you didn't want to go because you weren't in the driver's seat.

[BearFish]

03:44 PM on 03/30/2012

"Every time you buy a lottery ticket, you may actually be taking the bread off the tables of untold heads of households who are "inspired" by all the sensational lottery publicity."

Come on now. Some of us are able to have fun buying an occasional lottery ticket, and if someone can't pay their bills because they bought too many lottery tickets, they have no one to blame but themselves. This level of disregard for personal responsibility is ludicrous. (And I'm absolutely a liberal.)

[Stephanie Morosi]

01:29 AM on 04/01/2012

awesome point!!!!

[BearFish]

03:53 PM on 03/30/2012

Disagree. People need to be responsible for their own actions. I buy an occasional lottery ticket for fun, just like I have an occasional beer for fun. Just because others go too far with something doesn't mean I shouldn't be allowed to participate.

[livingbettertherapy]

04:35 PM on 03/30/2012

A neighborhood grocery store owner in New York started selling lottery tickets and noticed that as sales of lottery tickets went up, he sold less groceries like eggs, milk and bread. This bothered him and he stop selling them.

[McBuckwyld]

01:11 PM on 03/30/2012

Then retain a battery of attorneys.

[lofttypeofaview]

02:51 PM on 03/31/2012

If they do that, they'll lose everything to the attorney's fees.