Welcome to Bloganuary. It’s this thing that WordPress is doing to encourage bloggers to post something every day by providing a regular prompt. I think that “Bloguary” would not only sound better but makes more sense. Maybe they’re saving that for next month. But if they go with Blogebruary I’m dropping out. Anyway, today’s prompt asks the question: What would you do if you won the lottery?

I certainly wouldn’t go as crazy as one would think. In fact, I think I’d try to keep it as much of a secret as I could for as long as possible. Sure, I’d tell a few key people… Mom, my sister, a few close friends. But that’s it.

Once I’ve sworn those that I love to secrecy, I would hire a lawyer. I figure there are a lot of things that are going to change for me from a legal standpoint and I’d like to have an attorney on retainer to help protect my identity and my interests.

Next, I’d hire an accountant and a financial advisor. I want to make sure that I’m paying taxes the way I’m supposed to… even though I don’t necessarily want to pay taxes. But, you know what, if I’m wealthy now, I hope they force me to pay my fair share. I’ll pay more if it means healthcare for everyone. But that’s a political discussion and that’s not what this post is about… I want a financial advisor to help me invest my winnings in a way that I literally never have to worry about money again. I mean, I want to do the thing where my invested money makes more money. Not in an insane “I wanna be a billionaire” kind of way. Just in a “give me enough to live off from month to month” kind of way.

Of course I would pay off any debts I have… student loans, credit cards, etc. I would make sure Mom and my sister are out of debt, too. I would very likely buy a condo in one of those super expensive buildings downtown and hire someone to come in and furnish and decorate it appropriately.

Once my living and financial situations are stabilized, I would give away the bulk of whatever was left to charity. Because here’s the thing… I don’t understand why the super wealthy feel the need to continue being super wealthy. If you have more money than you or your children or your children’s children could spend in their lifetimes, you have too much. I feel like there is so much those handful of billionaires in the world could be doing with their money that would benefit humanity. Instead, they’re competing with each other to see who can go to space first.

I say give me enough to live comfortably and not be bogged down by the stress of living paycheck to paycheck and that’s plenty for me.

Feature Photo by John Guccione www.advergroup.com