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by Daydreamer on June 1st, 2005

Daydreamer

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Why do so many lottery winners complain that having all that money has ruined their lives?

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Answers. 16 helpful answers below.

  • by PondLady on June 6th, 2005

    PondLady

    We have had several local winners of various amounts of money and they all seem to have had a rough time ever since. Everyone they know seems to think they owe them something. When they go to dinner with friends they are always expected to pick up the bill, no matter how big or small. People who didn't even know them would find out they were winners and said they should buy a round of drinks for everyone.

    One winner split his winnings with his fiancé - she took it and left him.

    A local teacher that won was forced out of his job. He loves to teach and would have done it for free, but his coworkers made him feel guilty by saying he was taking a paying job from someone who needed it. When he offered to replace the school track, the board refused the offer unless he would pay for ALL of the tracks to be replaced.

    Each of the winners had to get an unlisted number and change it several times due to solicitors and charity seekers. Many of them have to move away so their neighbors don't know about their fortune and pester them.

    I've seen even small inheritances tear families apart. My brother, sister, and I stand to possibly inherit something from my father's mother and I fear that my divorced mother will feel cheated.

    Money really does not buy happiness. They usually quit their jobs and lose their sense of purpose in life. People who suddenly get a large sum of money don't know how to manage it. They may try to live the "high life" of fancy clothes, cars, and homes, the best restaurants and expensive drinks. They are likely to gain weight and drink too much. Many of them go on outrageous spending sprees and sometimes end up in worse debt than ever.

    It would be nice if the lottery was broken down into many more, much smaller winners. Maybe enough to get them out of debt to reduce life's stress. Think of how many people could be helped rather than one large winner whose life will likely be destroyed. Instead of picking winning numbers, it should be a random drawing - two winners for every million dollars in prize money. The odds of winning would be much higher and the winnings would be spread around more evenly boosting the local economies. Mega winners are likely to move away and take the money with them.

    To Relsqui - quote: "Great idea, but not profitable. Lotteries don't exist for the sake of their winners, after all."

    Why wouldn't it be profitable? The government would still take their share off the top and give the rest away like they do now, except it would be a random drawing of however-many names rather than matching a set of numbers. When the pot is up to 40 million, draw 80 winners of $500,000 each. I think more people would buy tickets because of the better odds... including me.

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  • by MyKinKStar on June 6th, 2005

    MyKinKStar

    I have heard that if all the wealth was given to the poor, in 10 years their situation would be back how it started. The rich get richer because they know how - whatever that means!

    Anyone that "plays" the lottery is doing just that - playing with their money! It's not meant to be an investment plan! Anyone that "wins" the lottery most probably never learned how to manage their money to begin with, so imagine suddenly having more than enough . . .

    Statistics show that winners of the lottery don't have much or any of their money a few years later. Some to bad spending, guilty pleasures, honorable sharing . . . You know, we should all be so "lucky" . . .

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  • by Tondoteottotote on August 12th, 2005

    Tondoteottotote

    The Lord blessed them with such a great reward, but they choose to misuse it. They probably forget to pay tithes and donate to Christian charities. Thus, the ruin it causes is due to God withdrawing his blessing on them, due to their misuse and abuse of it.

    If I won 1, 5, or 10 mil, I'd donate 10% to the Church, first of all. Next, I'd donate a great, significant amount to "The Navigators" ( http://home.navigators.org/us/ ) in order to finance more missionaries to spread the Gospel in Japan. I'd also take a trip to Japan, Korea, and China, all the while passing out Gospel tracts to anyone I meet. Then I'd go to Japan and help spread the Gospel by also doing it myself.

    However you spend your winnings, that's your prerogative, but please remember to thank God for his great blessing, and use it in a way that God would want you to, and he may keep your life full of happiness, thrills, love, and abundance. God is the source of happiness, not money. Remember that.

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  • by Anonymous on May 6th, 2006

    Anonymous

    Its an unexpected shock in ones life. a fabulous shock, but still a shock. your mind, your body is entering a realm of unreality, that few people on earth experience. unknown people come out of the woodwork to borrow money. every excuse is offered. greed. family members, you thought were dead, are now alive and well and love you more than life. its mostly psychological. winning the lottery, suddenly allows you not to have to live from paycheck to paycheck. can you trust a cpa with your winnings? will you invest? blow it on frills? the beggers, the borrowers are relentless. i said it before and it deserves to be said again......GREED. it will drive one crazy. but, what a way to go!

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  • by The Chief on January 31st, 2010

    The Chief

    I'm gonna go out on a limb here with my answer:

    "Because they're morons."

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  • by sepulvjl on October 21st, 2009

    sepulvjl

    i have read many stories that alot of lottery winners end up worse than before they won a jackpot. there was a case in ny, a single man won 60 million. he had a bad habit with money before, his wife divorced him and took half of the jackpot with her. i guess she knew of his bad habit and decided to split before he blows everything away. case #2, a couple from i cant remmber where won about 16 million, they purchased a house and all that good stuff. 10 yrs later the house is in fore closure, family separated and couple divorced. case #3, some women from some state won about 5 million, today the money is all gone and she lives in a trailer living on social security. case #4, some women from some other state wins about 20 million, she like to donate to her church she attends, 5 yrs later she files for bankruptcy with only 700.00 dollars in 2 different accounts. case #5, some guy from some state wins 1 million, decides to start a small car businnes, it does not last very long, within a yr hes broke and files for bankruptcy. as u can see many peoples lives get ruined because they dont know how to manage themselves and go crazy without thinking whats gonna happen in the future. many of these people get repeated requests from family and freinds begging for money. according with the 20 things that people would do if they ever won a huge jackpot was buying a house to be at the top of the list when investing would be almost at the very end. people have never had a huge ammount of money so thats why they go crazy and blow it away. at the minimum a jackpot might give u a nice jolt for 5yrs and then its down hill. easy come easy go!

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  • by BigDaddyBS on February 27th, 2008

    BigDaddyBS

    "Friends", neighbors, strangers, family, distant relatives (close and distant, including some they never knew existed), scam artists, real estate agents, insurance agents, car salesmen, fake charities, real charities, etc. ALL call day and night. I'm sure they also get calls from real telemarketers despite being on any DO NOT CALL list.

    Most are just PLAYING the lottery, hoping to win to ease their financial problems, then when they do, instead of paying stuff off, they buy all new stuff. So, when the money's gone, they STILL own money, and usually MORE than they did before.

    For safety, they need to move to gated, secured housing, which costs bucks, too.

    The ones we DON'T hear about usually were intelligent enough to get a financial advisor, and they're doing what they want and need, probably on investments and interest.

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  • by Galeanda on February 27th, 2008

    Galeanda

    Because having money, especially getting easy money, does not make you happy and comes with it's own travails that people aren't ready or capable of handling. They have no experience with money and don't know how to use it, preserve it or even spend it well. And when they do, it doesn't change who they re inside and they re still the same people.

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  • by ILuvAnimals on February 27th, 2008

    ILuvAnimals

    Most people have not been educated on how to manage money and do not have the contacts or resources to help them. When they get this money vultures come out of the woodwork and they get overwhelmed.

    I think the problem really lies in lack of financial education for everyone. There would be a lot less debt if financial education was mandatory in schools. Some governments are run on getting people to spend their money to keep the economy going, so it is counter-intuitive to educate them on saving and managing money.

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  • by ajeylex on March 2nd, 2007

    ajeylex

    the blessing of the Lord leads to happiness. money is not the blessing but part of it. so when one wins the lottery and ends up sad, its simply because they were seeking happiness in money. try to think of money as a tool to invest in lives. its more rewarding than investing in consumables.

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  • by game masta on December 28th, 2005

    game masta

    It's true that the more you have the less happier you are and that is because you can't buy happiness with money you can only improve your life with money but it won't make you happier.

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  • by Marky Mark on January 31st, 2010

    Marky Mark

    That will only happen if:

    * It goes to their heads and turns them into different people.
    * They don't know what real friendships/ relationships are.
    * They don't know how to manage money.
    * They think the well will never run dry.
    * They are immature and/or stupid.

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  • by needymom on October 29th, 2010

    needymom

    they will feel better by donating to a great cause like to struggling single moms

    pay pal link

    www.donate2singlemom.webs.com

    this will truely help those in need

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  • by emgn8ion on January 25th, 2011

    emgn8ion

    Mainly due to the fact that before they won they had to save for a trip or purchase a luxury item. With near unlimited funds they spend at will. Humans are wired to appreciate things they work for. The anticipation is nearly as exciting as the reward. We build a threshold for excitement and then experience the goal and live on the memories created and begin to plan our next adventure where the cycle repeats itself. When funds are readily available without the discipline to maintain the up and down cycle of anticipation and celebration we raise the threshold to a level that is not manageable. Therefore creating an unhappy environment both psychological and physical. That is the short answer to a complicated question. Good luck and when you win...exercise some discipline in your spending and you can remain happy!

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  • by NiCkIzBacK on January 29th, 2010

    NiCkIzBacK

    Usually they are selfish and spend it all in one go on useless crap. Mainly, i think its better when honest hard working people win the lottery, because they will spend it wisely and responsibily and better yet hopefully would just save it and put it in the bank for the future and perhaps give a little to others that could really use it like hospitals, charities, and that sort of thing.

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  • by megcham on October 29th, 2010

    megcham

    Simple, because they became richer, they didn't become smarter.

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