I figure if I’d been one of the three Mega Millions winners I’d have netted about $50 million in a lump sum after the split and taxes were taken out. For all you math geeks out there I know this isn’t necessarily accurate but since I didn’t win I don’t care.
What would I do with that much money?
Here’s what I would not do:
- Buy a bunch of expensive crap I don’t need.
- Have big stupid parties for “friends” and “family” that come out of the wood work.
- Use the money for down payments on stuff that I’d have to pay off later. That’s a trap, even if the payments would be affordable on my current salary.
- Quit working. I enjoy working and having a bunch of money wouldn’t change that. I might change what I do or how I do it but I wouldn’t simply retire.
- Listen to “investment” pitches from every Tom, Dick and Harry who think they can make a fat commission on me or who think I’m they guy who’s going to help them get their nuclear powered can opener business financed.
What I would do:
- Pay off everything I owe anyone anywhere, after ensuring the amount is accurate, etc.
- Move to a better neighborhood and pay cash for the house this time.
- Make a large donation to my church.
- Carefully consider where to invest the rest of the money so that I can make more money. Two investments I would definitely make are in myself and in my business. Further education/training would be a good investment of both my money and my time. Reworking my business plan in such a way that it utilizes my new found capital to create growth and additional profits would be my primary investment. Beyond that ?
- Keep playing the lottery. Heck that’s where my mythical windfall came from in this little fantasy so I would repeat that action. I might not win again for a long time (or ever) but if it worked once it could work again.
What would you do with the money if you won the Mega Millions jackpot?
