Spending Money

Spending money isn’t normally considered a problem for lottery winners, but it can be if they can’t think of anything to spend it on. Many winners of lottery jackpots enjoy the short-term thrill of buying a new home and a car or two, and maybe even giving up work, but then they hit a brick wall when it comes to deciding what to do with the rest – especially if they have won several million rather than “just” one or two. For those who are in this challenging predicament – and to inspire those who hope to be jackpot winners in the future – here are a few suggestions on how to spend some cash in what we consider to be quite original ways...

Be Charitable
Giving money away is commonplace among jackpot winners, but rather than simply signing a wad of cash over to a favourite charity, why not be a bit more creative? Use the cash to finance your own charitable project, such as building a school or medical unit in the Third World, setting up a soup kitchen or organising a new annual fun run in your nearest town. Projects like these would require a considerable investment of your time and effort as well as your cash, and this can make giving even more meaningful and satisfying for you as the donor.

Go Exploring
Travelling is another common pastime of jackpot lottery ticket holders, but why simply hop on a cruise ship and spend all your time relaxing? You could invest some of your jackpot in a personal exploration of the Amazon, or hole yourself up in a log cabin for a few months in the American wilderness. Exploring won’t necessarily turn you into an Indiana Jones or Lara Croft, but it will give you the chance to see your chosen part of the world up close and personally, rather than through the lens of tourist attractions. You might also pick up some useful skills along the way. Anyone for a speared fish?

Get Creative
Have you ever wanted to write a book, form a rock band, become an artist, learn to sculpt or do anything else creating? Winning the Lotto not only gives you plenty of time to develop your skills (assuming that you choose to give up your day job) but it also provides the cash you need to get things off the ground yourself. For example, you could pay to publish your own book, release your own CD or organise an exhibition of your paintings. Before you pooh-pooh the idea of self-financing a new career in the arts, remember that many famous names took this route, including film director Kevin Smith and author Helen Beatrix Potter. If they can finance themselves and achieve critical success then so could you!

Although you don’t necessarily need to be a lottery millionaire to do any of the things we have suggested here, having a large bank account can certainly make life easier. If you win the jackpot and have trouble spending money, give them a bit of thought, and do let us know if you choose to take one of our suggestions further.

30th January 2008