USA Today – Imagine becoming vastly wealthy overnight. Being a winner of a multimillion dollar lottery has to be incredible. It certainly is going to be a life-changing event for almost every single lottery winner. But what about when the prize is an astronomical sum of $100 million, $200 million or $300 million? If you happen to be lucky enough to win a lottery, please avoid some of the simple mistakes, and complex mistakes, that have taken other lottery winners into bankruptcy.
Imagine being Joe Somebody and turning into Sir Joe the Magnificent overnight. Now imagine the unthinkable that Sir Joe could become Joe the Village Idiot in a very short time. Supposedly most lottery winners end up broke again. That just doesn’t seem right at all.
24/7 Wall St. has decided to offer up 12 key things not to do if you are a lottery winner. We have looked around at many research papers and other articles on the matter about those who land in instant riches against all odds. It seems too cruel to imagine that many winners become losers. There is a saying that you should only have to get rich once. Some people just cannot help themselves in avoiding the pitfalls of instant wealth.
While many lists exist on what you should do if you win, it is surprising how few actual warnings are out there that can be used a scare-tactic guide that makes lottery winners do the right thing. Did you know that you might become a target if you are a lotto winner? Some people find instant enemies, and some people turn out to be their own worst enemy. It might have been very hard to spend $30 million in 30 days in “Brewster’s Millions” during the mid-1980s, but that could be done easily and perhaps just in a single day now.
Some points may overlap or seem redundant, but there are many pitfalls which snag lottery winners or those who find themselves incredibly wealthy in a very short period.
Here are 12 things not to do if you win the lottery:
• Forget to sign a ticket or report it to the state.
• Tell everyone you know.
• Automatically decide to take the up-front cash.
• Think that you are the smartest person to manage your money and finances.
• Let your debts remain in place.
• Become the generous high-roller, living the life.
• Buy everything for everyone, or even for yourself.
• Say to hell with a budget.
• Become the business backer for all your friends and family.
• Give away the whole enchilada.
• Get celebrity and athlete envy.
• Think that laws and decency standards no longer apply.
