Let’s say you won a couple million. What would you do with the money?
“Two chicks at the same time.”
Thank you Office Space. Nonetheless, despite the cliché, it’s a good question to ask.
When I first thought about winning the lottery, I imagined myself back at the University of Georgia, learning about everything. Music theory, engineering, brain science, math, physics, psychology, religion, astronomy, computer animation… I wouldn’t have to focus on one major, and could go at my own pace.
For my lifestyle, I imagined myself exercising every day, having a cool place to live, lots of books, lots of cool gadgets, perhaps some hottie college girlfriend. I’d be living close to some of my friends from Georgia, and it’d be great hanging out with them, having a good time. I’d love to travel as well… see the different cultures and landmarks around Earth. I imagined opening a book store where people could go to hang out. I would have different events that would be fun… group discussions, debates, guest speakers, activities, etc.
Anyways - back to the point. The question immediately becomes: why not work towards that right now?
So lately, that’s what I’ve been doing. I pick something off the list of “if I had a shitton of money…”, and do it. A lot of the things on my list don’t require any money. For example, I can study all those topics on my own. I don’t need to pay a teacher. In fact, when I was in college, I rarely went to class because the teachers always did such a piss poor job. These past two weeks I’ve been studying music theory, and composing different songs. It’s fun :-).
I also started exercising a while ago (which I mentioned in another post). Why wait until I have a big number in my bank account to go running in the sun?
I guess it all seems really obvious though. Especially in hindsight. 99% of the things I listed don’t even require huge sums of money. A lot of winning the money is just a boost in confidence. I bet I could even open a book store without a ton of money, if that’s what I really want to do. Traveling isn’t that expensive either (right Matt?).
I mean… fuck. We are free. Am I looking for the courage to win the lottery, or looking for the courage to live my life how I truly want to live it? *shrugs*
What would you do with large sums of money?
July 18th, 2007 at 11:02 am
Wow, thats…just cool. You should write a book.
July 18th, 2007 at 11:28 am
I would buy a thingy that I could put on my back and fly auround with. Some guy actually did that.. Or I’d buy a hot air balloon an go bungy jumping.
July 18th, 2007 at 1:49 pm
You can’t solve your problems with money. You might be able to make some of their effects go away, but at the end of the day you haven’t solved the underlying problem. If I were you I would ditch the entire lottery proposition and focus on figuring out what the fuck I wanted in life. I can guarantee you and everyone that reads this that deep down, money is not what you want. No one wants money, they want some sort of feeling that they think money will enable them to have. There is something else that they want, or some fear that they are running from, which they think money will make go away. But I dunno.
Success isn’t being rich and famous, it is being able to sleep with yourself at night.
July 18th, 2007 at 3:56 pm
“What would you do with large sums of money?”
Three chicks at the same time. lol
July 18th, 2007 at 6:05 pm
What is it with men and two women. You don’t here women running around saying they would like to have two men do you?? Well, not usually. Traveling is expensive, lol, sorry, but it is. The money would also give you more free time to pursue those things your interested in. Things are a lot easier when there is money in the bank for bills and no need to work a 9-5 everyday.
July 18th, 2007 at 10:05 pm
It’s probably not money, but time we really want.
As dragonfly183 pointed out, without large amounts of green paper, we need to work in order to pay bills, etc. But when more green paper than you ccan possibly imagine is supplied, you suddenly don’t need to work to get said green paper, and that’s what? 8-10 hours a day you now have nothing to do…and so LOADS more time, which may have been all you really wanted, and not the money.
-ARK-
July 19th, 2007 at 1:07 pm
Hey Gumby,
http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/jet/jetpacks-you-can-buy-now-reviewed-head+to+head-270053.php
The bungie/balloon thing would probably only be a few hundred bucks, not a few million.
Back on topic, you guys on here are right. Money is not for money’s sake, at least not for most people. Money affords people freedom: Freedom from time constraints, responsibilities, discomfort, etc.
If I had $5 million, the debt would get paid off (both mine and my family’s), I’d buy a new house and some luxuries like new cars and big screen tvs, and I’d invest the rest to secure mine and my family’s future. The investments are the fun part, because you can invest in anything that interests you as long as you can make it financially feasible. Personally I would start a few tech startups and some stuff in the music/entertainment industry.
The general public has a HUGE misconception about money and value and worth and effort and how these are all related. How many people grew up being told “Do what you love” while at the same time living in a world where wealth is so heavily valued.
Do what you love? I love lots of things. And I could do those things if I had enough money. Therefor, I’m going to do what will make me the most money and whatever that is I will love because it will allow me to… DO WHAT I LOVE!!!
That’s a much more realistic guide to trying to be happy with your career choices. I’m not saying “do whatever will make you the most money even if you hate it.” That would be stupid. I’m just saying that, if you like to help elderly people AND you enjoy the law, your best bet is to become a lawyer so that you can afford to volunteer helping grandma and grandpa.
July 19th, 2007 at 1:09 pm
Oh, and there’s a big distinction between $5 million and $500 million. That $5 million can go away very quickly nowadays.
July 19th, 2007 at 5:05 pm
Does self gratification ever lead to lasting happiness? Think about those moments that you’ve most indulged yourself. Assume that a few months ago you were watching what you had been eating; fruits, vegetables, whole grains and plain chicken. Then one day you head to Grandma’s house for Memorial Day and she’s cooking brisket barbeque. That’s right, greasy, buttery, red, cholesterol-laden beef. You don’t want to be rude to Grandma, and you know you’ve been good lately, so you house that brisket like you were inhaling it. How did you feel afterwards? Uncomfortably full? Pretty guilty? How do you feel about it today? I’d be surprised if it mattered to you at all right now.
Remember when you simply couldn’t wait to acquire something? You had your eyes set on a certain cell phone or iPod. Or maybe something bigger like a vehicle or a boat or a beautiful 3000 square foot colonial. You dreamed about it at night. It helped you get through those bad days at work. Then finally the day came and you purchased it. You beheld it as if it were the answer to all your dreams. How do you feel about it now? Perhaps if it’s still relatively new, some of that “new car smell” still lingers. However, with time your satisfaction will subside, and you’ll have set your heart on a different dream.
It’s not something that you should feel bad about, it’s human nature. Once something has been attained, it has a tendency to become unappreciated. New clothes will wear and fade. New gadgets will quickly be replaced by even slimmer, faster versions. Young puppies will become old dogs. Without constant effort, time slowly brings disorder. This constant effort to please one’s self is one way to go through life. I believe that this is the path taken by the majority. This, sadly, is the path that I find myself upon time after time. But there is another path.
The way to achieve happiness is not by working to make yourself happy. The way to truly become content with yourself is to help those around you, especially those less fortunate. Greed is the evil that causes unhappiness. I don’t want to make myself out to be a communist; I understand that the world is a better place because of capitalism (think medical advancements). I do, however, believe that undue hardship is a direct result of the greed of another person. When someone is forced to enter bankruptcy because they can’t afford health insurance and their child needs a medical procedure to save his/her life, it doesn’t seem fair that the CEO of the health insurance company is making $2 million a year. Again, I understand that that individual may possess incredible executive talents, but is that worth the death of an innocent child?
Here’s the key: Help someone else. Do them a simple favor. Express a kind word to someone that needs it. Will this solve the world’s problems? No, of course not. But if someone does you a favor, be a good person and pay it forward (as opposed to paying it back). Maybe even two or three times. Help a few people out and spread it as if it were one of those lame e-mail chains. Every time you think back on the good you’ve done, you’ll still be satisfied.
July 19th, 2007 at 9:01 pm
Time to play devil’s advocate:
What about those people who have entered bankruptcy because they bought that new Mustang instead of paying their Visa bill. Should the CEO making $2 million per year help them then?
I get your point, and I don’t disagree, but most of the time its not that simple.
As for the other point, I think that most people, at least subconsciously, equate external objects with internal feelings. For example, I own a new car. I own it for reliability, and I pay the price for it, but it is something I value greatly, and I always will, so I will always budget for a reliable car, and hopefully I will always be able to afford it.
My take is this: Life is about endorphins. Endorphins are the chemicals released by the brain that cause that happy feeling you get. Whether it is sex, helping people, or wearing a rolex, we all do it for endorphins.
Just trying to stimulate some discussion
July 20th, 2007 at 8:58 am
Your example of the bankrupt mustang owner is, in fact, exactly my point. That person was attempting to satisfy himself by attaining a “status” vehicle, in the hopes that it would make him happy. I think Sean accurately points out the dangers of insecurity in one of his previous blogs. I certainly don’t think Visa’s CEO should feel obligated take a pay cut in order to help this guy out. However, do I think Visa’s CEO should spend exorbitant amounts of money on houses, yachts and golf courses? How about taking $300,000/year to live on and keep his family happy, and donating $1.7M to various causes. There are incredible people in this country that work hard for others, sometimes just out of the goodness of their hearts, and as a result they sometimes just scrape by (volunteer firefighters, nurses, those who work with special needs children, etc.).
July 20th, 2007 at 9:29 am
Jesse played the Devils Advocate… now its my turn to just plain play the devil
Lifes a bitch and then you die. The world is full of greed, corruption and most of all chaos. Dont worry about other ppl, its pointless. Alls it does is keep you up at night. Worry about your family and yourself because you have enough problems of your own to be worrying about whether or not a child dies. Millions of children die every day. That CEO that makes 2 million a year pays toward taxes along with many other ppl with millions, which keeps the economy going smoothly allowing things to be cheaper for you to purchase in the long run and that CEO is probably taking care of all his family members making thier lifes as nice as his. you say take out 300k for him a year, maybe he is, and also giving 300k to his sister and 300k to his brother and 300k to many other family members which adds up fast. I learned along time ago how the world really works, and I wept when I found just how bad it really is out there. The world isnt nice…. dont be nice or it will eat you alive just like those who do out of the kindness of thier hearts, because then the sharks take advantage of you and run you into the ground. like I said, worry about yourself and your family.
July 20th, 2007 at 10:02 am
Your complaint is that the world isn’t nice, and your solution is to keep to yourself and not offer help. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy with the consequence of cannibalism. I just hope that when I could use a hand, you’re not the only one around.
July 20th, 2007 at 7:40 pm
sorry if the truth hurts. Hopefully you’ll make the right decisions in life to not need help. and yes, the state of the world IS going to hell and as soon as non-renewable resources are used up (ei oil) it will lead to cannablism.
July 21st, 2007 at 1:33 pm
What would I do?
That’s easy… buy my son a book store.
~ Dad
July 22nd, 2007 at 6:26 am
that would be great. To have hundreds of books on every topic.
July 26th, 2007 at 1:03 pm
Music theory can be tough, but it is also a lot of fun. It really puts a lot of things into perspective. like why some songs sound good and others sound…bad.
~Genoraven
July 31st, 2007 at 5:52 am
I used to think I’d have a big house, a few nice shiny cars, a huge TV…etc.
But now I come to think about it, while I may or may not have some of them, I think I’d do the following:
Pay off my debts, and those of my family (mortgage’s, etc.).
Quit work and concentrate on Psionics and magic, learn as much as I could, practice as much as I could, maybe visit a few magical/mystical places (Tibet for example).
Fly out to see Sean and ask, in person, how the hell he comes up with all this stuff to baffle my brain :oP
Graham