Change Your Lottery Dreams to a Strategy for Success

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Amidst the excitement surrounding the recent Mega Millions jackpot that reached $540 million, we asked you to tell us about your lottery habits and lottery dreams.  You, our Careers Done Write blog readers, are generally well-educated, goal-driven professionals.  I was curious about your opinion. What I learned did not surprise me.  However, I decided to challenge you with a new twist on this conversation.

Before we share the results, here is an interesting comparison.  Most of you commented that you felt the lottery was a “tax on the poor” and the odds were so low that it was almost like throwing your money away.  Let’s take a look at two ladies, “Saver Sally” and “Lucky Lucy.”

Sally saves $15 per week over the course of her working life (45 years). She invests $780 each year in a mutual fund. With an average return rate of 8%, the saver would have approximately $302,000 at the end of 45 years.  Lucy sets aside $15 each week to play the Mega Millions lottery.  Her chances of a jackpot each week are one in 175+ million.

That’s a compelling argument for saving versus playing!  We all know this to be true, but there is something about crunching actual numbers to bring home the message.  

Now let’s hear from our fellow blog participants.  Most of you only play the lottery on occasion. These were the most popular responses regarding how it would change your life:

1.)    Pay off home and parent’s home.  Establish a more comfortable life.

2.)    Help those in need and contribute to charities.

3.)    Start a business or expand a business.

What would you say if I told you that you can achieve these objectives and that you can do it without the lottery?  Not to worry. This is not a lead-in for a pyramid scheme.  I am not saying you will be an instant multi-millionaire. I am suggesting that you create strategies to achieve your objectives.  

Building Wealth

That will be a different formula for each of us.  Most people acquire wealth are through earnings, investment income, or inheritance.   Here are some resources to help you take control and accumulate wealth without the lottery.

“You Can Get a Raise, Even in a Recession”

“Earn What You Are Worth”

“Secrets of Self-made Millionaires,” USNews.com

“Eight Ways to Build Wealth Like Millionaires,” Forbes

“Six Money Moves You Should Make in 2013,” Yahoo

Home Ownership/Paying Off the Mortgage

Paying off homes was at the top of the list. Talk to a financial advisor about the plan that is right for you.  In some cases, paying off a mortgage early may not be the best use of your money.  Here are a few articles to inspire you, but a mortgage broker is probably your best resource.

“Four Ways to Pay Off Your Mortgage Faster”

“Fringe 15-year Mortgage Become Hot Property,” Yahoo

“How to Buy Your First Home,” Forbes

Pay It Forward

We have such generous blog participants!  Ask yourself this: Are you helping others now?  This objective indicates that you want to be able to start a routine of donations.  You can do that today without winning the lottery.  First, include a line in your budget for 5%, 10%, or whatever percentage you desire to donate from each paycheck.  Many large charities have auto-pay options to make this easy.

Here are two more options that you can start today:

Benevolent.Net – This is a crowdfunding site that allows you to help individuals by giving any dollar amount to help them with financial hurdles, such as money for a bus pass to get to a new job.

The Giving Effect – This clever enterprise lets you re-gift unwanted gifts to charities.

Entrepreneurship

The goal of starting a business or expanding a business is one that I know well.  When I started my company and each time that I have expanded, I turned to experts for advice. I would recommend the same to you.  Here are two online resources to stimulate your brain so you can ask smart questions of your expert.

“How to Start Your Business Guide,” Entrepreneur.com

“How One Start-Up Grew a $100M Business Without Spending Venture Capital,” Forbes

Don’t give up on your dreams of financial freedom and making the world a better place  Hopefully some of the resources above will help you realize that you can achieve these goals without the lottery. Thank you to those who shared your feedback. We offered a prize of a LinkedIn profile re-write.  The fortunate winner is Gretchen. Congratulations Gretchen!! I’ve emailed Gretchen privately to get things started. 

Here’s to a prosperous and healthy 2013 to everyone!