This list was inspired by reading a story about a person who had a dream that they were a Lotto winner and went out and bought new cars before the drawing.
Ten Things Not to do if You Think You Are Going to Win a Contest of the Lotto
10 If you think you are going to win a contest or the Lotto, do not quit your day job until the drawing is over. If you do, at best your boss won’t take you seriously when you give a reason for resigning. At worst the Publisher Clearing House Award Team will knock on your door only to discover they have made a mistake, and your neighbor with the barking dog is the actual winner.
9 If you think you are going to win a contest or the Lotto, do not brag to your in-laws before the drawing. If you, at best they will believe you are a little naive. At worst, your father in law will present an IOU for the amount of money he has loaned to your spouse over the years. The bill will still be due even if you don’t win.
8 If you think you are going to win a contest or the Lotto, do not sign the papers for that beautiful new house until after the drawing. If you do, at best you will be the proud owner of two homes and utterly broke. At worst, the Federal government will want to talk about the amount of income you stated on the bank loan forms of twenty million which was used to approve the loan. They keep mumbling vaguely about something called bank fraud.
7 If you think you are going to win a contest or the Lotto, do not tell all your friends before the drawing. If you do at best, they will want the money back for the drinks they bought you. At worst, they will think you won and are avoiding their requests for a loan.
6 If you think you are going to win a contest or the Lotto, do not put off saving for retirement. If you do, at best you will need to keep working until you have enough to retire. At worst, you will retire and find out you needed to work more, and no one is hiring.
5 If you think you are going to win a contest or the Lotto, do not put your house up for sale until after the drawing. If you, at best you will sell it and need to find another. At worst, you will sell your house and find you don’t have enough money to buy one of similar value and no way to qualify for a loan.
4 If you think you are going to win a contest or the Lotto, do not tell your boss exactly what you think of them before the drawing. If you do, at best your boss will send you for a mental evaluation, and all will be forgotten. At worst, you will say things you want to retract but you know a retraction is impossible even as you pack for your new assignment in North Korea.
3 If you think you are going to win a contest or the Lotto, do not avoid setting up a college fund. If you do, at best your kids will be so bright and talented they will win full scholarships to Ivy League schools. At worst, your kids will have to take jobs and loans to get through college and will eventually find their way back to your basement since they can’t afford housing and pay back the loans.
2 If you think you are going to win a contest or the Lotto, do not invest in that oil well with your brother-in-law before the drawing. If you do, at best you have given your brother-in-law a gift, and at least it’s not your brother. At worst, you will need the money you gave the brother-in-law to meet your near term commitments since you figured you were throwing the money away and wouldn’t need it. Now you need it. The silver lining he is not your brother.
1 If you think you are going to win a contest or the Lotto, do not finally buy that expensive gift for your spouse before the drawing. If you do, at best you will be forgiven for the thought. At worst, you will have to return the gift and explain why you bought it in the first place. However, the excuse comes out it will still sound like you have lost your mind.
Fiction Favorites 
I always find some of the beliefs about the lotto very interesting. Someone I know once said that the big winners ‘always’ come from the NYC area. They lived in Florida, so they got someone passing through the area to pick up a bunch of tickets. No idea where this idea came from. There are people who get the ticket on a certain day or a certain time, so they won’t try if they miss their window. There’s so many personal superstitions around this thing.
Isn’t it supposedly cursed too?
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The curse of too much money too fast can also be found in other things as well.
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Yeah. I think people come out of the woodwork asking for money too. Believe there was a winner a few years back who requested that his identity be kept out of the media because of that.
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I would have no problem saying no.
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Then you send your bodyguards after them. 😛
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Right
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Greg’s group at work buys a bunch of tickets together. One day he forgot to make the purchase. I’ve never seen him study over the winning tickets so hard. He was terrified they might have won and he didn’t play the numbers.
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Ha ha ha. I can imagine the tension,
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When I lived in CA, I used to play in a Lotto pool with a group of my coworkers. Even though there were often at least 10 of us, our “winnings” usually weren’t even enough to buy lunch 😉 As they say, you have better odds of being struck by lightening or eaten by a shark than you have of winning the Lotto ;).
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They also say the odds are the same weather you buy a ticket or not. Of course, if you have no ticket there is no win.
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It’s true, but I haven’t played in years. I work with statistics … I know the odds are stacked against me 😉
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I remember doing the math on statistics in college. You know, determining the appropriate sample size and preventing a false positive etc. Made my head hurt.
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Reblogged this on 1WriteWay and commented:
A cautionary list of what not to do if you’re one of those folks who like to play … the Lotto 🙂 Courtesy of John Howell!
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Thanks for the re-blog Marie.
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What is wrong with people who do win these multi-million dollar jackpots? Are they not familiar with the word invest? So many winners end up broke.
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Imagine winning a hundred donuts. If you never had a hundred donuts before what do you do?
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I believe most people aren’t wired for a sudden windfall. Can you imagine investing all those millions and worrying about the investment or worry about the money for one reason or another? No thanks. I’ll keep collecting beer bottles by the roadside as I have for the past 50 or so years. 😀 😀
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Aluminium cans pay better
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You’re a card, John. 😀 😀 😀
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LOL… Love your ‘what not to do’ posts, John. Have a marvelous Monday. 😀
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You too. Thanks for stopping by.
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Years ago I was in a lotto pool at work, too. We’d take turns buying tickets in different locations and cities, thinking that could make a difference. It didn’t. So guess I better keep my thoughts about my boss to myself and keep saving for retirement! 🙂
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There you go. A path of caution (not nearly as exciting though).
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Really? The egg or chicken talk? Where’s the fun in that, John. 😉 😉 Ha. Loved it.
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Thank you.
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I”m glad Audrey. Thanks for letting me know.
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Did you see the movie Nebraska, John? It was all about this topic, and Bruce Dern was amazing.
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Love Bruce Dern. I have not and will find it. Thanks.
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