Imagine winning $590 million in the lottery. What would you do with all that money? Would you go on a spending spree? Or would you want to donate a large portion of it? Let’s face facts here; $590 million is more than most of us could spend in a lifetime. (Although given the chance I’d make a nice-sized dent in it.)
It would be like a dream come true. You could have money to invest, donate, and spend, and then still have a lot left over. Just imagine for a second that you were Gloria Jackson from the United States. She is on record as the winner of the largest lottery payout in the world.
Jackson won $590 million. And she’s luckier than you realize. She was waiting in line to buy a quick pick when someone ahead of her decided to let her cut the line. This kind act led to Jackson’s massive win.
What did she do with the money? According to Stefan Ateljevic, the webmaster and researcher at Stefan’s List, she bought herself a house and donated money to a local school. The donation was sizeable – $2 million – and was more than the cost of her house.
She believed it was well worth it, though. The money was donated to a high school because Jackson believes in the value of a good education. If you’d like to hear more about some amazing lottery wins, check out the infographic at the bottom of this page. Stefan summarized all his research in an easy to read format.
Are Lottery Winners Luckier than the Rest of Us?
If you go through some of the other winners on the list, it might seem like it. One winner had just canceled her subscription. Her winning ticket was the last one left in that subscription.
Another winner is lucky in life and the lottery. He’s cheated death a total of seven times already.
Another person intended to buy a scratch card costing $1. The clerk made an error and gave her the winning card. Thanks to this mistake, she won $5 million from a ticket that should have cost her $10 but actually cost her $1.
Not All the Stories Have Happy Endings
Winning huge swathes of money does not always end well for the winner. Part of the problem is that many winners end up getting more money than they’d ever had before. It’s difficult to suddenly come into a fortune.
You might, for example, pay debts, get a new house, and so on. It’s easy to be generous when you’ve just come into a huge sum of money. The problem is that if it’s not properly invested, you could end up blowing the whole lot easily. It’s a sad fact, but many lottery winners end up losing everything.
Final Notes
So before you begrudge the winners their good fortune and wish it could have been you instead, remember that not all lottery winners end up happy.
