We all know the stats: that six months after a major windfall, such as the lottery jackpot, people are no happier than they were before they won. Most of us assure ourselves, WE would do better. WE would know how to manage that blessing in such a way as to increase the happiness of many people – including ourselves – on an ongoing basis. WE would be happier, not succumb to dopey decisions and would never blow up our lives with self-destructive, self-indulgent bad behavior.
Here’s a question: what would you do if you won the lottery, and why aren’t you doing some version of that already?
If you imagine you’d travel, see new places and try new cuisines, are you saving money for a trip and seeking free/cheap adventures in your own area, experimenting in the kitchen and otherwise exploring here at home?
If your job is a poor fit, are you meeting your intellectual and creative needs via outside pursuits, or investigating how to transition to something that’s a better fit, or are you just feeling “stuck”?
Most changes people imagine making after winning a lottery are really superficial and thus, much to their surprise, they show up in that new, changed life with the same “them,” with all their flaws, quirks, and preferences. That means that we all would tend to level out at whatever our prior level of contentment was, pre-jackpot. If you’re a happy person, you’ll keep on being happy…and if you’re cranky, well, you’ll just be a rich, miserable person to be around instead of a not-rich miserable person. Worried people will keep on worrying until they decide to learn how to change that – which doesn’t require a lottery jackpot.
You can be happier today. You can find a new adventure in your town this weekend. You can learn something exciting and be on the way to mastering a new skill this week. Alternately, you could sit around and wait to win the lottery. You get to pick.

Dr. Lori Puterbaugh, LMHC, LMFT, NCC
© 2016
Posts are for information and entertainment purposes only and should not be construed to be therapeutic advice. If you are in need of mental health assistance, please contact a licensed professional in your area.