If you won the lottery, what would change?

I was working through my backlog of How to Money podcasts while walking the other day, and the topic of the lottery came up. Joel and Matt were talking about how suddenly coming into a lot of money can actual make people’s lives worse.

They mentioned that they think it’s wise to build a meaningful life that you love, one that’s not dependent on some pipe dream of winning an enormous cash prize. 

So that got me thinking: what would change in my life if I won a huge Powerball prize?

(note: I have never actually played the lottery, so this is entirely theoretical!)

Things that wouldn’t change

I would still blog

I would keep writing here because I love blogging and because in small ways, my blog helps people.

But I would remove all the ads, since an income would no longer be necessary.

I would still get my R.N.

Me getting my R.N. was never about earning money. So, even if I was filthy rich, I would still go to school and get my R.N. because I really, really want to go make a difference in patients’ lives. 

But maybe once I got my R.N. and some experience, I would use my degree to do volunteer work instead of paid work since I wouldn’t need to earn money. 

I would love, love, love to go help out on trips where medical professionals give free care to people who need things like cleft palate repairs.

I would still drive a sensible car

You all know how my dream car is a Honda Civic, right? My plan is to buy one for myself when I finish nursing school. 😉

But if I won the lottery, I think I miiiiiight upgrade my dream car to a Subaru BRZ. I’m not much of a car girl, but man, every time I see a BRZ on the road, I swoon a little.

My hesitation in buying one is that they use premium fuel. But if I won the lottery, maybe I’d be willing to splurge on premium fuel for my BRZ. 

I would still maintain most of my frugal practices

A lot of my frugal practices have benefits aside from frugality. For instance, cooking at home is healthier than eating out. And homemade food tastes really good!

(Is there anything tastier than homemade bread, hot from the oven? No.)

Also, so many money-saving practices are better for the environment; for instance, reusable products save money but also produce less trash.

Secondhand purchases are cheaper but they’re also much better for the environment.

And the same goes for repairing something instead of replacing it.

Things that would change

I would buy a smallish dream house

I wouldn’t want a mansion, but I would most definitely find a small/medium house and pay for it in cash.

My dream house has a big front porch, a garage, and lots of natural light!

I would hire out all of the yard work

My dream house would have a yard, but…I hate mowing and most all types of yard work. So if I had unlimited money, I would hire all of that out in a heartbeat.

I would spend lots of money on relationship-building 

Obviously, you cannot buy relationships!

But sometimes money can facilitate time together with people you love; I’d pay for meals out with people, time away with people, travel to go visit people, and so on. 

I could see my Texas friend more often than once every few years, for example. 😉 

I would buy some homes to rent for cheap (or free) to newly single moms

When I was struggling so hard this year to find a rental, I thought that maybe down the road, once I’m on my feet, I’d love to buy a duplex or a house with an in-law suite so that I could have something to offer to someone else in need.

Finding a place to live is a big hurdle that you have to get over in order to leave a bad situation, and I’d love to make that easier for someone else.

So, if I won the lottery, I could do that on a much larger scale! 

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What about you? If you won the lottery, what would and wouldn’t change?