Don't throw me in that briarpatch!
Category: Kitchen Sink...
Posted Monday, November 22, 2004 at 10:40 PM [GMT-6]

Shrode over at The Thinklings has a good post entitled "You Don't Really Want to Win the Lottery." It's a recap of the financial and legal woes suffered by those folks who had the luck to win but not the common sense, skill or discipline to deal with winning.

I've seen this same scenario played out over the years even in amounts much less signficant than a multi-million dollar lottery payout. I've seen people squander tax refunds, insurance adjustments and 401K payouts. Sometimes it seems that we're just not wired to handle prosperity (or the illusion of it...perhaps that's where the real problem rests).

Anyway, it's ironic that I was daydreaming just last week about what I'd do if I ever found myself in the possession of, say, $20 million. It's not likely to happen, considering that I've never purchased a lottery ticket. But when the client based has dried up (as it has, indeed), one's thoughts naturally turn in that direction.

Assuming a $10 million lump sum payout (after federal income taxes and discounting at unreasonable interest rates), my strategy is based on one simple fundamental tactic: spend or give it all away...immediately. And here's how I'd do it:

• Give $1.7 million to my church...that's 10%, before taxes (I don't really find any Scriptural basis for doing my tithing on an after-tax amount, but that's just me). Balance remaining: $8.3 million


• Give $1 million each to our four parental/sibling family units...no strings attached but also no advice. They pay their own taxes and go from there. Balance remaining: $4.3 million


• Build a new home, complete with a detached office. Set aside enough cash to pay exorbitant Midland county property taxes in perpetuity. I figure the house would take $1 million and the tax account another half mil (yeah, it's really that bad). Balance remaining: $2.8 million


• Buy two new cars to replace our serviceable-but-aging fleet. Nothing fancy, but we're rounding up here, so let's say, $100K. Balance remaining: $2.7 million


• Bank $2 million in short term CDs, thereby allowing MLB to quit working if she so desires. That balance will easily get us to the ages where we can tap into our 401Ks, which are sufficiently funded (at this point, anyway) to provide for our, um, declining years. Balance remaining: $800K


• Disburse the remaining balance equally among a handful of worthy ministries and individuals who will use it wisely for Kingdom work. Balance remaining: $0.

The beauty of this plan is that it allows me to say, immediately and honestly, it's all gone. (Well, the $2mil for folding cash is problematic in this area; maybe it can be structured into an annuity that removes the ability to tap it prematurely.) There's no "get richer quick" implications or schemes, and the plan bestows a pretty significant windfall on those who might be most likely to come winking and nodding in my direction anyway.

Such a plan takes discipline, though. I think I've got it. But if anyone has $20 million laying around and would like to test me on it, have at it!