Why I Wrote a $1 Million Check
My grandson, age 8, and I were talking about something a couple of years back. I forget exactly what it was now. However, to emphasize the point I foolishly said I would bet $1 million if it worked.
Unfortunately for me, it did work. He won, and was very happy about it too.
I promised I would send him a check for the money.
Now, I put myself in an awkward position. On the one hand I wanted to fulfill my obligations, but on the other hand I didn't want to lose a million dollars :-)
So I wrote the check and postdated it to the year 2050. Then I posted it off to him.
I got a phone call a couple of days later from a very delighted young boy. Not only was he pleased with getting such a large sum of money, but he had taken the check to school and his school friends insisted that he bank it straight away.
I carefully pointed out that it would be nearly half a century before he could cash the check... that I was very sorry that I couldn't afford it right at the moment. He understood, and it became quite a joke between us over the next couple of years.
The interesting lesson - that I hope was passed on to my grandson, was about fulfilling obligations. I had made a promise, and mainly followed up with it - though with some small alterations. So now he could expect that I would follow through on whatever I said... no matter how extreme.
However, there was a problem of integrity with the amount, as I certainly didn't intend to give that million to him. I didn't think hard enough.
So when you win lotto, take time to figure out how you intend to give your money away - to whom, and how you will do it. Don’t commit yourself without thinking, as I did. Take time to digest your win. Most financial experts recommend you put the money into an interest-bearing account for 6 months while you wait for the excitement to die down and for reason to take over.
It's all part of getting your financial life fixed up permanently and for the better - so you can avoid throwing away the biggest opportunity you'll ever have in your lifetime.
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