It is a lacking mindset that is responsible for our financial difficulties. They believe: 1) I don’t deserve this 2) I feel guilty because it happened to me and not ___________ 3) This can’t be real 4) etc…

Those with money that work their way up from the bottom or build the wealth they have easily, have the one thing that most of us lack – a million dollar mind set. All wealth begins with it and all wealth is maintained by cultivating this feeling of prosperity.

Their beliefs are: 1) I am wealthy. 2) If I lost it all tommorow, I could make it back easily. 3) I deserve to be wealthy

I would bet that most of us could compile a list of hundreds of things that we “want.” That sense of wanting means that we feel that we do not have these things. When we replace this wanting feeling with the sense of already having wealth, amazing things start to occur within our brains. We begin to come up with ways of having wealth instead of merely wishing and wanting it.

How do we create this million dollar mindset?

1) Think about being wealthy and write down any thoughts that come up.

Write down the objections that already play in your mind. Write down the excuses like” It takes money to make money.” And write down all the things that you wish you could have if only…

2) Release on those thoughts. Let them go and keep letting them go until the negative emotions go away with them.

3) Replace negative thoughts with positive ones.

4) Fill your mind with the images of what you want and picture yourself already having them.

5) See yourself as you will be. Feel what you will feel. Add audio and even the things that you will smell when you reach that state. ex. the type of perfume you might wear, the sound of bankers begging to give you loans, the feel of silk upon your skin, etc…

6) Keep releasing your negative emotions and thoughts until you have what you have been wanting all these years.

7) Act upon the incredible ideas that your subconscious shares with you fearlessly.

Every week, millions of hopefuls tune into the National Lottery live draw final, hungrily dreaming of how they would spend their millions, should they win. Statistically though, the odds of winning are stacked against you with players having a one in almost 14 million chance of choosing the six winning lottery numbers, netting the full multi-million pound prize in the process.

That the odds are so great fails to deter Lottery stalwarts and that someone, somewhere has to take home the winnings is enough to keep the money rolling in in the run up to either a Wednesday or Saturday Lotto draw.

That said, for the lucky one in 13,983,816 players, winning can literally be a dream come true. Many Lotto fans imagine they’d spend their millions on fast cars, huge houses, luxury holidays and such, whereas in fact, the reality is often far more mundane, but nonetheless life changing.

For some, a big win on the National Lottery would enable them to enjoy an early retirement, never seeking to work another day in their lives. For others, it could enable them to leave their present employment to take up a dream job or training that was never before possible due to financial pressure; pressure that has now been relieved.

For many, buying a new, often larger house seems a sensible investment for a proportion of their Lottery winnings. Moving up in the world in terms of real estate could mean that your dream of an indoor swimming pool, sauna, outdoor tennis courts or even a private chef could finally be realised.

As for the fast cars dream of Lottery spend, you could find a larger garage comes in handy along the way too. For some, it’ll be top-of-the-range supercars, from Lamborghinis and Maseratis to Bugattis, Porsches and Bentleys. For others, long-lived dreams of owning rare and classic cars can come true.

Whether you win with the full six numbers or share a win with five, you could still stand to net yourself multi-million pound prizes, either way. Even the interest on that kind of wealth could be valuable enough to live off comfortably. For many prize winners, immediate comforts are put in place and the remainder of their lottery fund can then be invested wisely by the experts, whose advice you could now employ.

Many Lotto winners wish to use their winnings to finance their children’s higher education, purchase a holiday home abroad, or an annual football season ticket for a beloved club the cost of which may previously have been overly prohibitive.

Although Lotto tickets can be played by individuals, couples, even families, syndicates too can win big on the National Lottery. When a syndicate wins, the money may be divided between all participating winners, or shared to fund a mutually beneficial enterprise, from new premises for work, to an increase in production, to even buying a further stake in a public limited company for whom you work.

I read with amazement a story in my local newspaper this morning. It concerned a couple in their early 30’s from Perth, Western Australia who won AUD $793,151.87.

Their lotto dream was realized just two years ago. Lucky people huh?

OK. Nothing too amazing about that – so far. Reading on I was shocked to learn that this story is news now because, despite their massive windfall, this couple had never stopped claiming social security benefits. Greedy huh?

That welfare money is meant to be available to disadvantaged people who are in financial difficulty. Essentially it is “survival” money.

But the story gets worse, much worse…

This couple spent ALL that money in just seven weeks! Gone. Vanished. Seven weeks! It hardly seems possible. So, what does that tell you?

The first thing that struck me was how utterly irresponsible this pair was. How do you spend $113,307.41 each week for seven weeks? I have great difficulty comprehending that.

What if this pair had spent just the $93,151.87 having “fun” and put the $700,000 into an interest bearing term deposit for three months at 6.00% interest while they got some decent financial advice? At the end of the three months they would have accumulated another $10,500 to play with (less tax, of course).

So many stories abound like this – people with no financial skills suddenly find themselves in possession of a large inheritance or a lottery win and zap! Just like these two, it is gone. How would you have handled it?

For anybody wanting to learn basic financial skills “The Richest Man in Babylon” by George S Clason is a great start. Had these people bothered to read such a book then they would still have a significant chunk of that money left. Maybe they would have even more. As it is they have nothing to show for it and there is a strong possibility of either gaol or massive fines for defrauding the Government.

It pays to educate yourself.

This article comes with reprint rights providing no changes are made and the resource box below accompanies it.

People play lottery games not only so that they can experience the thrill of winning, but so that they can also enjoy spending their jackpot afterward. But what do lottery winners actually spend their money on when they get around to it?

The specific answer to this question obviously varies from person to person. One might spend a fortune on a guitar once owned by Eric Clapton, whilst another might be more interested in buying a dress that was once owned by Marilyn Monroe. Such personal variations are to be expected, but if you focus on overall trends and categories of expenditure, you find that lottery winners are a lot more predictable than it seems at first glance.

Here are some of the most popular things you are likely to find on the shopping list of a lottery winner.

Hot Property
Bricks and mortar are almost always a sound investment and it is therefore unsurprising that most lottery winners buy themselves a bigger, better and newer home than they had before. In fact, a high proportion of winners will often go even further and buy a second or third holiday home as well.

Stylish Transport
Getting from A to B in style is another thing that lottery winners like to spend money on. Most winners choose to buy cars, with popular sports cars often proving a popular choice in almost all lottery-playing nations. In fact, some can take it a step further and buy themselves a private plane. And when it comes to travelling by land, air or sea as a passenger, first class tickets are invariably the order of the day.

Impressive Jewellery
Most lottery winners like to wear at least some of their wealth, so shopping lists aren’t complete without at least one necklace or designer watch. An attractive watch is almost always sought after with men, and diamonds are still a girl’s best friend. But whatever the gender of the lottery winner, it is clear that bling is king.

Personal Staff
Spending money on staff of their own is another common choice among big jackpot winners. Personal shoppers are very popular, probably because they make shopping as stress free an experience as possible, but personal chefs, housekeepers, gardeners and chauffeurs are also very much sought after.

Luxurious Escapes
Indeed, an almost certain purchase amongst lottery winners is a luxury escape. Whether it’s a first class cruise around the world, a month spent on a romantic Caribbean island or an extended stay in a five-star hotel in New York for Christmas shopping, lottery winners are keen to make the most of their down time.

In addition, lottery winners also tend to enjoy considerably more down time than the rest of us, managing to pack several luxurious escapes into their schedules each year.

Clearly, lottery winners know how to spend their jackpots in style. But, the question is if you were to win the lottery, what would you spend your winnings on? Of course, what one lottery winner chooses to spend their money on may be different from another. Either way, the possibilities are in fact endless!

Do you think lightning never strikes twice? Everybody dreams of winning the lottery despite astronomical odds. But what about the very few that have hit the jackpot twice? It has happened, but the odds of winning the jackpot twice are even more astronomical.

Don’t bet on it happening to you. But you can dream. Let’s say you beat the odds and win a megamillions jackpot, say $5 million. That would make you super-happy, right? Of course it would! Now, let’s say that lighting struck again and you win the jackpot a second time. Would that make you twice as happy? No!

To explain why, consider the economics principle of the law of diminishing marginal utility. The law of diminishing marginal utility, as stated in Wikipedia, implies that marginal utility from one additional unit is inversely related to the number of units already owned.

As an example, consider a very thirsty man that is offered a glass of water. The glass of water would quench his thirst and would be very useful to him. Let’s say, now, that he is offered a second glass of water. That second glass of water wouldn’t be as useful as the first glass (it wouldn’t offer as much utility) because the first glass had already quenched his thirst, but it could still help to hydrate him. If he is offered a third glass of water he may drink it but it would not offer the utility that the first two glasses offered. In short, the more he gets the less usefull it is to him. This is the law of diminishing marginal utility.

So, what happens when you hit your first $5 million dollar jackpot? Your life is completely changed! You can buy material things: exotic cars, house, boat, electronics, whatever you want! You can quit your job. You can travel. In other words, $5 million dollars can make you super happy.

If you are one of the lucky few that win the jackpot twice and get a second $5 million winfall, it would be nice but it wouldn’t make you twice as happy. For example, let’s say you quit your job after your first lottery win to have all the time in the world to do whatever you want. A second lottery win cannot buy you any more time; time is finite and you already have it. Maybe a second lottery win allows you to purchase more items like a few more exotic cars. Sure, this can make you happier, but only marginally. You can only drive win car at a time even though you may now own ten.

That’s the law of diminishing marginal utility. Think of it this way: Nothing beats the enjoyment you get from the first time you get something or get to do something you’ve always wanted to do.

I used to play lottery quite regularly but not anymore. At one point I was even scared that one day I might actually end up hitting the jackpot!

I suddenly realized that I would then lose much of what precious friends and family I have right now while “winning” a lot of new toys and expensive diversions, plus the unending supercilious condescension of some filthy rich strangers.

Let me explain.

After meditating on the issue, I’ve decided that there is no way for anyone to continue living the life that they do, have the family that they do, and talk to the friends that they do have after winning, say, ten, twenty, or a hundred million dollars or more in lottery.

For one thing, after hitting the jackpot, it would be next to impossible to continue working at one’s day job.

Next, would come the house. It would be again next to impossible to continue to live in the same house. Since for just a “few million dollars” one can always find a “dream house” with a dream scenery, it wouldn’t be long before a big moving van parks in front, loading up for the trip to the “millionaires club.”

But while you quit your job and move to the Dream Land there would be considerable ill will and resentment from all around.

Your relatives, friends and ex-coworkers, for one, would hate you for leaving the rat race behind only on account of tremendous dumb luck. So unless you share almost all your money with them, they’d be so upset with you that they probably would not want to see your face anymore in their homes and barbecue parties. And you’d be sitting there by your new in-ground pool, scratching your head while sipping your power drink as to why nobody is returning your phone calls anymore.

Your “new neighbors,” on the other hand, those who live in the other $5 Million dollar mansions by the bay and next to the Country Club, would probably also resent your presence because you dropped into their midst by the lottery parachute and did not “really earn it” ( how true). So in order to ingratiate yourself to their graces you would start spending obscene lumps of money on stuff that never mattered to you before, like spending your winters at the correct vacation resort on the Swiss Alps.

You would soon discover that buying the good will of the Upper Class and building a new and permanent “profile of success” require the kind of cash flow that even a national lottery cannot supply.

Hit from both ends of the social spectrum by increasing demands to prove your bona fides and “authenticity,” you’d probably start wondering whether winning the darn lottery was such a good idea after all.

That’s why I say, do include all big-time lottery winners in your prayers because most if not all of them are probably in severe need of our genuine compassion as well.

So, having said all that, what do I do now with this fresh Power Ball ticket that I’ve just bought from a 7-Eleven on the way home from work?

In the United States, about 50 to 60% of adults play legal lotteries. Around two-third of them play regularly. Many youths also play lottery, even though it is forbidden by law. So, daily a large number of people win by playing lotteries.

All lottery winners are expected to claim their prize within a specific period of time. In states like Florida and Missouri, the claim should be made within 180 days after the draw. The amount each person wins is based on the total number of winners. If the jackpot is high, then the chance for multiple winners is more. Then, the prize amount will be divided equally among the winners.

All the lotteries in the U.S are subject to the laws of individual states. In most states, if the prize amount is less than $600, the winner can claim the prize in any lottery retailer. An amount up to $50,000 should be claimed from the regional lottery office and cash prizes exceeding this are required to be claimed from the lottery headquarters.

Lottery winners may select to receive their prize amount as a single lump sum payment or as annual annuity. If you choose to get the payment as a single lump sum, the amount withheld may not be adequate enough to pay for state or federal taxes.

In annual annuity payment, lottery winners will receive the payment in a series of installments. Actually, the prize amount received will be comparatively less than the initial payment option. Most winners prefer the annuity payment option, as the tax on annuity is significantly less. If the winner dies before receiving all installments, the remaining portion of the payment is given to the winner’s living spouse or children. Online lotteries or lottos pay the winners through insurance backup.

Today, lottery fraud or scam is becoming prevalent in the U.S. Either through e-mail or telephone, the target will be informed that they have won a lottery. The winners are told to give their personal information and also to pay a certain amount as fees. To prevent this, all lottery consumers should stop responding to scams.

All lottery winners are expected to claim their prize within a specific period of time. In states like Florida and Missouri, the claim should be made within 180 days after the draw. The amount each person wins is based on the total number of winners. If the jackpot is high, then the chance for multiple winners is more. Then, the prize amount will be divided equally among the winners.

All the lotteries in the U.S are subject to the laws of individual states. In most states, if the prize amount is less than $600, the winner can claim the prize in any lottery retailer. An amount up to $50,000 should be claimed from the regional lottery office and cash prizes exceeding this are required to be claimed from the lottery headquarters.

Lottery winners may select to receive their prize amount as a single lump sum payment or as annual annuity. If you choose to get the payment as a single lump sum, the amount withheld may not be adequate enough to pay for state or federal taxes.

In annual annuity payment, lottery winners will receive the payment in a series of installments. Actually, the prize amount received will be comparatively less than the initial payment option. Most winners prefer the annuity payment option, as the tax on annuity is significantly less. If the winner dies before receiving all installments, the remaining portion of the payment is given to the winner’s living spouse or children. Online lotteries or lottos pay the winners through insurance backup.

Today, lottery fraud or scam is becoming prevalent in the U.S. Either through e-mail or telephone, the target will be informed that they have won a lottery. The winners are told to give their personal information and also to pay a certain amount as fees. To prevent this, all lottery consumers should stop responding to scams.

Do you enjoy pubs and hanging out with your mates on Fridays? So do 10 fellows from one of the Milan bars who jointly bought one ticket for Italian SuperEnalottoon. World best ideas are born in the pubs aren’t they? During the draw held on the 4th of May 2005 the lucky ticket has earned them €71,800,000, Italian largest lottery winning received so far. Two tickets bought by two couples, Larry and Nancy Ross (Michigan) and Joe and Sue Kainz (Illinois), for The Big Game, now named Mega Millions, won the jackpot of the draw held on the 9th of May 2000 making them $363,000,000 richer.

Europe’s largest jackpot was hit on the 3rd of February 2006. Two players from France and one from Portugal shared €180,000,000. Ireland native Dolores McNamara, became Europe’s biggest lotto winner. On the 31st of July 2005 her quick-pick ticket for the EuroMillions lottery matched the game’s five winning numbers and two “lucky stars,” winning Dolores a nine-week rollover jackpot of over €115,000,000 and making her Ireland’s 72nd richest person. McNamara, who had purchased the ticket at Garryowen Stores, a small convenience store half a mile from her home, claimed her record-breaking prize five days later at the Irish lottery headquarters in Dublin and received world’s largest lottery payout given to a single player. €37,600,000 jackpot, the biggest lottery winning in the history of German National Lottery, was hit on the 7th of October 2006 by a nurse from North Rhine Westphalia while Paul and Helen Cunningham won on the 28th of July 2007 the biggest Irish jackpot winning worth €16,200,000.