This is just the typical example of how we do a very bad job of teaching financial literacy. Statistically this is very common thing for people who are average or below to suddenly come in to a large sum. Since this was an inheritance from their parents, I somewhat blame the parents here. They clearly had financial discipline but were unable to teach it to their kid. Additionally as part of the inheritance and will they could have tied a financial planning course to getting the money. Or set aside a small portion of it for a financial planner for 2 years so they at least have the advice.
Sometimes I talk to my friends about what we would do if you won the lotto. They all have plans for vacations and helping friends and paying off debt and those kinds of things but I hit them with the sobering reality. If I was to win the first things I would do is get an attorney and get a financial planner. So whatever the amount was if it was 2 million or if it was 200 million it would be able to meet my financial goals for the rest of my life first and then meet the goals for my entertainment and fun after that.
Of course my thinking is influenced by my childhood and my own life. My parents were upper middle class parents even though they did live financially conservatively the money they had in the bank and were able to spend and the neighborhoods we live in we're all upper middle class. When I moved out of my parents I was poor very poor to the point of the needing government assistance but that upbringing still influenced me. I had the financial discipline to work my way out of being in poverty and now I am also upper middle class. While I still can't imagine seeing a number with six zeros behind it suddenly dropping my bank account I do have the wherewithal to understand that I don't want to see that number get smaller until I'm the nearly at the end of my life.
OP of the thread says they talked to multiple financial advisors but they didn't listen. If they'd just put the majority of it into stocks 6 years ago and forgot about it the OP would have nearly doubled their money.
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[ 3.3 ms ] story [ 21.4 ms ] threadSometimes I talk to my friends about what we would do if you won the lotto. They all have plans for vacations and helping friends and paying off debt and those kinds of things but I hit them with the sobering reality. If I was to win the first things I would do is get an attorney and get a financial planner. So whatever the amount was if it was 2 million or if it was 200 million it would be able to meet my financial goals for the rest of my life first and then meet the goals for my entertainment and fun after that.
Of course my thinking is influenced by my childhood and my own life. My parents were upper middle class parents even though they did live financially conservatively the money they had in the bank and were able to spend and the neighborhoods we live in we're all upper middle class. When I moved out of my parents I was poor very poor to the point of the needing government assistance but that upbringing still influenced me. I had the financial discipline to work my way out of being in poverty and now I am also upper middle class. While I still can't imagine seeing a number with six zeros behind it suddenly dropping my bank account I do have the wherewithal to understand that I don't want to see that number get smaller until I'm the nearly at the end of my life.
http://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/24vo34/whats_the_...