What would you do if you won the lottery?
Haven’t we all done it?
Bought a ticket. Laid our head on the pillow. Let the mind wander into that delicious little fantasy called What if?
What if I won the lottery.
I sometimes think it would have been fascinating to track how those dreams change over the course of a lifetime. Like a longitudinal study of imaginary wealth.
As a kid, I’m guessing it would have been simple. A few toys. Maybe something impractical with buttons. Definitely candy. And probably a house, because even children understand that houses are important.
The house is the one constant, isn’t it?
No matter how old you are, the house always shows up in the fantasy. It’s just the style that changes. When you’re younger, maybe it’s beachfront. Or tucked into the mountains. Or in a charming college town where everyone drinks coffee and discusses books.
Different ages, different aesthetics.
Same house.
A house for all stages of life.
I’ve never dreamed about buying a fancy car. Mostly because I don’t drive. But I do remember once imagining having a chauffeur. That felt very glamorous at the time.
Now?
Now that just sounds like sitting in traffic with a stranger while checking emails.
Hard pass.
Travel, though, has always been in the cards. I’d absolutely make it a mission to hit my final continent. Maybe take some elegant train trips. The kind with dining cars and wide windows and slow mornings.
When I was younger, travel fantasies probably involved late nights and “finding myself.”
Now it’s more about comfortable seats, good lighting, and places with tasty food.
Same curiosity. Different lumbar support.
Here’s the part that surprises people. I don’t think I’d quit my job.
I’d fund my own position.
I’d cover my salary so I’d have complete freedom to innovate, to build, to try new things without worrying about budgets or permission slips. That matters to me. The work matters. Having space to imagine and create. That’s the real luxury.
Of course I’d donate to charities. Of course I’d take care of family. That feels less like a fantasy and more like a given. Security ripples outward. When you’re okay, you want your people okay too.
There was a time when I probably would’ve used lottery money to go back to school for more degrees. Collect credentials like Pokémon.
But now?
Now I don’t feel that need.
I’ve learned that wisdom doesn’t always come with a syllabus.
What I love about the lottery fantasy isn’t actually the money. It’s the permission. The way it gives us a blank canvas. If fear and finances weren’t driving the bus, what would I choose?
More time? More beauty? More impact? More rest?
It reveals what we value long before any numbers are drawn.
So maybe the real exercise isn’t waiting to win.
Maybe it’s borrowing a little of that clarity right now.
Designing small pieces of that dream life inside the life we already have. Taking the trip when we can. Making the home cozy. Investing in meaning. Being generous where possible. Creating freedom in inches instead of jackpots.
And yes, still occasionally buying a ticket.
Not because we expect to win.
But because imagining is free.
Categories: identity, mental health, Psychology, Travel, work
psychologistmimi 
This really made me think about how winning something huge reveals more about our mindset and values than about luck itself.
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“I’ve learned that wisdom doesn’t always come with a syllabus.”
So fabulous. Great piece!
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3,6,8,11,28,31 What’s In 6 Numbers on January 12, 1988
Hehe Yes Winning the Lottery of An Autistic Splinter Skill
Memory that still Remembers the first and Practically Only
Day i Selected Numbers and Played them Just for the Novelty of that
Day When Florida Started the Lottery Then to Educate Children too
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For True Verbal Skills Not Speaking Until 4 and Stumbling
my Way Through Words for 5 Decades my Greatest Weakness
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Fins through all those 5 Decades
Yes even becoming Much Stronger
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Hehe Now at 250 Pounds of Human the Bullies
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From the New Lottery Win of Creativity
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Blood Sweat And Tear to Work and Play for
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Being Financially Independent for
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Yet i went to Hell first to Make that
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i Don’t Come From a Welfare Recipe God
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Devil Be Angel Come Whatever May We Will Be
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