NJ Powerball winner wants his old life back

 well said

I used to think that, but that's not really true. The people who earn there millions or billions get bombarded with requests as well, the difference is that the lottery winners get a deluge of requests all at once, people who slowly made their fortune got it over the span of time have their requests spread out. Plus those that worked for it usually have a PA or EA who bottleneck those requests before it reaches them. 

ALL wealthy people are seen as a walking ATM. If you've ever seen the comments made about a multimillion dollar house or yacht that is so extravagant it makes the news, you'd see that the general view is that the owner of the property has no right to have all that money and they should give it away to this or that. Once someone is rich, suddenly society feels that the money should be communal property and they all should get a piece of it. 

If you've ever been a part of an organization or a church and that holds fundraisers, who is the first person they turn to for funds? There's always one really rich person who is expected to shell out for everything, from building funds, to roof repairs, to buying all the candy or cookies.

People who are born into that kind of wealth or work their way into it, learn how to handle requests. Lottery winners historically have not. 

But here is where the REAL difference comes in. People who work for their wealth can tell a moocher that they earned it and therefore they aren't going to just give it away to someone who is undeserving or who hasn't worked for it. When a lottery winner tells someone no, there's no real justification for it except no, they don't want to. There's expectation on the part of the requester and guilt on the part of the lottery winner.

My bottom line is i know how to say no....I don't care if i won it or earned it, it's mine and not anybody elses so when I win on my interview and believe me Im giving interviews I'll blantly say this..."If I have never heard of you before this big windfall or if you are in fact a relative of mine and I havent talked to you more than once in a year...you can expect to get the same amount of cash from me as you would Donald Trump, Bill Gates, or Warren Buffet and that amount my friend or relative is nothing...If you cant get it from them then you really cannot get it from me point blank"

O'l Willie is just looking for recognition, identity and respect. Trying to make us think, that he is a reluctant participant. in the interviews that he has willingly given. He is obviously interested in becoming some kind of a reality star.

Truly, if this tidy, net sum jackpot winner can obtain an additional $1M+ net via the media, maybe it is worth the 'looking foolish requirements' to he and his wife.  Maybe he and his wife are recently good at reading opportunity and seizing small, open-window time frames that big media companies can afford to pay them quickly for! 

I'd probably enjoy watching a 1 season reality show of this couple, if it showed them meeting with attorney and financial professionals, later summing up if/how they were satisfied/educated.  How they began spending 2 hours per day on-line investing/checking/moving their investments around into six different industries and what trend charts they now include in their co-decision process, etc.  What their financial results were for all of their investments at the end of the quarter, what % their accountant indicates needs to be paid towards taxes, etc.

I think this is a good theory. He will do a reality show then with a wider audience knowing who he is, will then get a book deal.

Yes, I see your point. Your last paragraph is spot on, I'm sure that's why you hear of those lottery winners who end up broke. They feel they have no real good reason to say no to requests/demands for money, so they give in.  You have to be prepared to lose friends and tick off some people, even become estranged from some overbearing family members.

For me it's real simple, my money and I will give to whom I want.  I can and would say no with no problem.  I don't know owe anyone anything except to care for my parents.  Everyone else can move on to the next lottery winner.  I also don't need 4 homes and 14 cars.  These winners who lose it all are not thinking clearly and it's their own fault.  My favorite word will be no.

Ooh, an income trifecta!

I know it would feel uncomfortable at first but I'd get good at saying no very quickly, given the sorry examples of those lottery winners who did not say no.  If you give away too much of the principal then your income potential decreases. For me, gifts would come out of the investment income versus reducing the principal amount right away. If you give big chunks of money away to people, most won't appreciate it; they'll blow through it then come back for more.

And yeah, I can't see the point in buying lots of houses and cars. Sounds like a pain in the arse to me.   Four houses = four loads of property taxes, insurance policies, utility bills, landscaping, cleaning, repairs, etc., etc.   You can only live in one anyway, what's the point? I'd rather have one nice home and rent 4 and 5-star accommodation wherever I travel to. Let the owners of those properties deal with the bottomless moneypit a home can be.

I agree.  Concerning the traveling, I'd probably do what your plan is.  Anyhow, I would probably, eventually find traveling to be too much of a hassle, and reduce to two-week travel to a different state/country once annually.

Winning the lottery has its advantages and disadvantages too, I think it's up to the winner how he is going to perceive such life changing event. I think seeking professionals who can guide you through this event will definitely help.

First big mistake was appearing on the Today show.

If I ever won a nice sum & they were somehow lucky enough to get ahold of me & ask me for an interview, my reply would be "HELL NO!"

The best way to deal with being hit up with money requests is to have an attorney or trustee be the bad guy.  Just direct all requests to that individual and tell them to always say No.

Oh, and if you buy tickets in New Jersey, or really any state that touches the Atlantic Ocean, you'd better have a plan in place & be prepared to win at anytime.

Just don't do interviews.  They can still live a simple life.  Just stop talking!!!  Win, collect, and shhhhhhhhhhh.