Comments on: Winning the lottery by being frugal

By: Mind the Beginner » Blog Archive » The 2 Types of People when it comes to Debt - Lifestyle Design and Personal Development with a Zen twist

Thu, 28 Jan 2010 14:34:29 +0000

[...] Winning the Lottery by being Frugal [...]

By: *pol

*pol — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 20:15:25 +0000

wow.

You are only 26…… and so wise!

(I’m not being sarcastic actually)

My mom is in her late 50s now and STILL hasn’t figured out what you wrote here.

I have been saving small amounts since your age, and even with the economy smashing my investments to smithereens, I see enough progress to be encouraged that it is a better life I am building for myself (and my children) than if I had lived as if there were no tomorrow.

By: Ralph

Ralph — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 01:03:30 +0000

And you are only 26, lots of years for that interest to compound. Compound interest is one of the wonders of the modern world.

By: Corbett Barr

Corbett Barr — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 21:11:14 +0000

Great points, Christiaan. There’s nothing wrong with dreaming, but spending like you’re a millionaire when you’re living in debt will get you nowhere good.

Living frugally may be boring, like you said, but it’s also a common thread that most rich people share (aside from lottery winners). The best thing about building your own wealth through hard work will be the experience and wisdom you’ll eventually have. I wouldn’t mind winning the lottery, but I’d rather have the experience in the end.

By: Robert

Robert — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 18:58:41 +0000

I can hear the reality for yourself in your words and they ring true for me as well. I decided that slow savings and spending only on what matters was important a few years ago.

We’re short sited creatures until we really think about life. It’s only been a couple quick years that my meager “pay myself first fund” from mish moshed freelancing and real job wages has amounted to something. The decision to think with money in terms of years was the hardest step (hint: make it automatic). I don’t “work for the weekend” and I don’t ever want to. I can see now how what I have actually saved will be reinvested with smart decisions to earn more than a few interest dollars from ING.

I started with nothing but debt. I don’t have it down by any means, and am in the midst of hashing the “passive income” part out. I do know that for myself and many like me, getting there starts slow and involves exactly what you said; being frugal, money management, and getting real. Thanks for this reality check and the reminder!

I just wrote a post on saving money through minimizing, it might go perfectly with your thoughts here. Be well!

By: Sean

Sean — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 18:05:20 +0000

Christiaan,

Timely post for me. I was driving down the highway this past weekend and came across a billboard for the Powerball lottery. $186 MILLION dollars. I spent the next half hour day dreaming about what I would do with it!

But you are absolutely right, there are much better ways to “win the lottery” than to just dream about it or buy hundreds of tickets.