Jack Tame: What would you do if you won Lotto?

How much wealth is just the right amount of wealth?  

How rich is too rich? 

I had a successful businessman friend tell me once the Goldilocks zone is a mortgage-free home and five-to-ten million dollars in the bank. No more. Any more than that, and you can’t trust people.  

But I dunno. Maybe this is just exposing me as a grubby money lover, but I reckon I could do fifty million.  

The first step in winning Powerball would be the hardest but arguably the most important: you’d have to decide who to tell. I think it’s inconceivable that you could win that much money without telling anyone. But tell too many people and you’ll ruin your life.  

So, who? Mum and Dad. The parents in-law. Siblings, as well. I trust them, of course, but already that pool of people is getting kind of wide. Maybe the rule should be you only tell people with whom you are willing to share some of your winnings. And maybe the rule with family is you pay off everyone’s mortgage and then, that’s that.  

I’m not a big splurger, but yeah, I might be tempted to buy a couple of bits and pieces. As much as I love the Corolla, I’d probably shell out for a new car. Nothing crazy and ostentatious —I couldn’t ever show my face in public behind the wheel of a Ferrari— but maybe something a bit newer with a few more airbags and cruise control.  

I’d pay off my mortgage. I’d probably splurge on central air, but for now at least I’d keep our family home. At least until the trees grow back. But as well as our home, I’ve always dreamed of a retreat somewhere. A house or a bach —again, nothing ostentatious— buried in native bush on a pristine beach. Ideally, it’s a surf beach. I’d wake each morning to the sound of native birds in between the crashing waves.  

I don’t think I could win that kind of money and not give a big slab of it away. You’d want to be thoughtful about choosing charities and causes. I reckon you’d want to give big slabs —a few million a pop— to a couple, and then smaller parcels of donations —$100K each— to a whole heap.  

Would I work? Easy to say it now, but yeah, I think I would. That being said, I’ve never forgotten Trevor, the guy who worked as a checkout operator at a supermarket in Huntly who won $27m. After initially insisting he’d be back at work, he decided, yeah... nah. Maybe I’d be the same. Maybe I’d just do this show and lose the Monday to Friday.  

I’d love to travel more. I’d love to read more, to learn languages. I’d love to use that windfall to buy time. But all of this is hypothetical of course, because I haven’t actually bought a Lotto ticket. I never have. I wouldn’t even know what to do! I guess I’m just too rational. Even as I watched the jackpot roll over onto $50m, the equal-highest-ever, I couldn’t help but think that if that leads to heaps more ticket sales, statistically speaking the chances of winning Powerball by yourself are actually becoming even slimmer.  

I get it though. I know why people have a punt. Buying a Lotto ticket isn’t so much a ticket to win $50m. It’s a ticket to dream. This morning though, I reckon I’ve done that for free. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:07):
You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack Teams podcast
from News Talks.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
A'd be let me ask you this, how much wealth
do you reckon? Is just the right amount of wealth?
How rich is too rich? It's funny. I had a
like a successful businessman friend of mine tell me once
that the Goldilocks zone for wealth is a mortgage free

(00:34):
home and then five to ten million dollars in the bank,
no more any more than that. He reckoned. And you
can't trust people, not even your family. But I don't know.
Maybe this is me just exposing myself as a bit
of a grubby money lover. But I reckon I could
do fifty million. You see, the first step in winning

(00:57):
Powerball would be the hardest, but I reckon arguably the
most important. You would have to decide who to tell.
I think it's just inconceivable that you could win fifty
million dollars and they're not tell anyone. You would have
to tell someone, But tell too many people and you
would ruin your life, right, So who to tell? Well,

(01:18):
if it were me, I'd go mom and dad, the
parents in law, siblings as well. I trust them, of course,
But already that pool of people is getting kind of big.
Maybe the rule should be that you only tell people
with whom you're willing to share some of your winnings.
And maybe the rule with family is that you pay
off everyone's mortgage, and then that's that. Personally, I'm not

(01:41):
a big splurger, but I might be tempted to buy
a couple of little bits and pieces. As much as
I love the Corolla, I would probably shout out for
a new car, nothing crazy, nothing ostentatious. I couldn't. I
absolutely could never show my face driving a Ferrari in public.

(02:03):
Oh my god, I would just be so embarrassed. But
maybe something a bit newer, something that isn't thirteen years old,
something with a few more earbags, cruise control. Maybe I'd
pay off my mortgage, and I would probably splurge on
Central Air. But for now, at least I would keep
our family home, at least until the trees go back. Right.

(02:27):
But as well as our home, I've always dreamed of
a retreat somewhere, like a house or a batch, somewhere
kind of remote. Again, nothing ostentatious, but a place that's
buried in native bush, on a pristine beach somewhere. Ideally
it's a surf beach. Then I would wake each morning

(02:47):
to the sound of native birds in between the crashing waves.
I don't think I could win that kind of money
and not give a big slab of it away. And
you want to be really thoughtful about choosing charities and causes.
That would be difficult, But I reckon the way to
do it would be to give some big slab, so
like a few million dollars a pop to a couple

(03:09):
of charities or causes, and then some smaller parcels of
donations one hundred thousand dollars each to a whole heap.
Would I work? Ah, look easy to say it now,
but yeah, I think I would. I love my job.
That being said, Remember Trevor, that guy who was working

(03:30):
as a checkout operator at a supermarket in Huntley who
won like twenty seven million dollars. Remember that, after initially
insisting he would be back at work, he decided, Yeah, nah,
maybe I would be the same. I just I don't
think you can say with certainty until you know with certainty.
Maybe I'll just do this show. Maybe I just do

(03:51):
this show and lose the Monday to Friday. I would
love to travel more. I would love to read more.
I would love to really spend some time learning languages.
I would love to use a fifty million dollar windfall
to buy time as much as I could. But I mean,
all of this is hypothetical because I haven't actually bought

(04:14):
a lotto ticket. I never have. I've never bought a
lotto ticket. I wouldn't even know what to do. Well,
is it do you call it a triple dip these days?
Is that a thing? A triple dip? I wouldn't know
what to ask when I got to the front of
the line. Perhaps I'm just too rational, too emotionless and rational.
Even as I watched the jackpot roll over onto fifty

(04:35):
million dollars this week, the equal highest ever in New Zealand,
I couldn't help but think, well, a record draw means
that there'll probably be record numbers of people buying lotto tickets.
Record numbers of people buying lotto tickets probably actually reduces
my chances that much more of winning fifty million dollars
all to myself. Statistically speaking, the chances of having Powerball

(05:00):
by yourself, you and you alone, are actually becoming even slimmer,
aren't they. I get it, though, Look, I get it.
I get it why people have a punt. Buying a
lotto ticket isn't so much a ticket to win fifty
million dollars. It's a ticket to dream. This morning, though,
I reckon I've done that for free.

Speaker 1 (05:22):
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