How Can A Little Luck Destroy You?

How can a little luck destroy you? Every month people win hundreds of thousands of euros at the National Postcode Lottery, among others. Other forms such as the VriendenLoterij and the Lotto also give us the opportunity to become very rich in one go. In exchange for just a few euros, you could possibly win millions.

At the end of the year there is also the New Year’s Eve draw of the State Lottery, where tens of millions of euros are drawn, as well as expensive things such as fully equipped cars. Many people hope for a bit of luck that can land them these amazing prizes.

Some people have been participating in these lotteries all their lives, waiting for a win that will never come. They willingly trust their luck and don’t believe there is any other way to get rich. What happens to these people who get lucky in this unexpected way?

Ask the hard questions about a little happiness

Before you decide that winning the lottery is the only way to live a happy, carefree life, think twice. How does the brain respond to banal things?

For example:  don’t you wear the same set of clothes all the time despite the fact that you have a closet full of unworn sweaters and pants? Why do you always want a better car than the car you have now? Or why do you necessarily want a bigger house?

You can apply these questions to many areas of your life. Anyway, it comes down to this: isn’t what you already have enough?

You are stuck in a contradictory line of reasoning: if you win 1 million euros, you would want more a few days later. Moreover, you would be dissatisfied with the fact that a hefty tax would also have to be paid on this!

It doesn’t matter if you would need the extra money. It is part of human nature for many to always want more. We continue to take in things to satisfy artificial needs created by society.

The brain and the lottery

We seek out the initial excitement we feel when we get something we’ve never had before. It does not matter whether this is better than what we had before or is symbolic of, for example, a superior social group or class.

This kind of happiness is powerful but temporary. It makes us feel happy because we got something we longed for. These reactions and feelings arise from the reward system in the brain. The stimulus (the lottery) becomes something we desire through combined behavior and belief.

Nevertheless, the question remains: once we have what we wanted, what does the brain need to generate and experience this feeling again? Next up: another winning lottery ticket, or simply more money.

When a little happiness is poisonous

You always see the people who have won the lottery smiling in the pictures from the newspaper. They can travel and fulfill whatever wish they have without worrying about the health of their bank account. They look carefree and happy.

This is also what we expect from these people. As a consequence, the people who have actually won try to live up to this expectation. Otherwise, they may feel bad about not experiencing the intense pleasure that this gain promised them.

Some examples

Take Jack Whittaker, for example. Whittaker donated a lot of money to charities and to friends and family. He appeared on television as a lottery winner and soon became a victim of theft. Large amounts of cash were stolen from his car several times. Why was he carrying so much cash? “Because I can.”

Whittaker was also drugged and then robbed once. In addition, since he won the lottery, Whittaker has been dogged by lawsuits. After everything that has happened, Jack Whittaker has indicated that he would rather have torn up the winning ticket.

Roger Griffith won £2.3 million from the UK National Lottery in 2005. After seemingly finally getting some luck and winning this, he and his wife resigned. After this they lived a luxurious life under the assumption that their money would never run out. 

However, that turned out not to be the case. Their luxurious lifestyle came to an end, as did their marriage. They ended up having to sell everything to pay off their debts. Today Roger lives in a small house in West Yorkshire.

Money does not make you happy

We all want to be a little lucky. However, many people are destroyed by the money, even going to jail or becoming addicted to something they would never have thought of in their previous financial situation. 

Suddenly getting rich changes your life in a radical way, and not necessarily in a good way. The reality is often quite different.

A lot of money does not guarantee that you will be happy. What  does guarantee happiness is knowing what you can or should do with your current happiness. After all, we all experience a little bit of happiness in our lives, at least to some degree. So pay attention, because otherwise a little luck can turn into a punishment.