Money Stories To Warn You Of The Dangers Of Having Money: Is There A Lottery Jackpot Winner Curse?
By Kalinda Rose Stevenson, Ph.D.
How many money stories warn you of the danger of having money? Consider the article, “Is there a lottery jackpot winner curse?” by William Browning.
The article begins with a somber warning in the form of a hope for the well-being of two big Mega Millions jackpot winners.
CNN reports Tuesday’s Mega Millions jackpot of $355 million will be split between two winners, one in Washington state and the other in Idaho. While not the largest lottery payout in history, $355 million split in half is a large sum of money. Hopefully, the winners will be wise with their money — past big winners have befallen on bad times, some have even lost their lives despite being rich (Is there a lottery jackpot winner curse?).
The article then goes on to describe horrible stories of what happened to past winners. The stories are told to raise the question: “Is it a winner’s curse or do these stories have more to do with human behavior when confronted with untold riches?”
What Kind Of Money Story Is This?
This little article raises several interesting questions. The one that is most relevant here is this: What kind of story is this?
When a story raises the possibly of a “lottery jackpot winner curse,” we are involved in a story with deep religious undertones. Curses are fundamentally about divine retribution for evil.
Attaching the idea of a “curse” to lottery winnings evokes all kinds of religious warnings about the dangers of money for people with enough Bible education to remember verses such as “the love of money is the root of all evil” or “you cannot serve God and Mammon.”
Is Money A Curse Or Is Money A Blessing?
For many people, especially people with biblical warnings about money rattling around inside their heads, this story about possible curses simply reinforces money fears about the evils of having money.
What the article does not do is give a broader perspective. Are all lottery jackpot winners “cursed?”
The theological opposite of a curse is a “blessing.” Are there stories about other lottery jackpot winners whose lives were “blessed” by winning? This particular article doesn’t mention them.
Money Stories And Your Financial Freedom
My point is not to dispute the horrors of the experiences of the particular winners identified in the article, but to identify the type of money stories that keep so many people full of conflict and fear about money.
If you are seeking financial freedom in your life, it would be worth your effort to read the article and pay attention to your own reactions to it. Does it remind you of warnings you have heard before? Does it reinforce a nagging thought that it would be better not to have money than risk the dangers of being rich?
If you are seeking financial success in your life, there is nothing more powerful or liberating than paying attention to your own reactions to money stories.
For Your Financial Success,
Kalinda
Dr. Kalinda Rose Stevenson
The Story Transformer
Creator of “The Story Transformation Process”
