Once you've won a big prize from the lottery, you may feel that all the serious effort is performed. Alternatively, you'd be quite wrong! There are plenty of documented cases of men and women who have hit it big only to lose their fortunes through bad deals, unhealthy living, selfish acts, and other unfortunate events. So if you want to be a lottery success story, and avoid the famous "lottery curse" that appears to always make it to the front page of newspapers, here are some tips to help.

Get an attorney or financial planner

Before going public with your lottery winnings, it's a great idea to speak to an attorney and a financial planer. Certain lawyers concentrate on lottery winners as well as the way to best begin a wise life that may make the most of their winnings. Of course, the ultra-rich (millionaires and billionaires) got that way by being wise with their money. They've had their wealth for a long time. You, however, as a whole new lottery winner, are thrust in to the role of ultra-wealthy, without needing the years of expertise that others may have had. This is why an attorney can give great advice and be a great help when you begin your new life.

A financial planner is additionally an essential person to speak to. They may help you make the decisions early on in your life to guarantee that you not have to work again. If you make wise investments with your lottery winnings, as opposed to spending it foolishly, you will truly be a lottery success story.

Concentrate on your dreams

Winning the lottery is one thing that most of us dream of doing. So now that you've won, what would you like to do with your winnings? Maybe you have always wanted to travel. This is now your chance to become a world traveler. Or perhaps you have always regretted that you were not able to go to college. You have the opportunity to get that degree! Making a number of all your hopes and dreams will help you to locate the top path to achieve them.

In addition, think beyond just things to buy. Sure a new car or dream home will be nice, but think more about lifestyle changes rather than new toys. The majority of people don't love their jobs, but find it nice to have a hobby to take up time. Your hobby can now become your full time career, if you wish it. Being happy means spending your time doing the things you love.

Learn how to say "No"

Whenever you make a big win at the lottery, you will hear from friends you haven't spoken to in years. You will hear from cousins that you never knew existed. You might even hear from complete strangers! How did everybody find you all of a sudden?

Most state lotteries make their winners public. It's in their terms of service that winners must be willing to go public. This is accomplished for a number of reasons. For one thing, it's a great promotional device and it generates interest in the lottery. It also proves that the lottery is a fair draw and that there isn't any cheating going on. The flip side of this really is that having their names made public puts a target on many lottery winners' lives. As a whole new lottery winner, you will have to discover ways to say "no" to the many requests that can be coming to you. Should you have a hard time doing this, then you will be quickly taken advantage of, and pretty soon you will find your fortunes dwindling.

One alternative for those who may not be looking forward to a life of public scrutiny is to try their hand at casino online (how you can help) lotteries. The relative anonymity provided by winning online means that a big winner can still remain relatively anonymous. If you've always dreamed of having everything, but you want to still live the life of a regular Joe, then you may want to try your hand at online lotteries.

Give some back to charity

Even though you'll have to say "no" to a great deal of greedy people trying to take advantage of you, you could see that you are excited about giving back to charity. Many millionaires and billionaires have done great things with their donations, whether it be to hospitals, colleges, or any other non-profit organizations. You may even donate your time! Despite the fact that it sounds crazy, many millionaires and lottery winners do it. (If you don't have a regular job any more, or only work part-time as a result of winning the lottery, you could have a whole lot more free period to share and may find that you enjoy volunteering tour time).

In the event that you do elect to give to charity, do your investigation first. You'll need to find out what your interests are and the way you'd like to see your hard earned money spent, so make a list about which charities interest you. You can even research your favorite charities to determine where they spend their money, how much of each gift they receive is used for charity, as well as other facts. These facts should help you decide on a few worthy charities.