If you received $50,000 as a gift (I wish that happens to me), what would you do with that money? Your decision on this will reflect on your financial future of who you become, and how you look at money.
a. save it in the bank
b. buy a nice house or a nice car
c. quit your job or take a long vacation
d. invest it and make it grow
Whatever your decide, it is up to you. Different people have different views on money, some believe that:
(a) It will be safe in the bank, as people want to save money in case something happens, like an emergency, or a sudden lay-off from work. They always want to expect the worst in the future, and thus they will not have a difficult time financially if a problem happens. Moreover, banks also give a minimal interest rate on savings accounts, which thus puts a smile on people's face.
For most people, they will agree that this is the best decision to make. Your parents and friends will be proud of you that you chose to do this over something else that is stupid.
(b) a house and a car would be 2 of the most expensive things an average person purchases. with this sudden splurge of money, wouldnt people want to enjoy this money and reward themselves with something to make them happy? moreover, people can them show off to their friends on what they can do with so much money. this is one of the biggest problems of having too much money! a lot of people have financial problems of having little money, but many then also have problems of too much money. they will end up on spending it all, and fall back from losing the $50,000, missing the financial status they had in the past. maybe some of these people wont even have enough money to put gas in their new sportscar they just purchased, or wont be able to pay their monthly dues on the car.
(c) with this big amount of money, people might think that they dont really need to work anymore... temporarily. well yes, $50,000 is already more than the average salary of the person in a year, and now they just received it in one day! why should you continue to work for $10/hour where you got a load of money with you?
employees that earn a good $10/hourwill look back again and realize how small money theyre making. some will quit their jobs, and enjoy the money they have. after a while, they spend all their money (on vacations, fine-dine restaurants, road-trips, partying), and dont want to go back to their original lifestlye. $10.hour would be something small for them.
(d) this is where the "rich" people fall into. for employees, your monthly paycheck earns you a living, and your lifestyle reflects on that number that is written on that piece of paper you receive twice a month. create passive income, money that is put into your pocket whether you work or not. create an investment vehicle, that where you can put that $50,000 into, and make it more! it WILL be risky, and you WILL fail several times, but failing makes you a better investor. you may lose part of the money, but giving up will just leave you with (a), (b), and (c).
you can put that money that you received into real estate investing (my favorite), create businesses (food business, online business, general merchandise, joint ventures, etc.), or paper asset investing (stocks, bonds, mutual funds, collectibles, commodities, part-ownership of businesses, etc.). with good research and due diligence of the investment vehicle you may choose, you can minimize risk, and thus be happy with your decision with what you did with you money!
To sum it all up, your financial future WILL REFLECT ON YOUR ANSWER ABOVE. Just that simple decision will change EVERYTHING on how your future will be. Its just a matter of switching views that will change it; just a simple decision.