Have you ever dreamt about winning the lottery someday? What might you do if you happen to win it? It’s probable that just about everyone has dreamt about having that kind of power – all the money you could ever want. Unfortunately, many of these situations in real life have a tendency to end rather badly. All you have to do is look for a list of lottery winners who broke their golden goose to see just how bad things can get.
However, it’s not always the sudden winners who tend to have a difficult time with their riches. More often than not those who got their boost to stardom thanks to their winnings are likely to lose it all. What about those however who weren’t necessarily famous for suddenly having a ton of money? You’d be surprised to find that there are some individuals who foolishly blew their fortune, acting as a cautionary tale; we must always appreciate the value of a dollar, no matter how much we might have.
Dennis Rodman
You probably know him as one of the most popular superstars in the NBA back in his heyday, where he had a reported salary of twenty-seven million dollars. That is a lot of money to go around, yet somehow famous individuals have a habit of mismanaging their money on frivolous spending. It was understandable however as Dennis Rodman was a very hard worker, so he was an equally hard spender. However, all of his dicey choices caught up with him, and when he left the NBA he began struggling to pay even his regular bills.
One of the biggest sinks for his money came from multiple child support bills which he could not keep up with. Eventually, he was brought to court for child support bills that amounted to eight hundred thousand dollars. Today, while Dennis Rodman is still somewhat eccentric (if his trip to North Korea was any indication), he’s doing his best to try to follow the straight and narrow. His current goal is to bring pro wrestling to North Korea, which is admirable in its own right.
Nicolas Cage
Believe it or not, there was a time when Nicolas Cage was considered one of the most bankable actors in Hollywood. There was just something incredible about his acting, and how he was able to act in many different roles. As a matter of fact, he was being paid about forty million dollars a year at one point! However, all good things must come to an end, and Nicolas Cage, unfortunately, had very expensive tastes.
He would always go for sports cars, mansions, as well as an exotic animal here and there. He was even keen on buying private jets, which is about as expensive as toys come. His spending habits eventually outmatched his earning habits, and he eventually owed millions upon millions of dollars in back taxes. This led to plenty of problems, but it seems as though he is trying his best to pay them off. He still appears in movies, which means he’s still earning a good amount. Hopefully, his expensive tastes will come to terms with the reality of his situation one day.
Michael Jackson
You probably won’t find anyone alive today who isn’t aware of this celebrity’s name. As the king of pop back in the 90s to the unfortunate allegations leveled against him that led to his downfall, Michael Jackson was an enigma of a human being. He earned an incredible amount from his career, and as of the moment, it cannot be agreed upon what his actual net worth was. However, Michael was known for one thing even at the height of his career, he was a millionaire who would often spend like a billionaire. Even before the allegations, he was already over three hundred million dollars in debt, and this trend continued until his death at age 50.
As an individual whose childhood had been taken away from him, Michael tried to get it back through frivolous spending. Unfortunately, while he might have eventually managed to pay it back, he died before he could go on his latest tour. We may never know exactly how much he had really earned, but we do know that the amount he spent far outweighed it.
Mike Tyson
Another name that anyone would recognize just about anywhere in the world, Mike Tyson was a world famous boxer. He wasn’t always the kindest and most respectable individual, but he certainly lived up to his feared reputation in the ring as a boxer you had very little chance of succeeding against. The amount he earned in his storied twenty-year career is quite staggering, reported being around four hundred million dollars. By the start of the 2000s, he already owed a sizable amount and eventually filed for bankruptcy in 2003. At the time, he was about twenty-three million dollars in debt, which is an equally staggering amount.
While Iron Mike might not have been the greatest role model before, he has since reformed and has gone on to be a respected individual – though it’s likely he’s still suffering financial troubles and trying to pay off his debt. It’s unfortunate for any individual to incur that much debt but his reformation has put him in a good spot and hopefully, he’ll be able to finally pay it all off.
To conclude, everyone who’s given the opportunity to earn a great amount of money has a chance of mismanaging it. Whether it’s growing an ego or simply having ridiculously expensive tastes, all of these individuals serve as cautionary tales. It isn’t just the lottery winners who can go broke after all. Even those who work hard for their money in the end still can’t seem to understand the value of a dollar. It might be great to win the lottery in theory, but perhaps these stories will make you think twice before going on that planned lottery spending spree!
