Financial Contrarian #2: Field of Dreams

Let’s Play a Game

Close your eyes. Wait, never mind, open them so you can follow along. Look at the field of grass in the photo above. Imagine you’re standing smack dab in the middle of it. If you’re a sports fan, imagine you’re standing on a massive NFL field, World Cup soccer field, or your favorite MLB baseball outfield. Got that picture in your head? Good.

Pick a Blade, Any Blade

A voice comes over an intercom. “Pick the lucky blade, and you’ll be wealthy beyond your wildest dreams.” As you stoop down, the voice adds dismissively, “Costs a dollar.” Look at the expanse of that field again. How much money would you spend given those visual odds? Probably not much. If you’re a gambler, you might spend a buck or two before walking away due to the obvious futility. Sure, they might do some sneaky stuff like planting a few “play again free” blades or small-sum winners to keep you (the fish) on the hook, but in visually seeing the odds, you’d quickly recognize that you’re being played.

Da Player Bein’ Played

You might be more inclined to spend money if you had just witnessed the person before you pick a winner and hold up a huge fake check while smiling and embracing loved ones. “That could be me,” you’d probably think. What you wouldn’t see are the vast blades-of-grass-field-of-losers (hundreds of millions!) who had lost. That’s the marketing psychology behind this—to show desperate people the winners only, not the losers. You’re being played, bro. Do scratch-offs? The odds are actually worse in many cases (of winning anything substantial).

The Gummint is in on the Fix

It’s sad that governments are in on the scam. Aren’t they being paid to look after us? The money allegedly goes to good purposes like education or seniors. After the many years that lotteries have been in practice, you’d think we’d have safe roads, bridges, tunnels, and oh, maybe schools. You’d think teachers wouldn’t have to pay out of their own pockets for school supplies anymore. The streets should be paved in gold! Perhaps we should have even less expensive college and health care like other countries. It’s for the seniors? They should all have penthouse apartments and Teslas.

A Tax on the Poor (or Those Who Can’t Do Math)

One thing governments know is taxes, and that’s exactly what the lottery is. Some say the lottery is a tax on the lower class to help the middle classes send their kids to college. Statistics show that those who can least afford it, those who are desperate, are the ones sucked in. Nobody puts a gun to their heads to buy the tickets, but misleading marketing everywhere you look certainly doesn’t help them to make that decision.

Just Say No. Be a Winner.

Which leads me to my point. Don’t play. The odds are overwhelmingly against you. You’re gonna lose. Do you want to know how to win? Put that money in a jar instead, and every once in a while pay off a debt or save it. You’re guaranteed to win!

These blogs are just my opinion, and you know what they say about those. If you need help paying off your debt, head to our contact page and begin your journey to BE. DEBT. FREE. Schedule a free fifteen-minute call, we’d be happy to help you.