Winning Powerball Ticket – If you had it, would you abandon Social Media?

November 27, 2012

I love to play the lottery. And I love to play the lottery game – meaning the fantasy discussion of what you’d do with the money if you won PowerBall or any large lottery jackpot. Unfortunately, I haven’t won the big game yet and I suspect the $425 Million jackpot in this week’s PowerBall drawing will also elude me. But let’s say I did win, what would I do with the money and would I keep my social media profiles live?

As happens in the lottery fantasy game, people quickly jump to say they’d get a lawyer, set up a trust, hire a bodyguard, etc. when the win the big PowerBall jackpot. That’s the knee-jerk response. In the genuine lottery game, I like to share what I’d buy first. The things I’d be frivolous about. The first crazy thing I’d do.

To that end, I’d buy a condo in Boston; I’d fly to Paris; I’d bid on part of a sports team; I’d buy a car; I’d hold open-bar at a local pub FOR a week straight; and I’d give away briefcases full of money.

When it comes to social media, though, I don’t know how I’d respond. If you know me, you already realize I’m very open and engaging via social tools. I friend people a lot, I share most every meal and activity, and I’m not too private. If I were carting around half a billion dollars, I might have to change that.

Would I shut down my profiles? No.

Would I hire an intern to do my tweeting for me? Really? Do I look like I’m a major brand that doesn’t understand social.

What would happen to my blogs? I’d keep writing – but the adventures might be more interesting than just ruminating on whether I’d be cashing a PowerBall ticket for hundreds of millions of dollars.

So, the short answer is, I don’t know. I love the community, the sharing, the people. But there risks to being too open if you suddenly have something everyone wants. Luckily, right now I only have a used car, a tiny bungalow, a cat and an iPhone 5. So I’ll continue to share as I’ve been doing for the past six years.

But if you see my Tweets slow down dramatically or the accounts I have end with a little ^JM ^CB or ^TR, you’ll know I’ve gotten some minions to share my updates and I’m probably sitting at a cafe across the Atlantic munching on a Croque Madame.

What would you do with your PowerBall winnings? How would winning the lottery change your social outlook and activity?