Lottery winners go bankrupt. Here’s why.

Have you ever wondered why two people can earn the same amount of money and feel completely different about it?

One feels calm, empowered, and in control.

The other feels anxious, restricted, or like there’s never quite enough.

The difference often isn’t the number in the bank account.

It’s the relationship they have with money.

Years ago, a friend told me that his father had represented multiple clients who won the lottery… and then, years later, also handled their bankruptcies.

I was stunned.

How does someone come into millions—and still end up unable to pay their bills?

Around the same time, I noticed similar patterns elsewhere.

Celebrities who had massive success—awards, fame, millions in earnings—yet somehow found themselves in financial trouble.

And in everyday life, too: people I assumed had very little spending freely, and others I believed had plenty being incredibly cautious.

I started to realize something: Money doesn’t behave the way we think it should. People do.

And people are driven by what they believe.

We don’t talk about money much here in the U.S.

It can feel private, even taboo.

You might not know what your closest friends earn, what they owe, or how they really feel about money.

That’s not true everywhere.

I remember visiting Israel with my family and meeting up with cousins who had moved there from Colorado. Our tour guide came inside their home, looked around, and without hesitation asked how much they paid for it.

My very American cousins were caught off guard—and a little offended. “Why does that matter?” they asked.

Later, I learned that in Israeli culture, conversations about money are often much more open—salaries, housing costs, financial decisions.

It’s just… normal.

Different cultures.

Different norms.

But underneath it all, the same truth:

We all have a relationship with money—whether we talk about it or not.

And that relationship is shaped by beliefs.

Maybe you grew up hearing things like:

• “Money doesn’t grow on trees.”

• “You have to work hard for every dollar.”

• “Rich people are greedy.”

• “There’s never enough.”

• "You can't take it with you (in the afterlife)."

Or maybe your experience taught you something quieter but just as powerful:

that money creates stress, or conflict, or instability…or that having it—or not having it—says something about your worth.

Those beliefs don’t just sit in the background.

They influence how you earn, spend, save, invest, and even what you believe is possible for you.

So when someone comes into money and loses it…or earns well but still feels anxious…or avoids looking at their finances altogether…

It’s rarely just about money.

It’s about the story they’ve been telling themselves.

As a Certified Life & Health Coach, I help people explore that story—without judgment—and understand whether it’s supporting the life they want… or quietly holding them back.

Because when you shift your relationship with money, your choices start to shift, too.

If money has been a source of stress, avoidance, or “I don’t even know where to start,” you’re not alone—and it doesn’t have to stay that way.

If you’re ready to feel more clarity, confidence, and ease around your finances, I invite you to book a discovery call.

Let’s talk about what’s really going on—and what’s possible from here.