To use an old-fashioned expression, I have come into some money. It’s not a huge amount of money. It certainly isn’t a BIG WIN. It isn’t a lottery win at all. It isn’t enough to change my life. But it is more than a nickel and it is totally unencumbered. I can do anything I want with it. Or, I don’t have to do anything with it at all. I don’t have to pay bills with it. I can frivol it away. I can give it away. I can put it in the bank and watch it grow. Of course, at today’s interest rates, growth is a laugh.
The situation reminds me of that story in the Bible about the rich man, the talents, and the three servants. Talents being units of money that the rich man put in trust with his servants. Two servants put the money to work, doubled the value and made the master very happy. The third servant buried his money and while he didn’t lose it, he didn’t gain anything either. The master was not best pleased to say the least.
So with my little windfall what would be called “putting it to work” and what would be called “burying it”?
Should I just spend it? Do I decide to spend this windfall on personal enjoyment or personal investment? Does making life-long memories on a fabulous trip count as growing the money? Is it better to invest in education or other learning experiences?Would taking a trip on my bucket list be putting it to work or burying it? Would putting it the bank and earning less than one percent interest be burying it or putting it to work?
It is not even close enough to do the great philanthropic work I have convinced myself I will do with the BIG WIN. Deciding that philanthropy – that is helping society grow – is the way to go leads to other choices: one-time assistance; short-term help; systemic change. One-time assistance could be donating meals to the homeless shelter. That choice would lead to full bellies today, but how many less empty bellies tomorrow? Short-term help could be funding a job fair with counselors to assistance in filling out applications, creating resumes and interview training. With that choice, the clients would be ready for work. But would there be work for them to do? Systemic change would be creating jobs, bring new work opportunities to this community. If my little bit could assist with that, but the workers were too hungry to work or did not have the skills for the jobs, has my little bit grown into a bigger bit or just created frustration?
It would easy to think myself into paralysis. At some point I will have to say to myself, “Enough is enough! Just do something! Don’t be the third servant!”
“Doing something” comes down to values. What is important to me? What do I consider investment and growth? What do I consider wise use of any resource? These same questions apply to the use of any resource, be it money, time, space, water, land, anything. But the subject of this column is my little windfall. How do I wisely use my little gift?
To reference the Galilean Rabbi again, wise use of a little windfall gives hope of wise use of a BIG WIN.
I do not have the answer for my little windfall. But here’s hoping just knowing the questions will be the first step to wisdom.