I have $50 million but don’t know what to spend my money on

When I was working in finance in my 20s and got my first large bonus, a strange thing happened. I thought I’d be thrilled having a pile of money to spend. Only every time I thought about buying something, I got anxious and started to feel guilty.

To be clear, I was putting the bulk of my bonus into savings. I was talking about maybe spending a few thousand dollars to splurge on some new clothing or take a trip.

Yet I just didn’t feel good about doing that. And I think a big reason is that this was the first time in my life when I had that sort of money to play around with, and I just didn’t know how to handle it.

In this Reddit post, we have someone in a situation that’s similar and different at the same time. It’s similar in that the poster struggles to spend their money. The difference, though, is that whereas I maybe had a $50,000 bonus to work with, the poster is worth about $50 million.

It’s a matter of mindset

I’ll be honest about something. It’s hard for me to read a Reddit post where someone says that they can’t let themselves spend money when they have $50 million to their name. Heck, if I had $50 million, you can bet that I’d find plenty of ways to put it to good use.

But rather than judge the poster, I’m going to be sympathetic and try to understand where they’re coming from.

The poster said they grew up poor, and that’s probably shaping their outlook.

In my household, money was not abundant growing up. We had food on the table but there weren’t many extras. And I think for that reason, I had a hard time splurging on extras once I had the financial means to do so.

For this reason, I can see where the poster is coming from. But they should not hesitate to seek help getting past that scarcity mindset so they’re able to enjoy the wealth they’ve managed to build rather than have it be a source of stress.

There’s no shame in talking things out

Going from being a person of limited or modest means to accumulating wealth can be jarring. Sure, it’s a positive thing on a whole. But it requires a mental adjustment.

That’s why the poster, any anyone else in a similar situation, should not hesitate to talk to a therapist and get help working through their feelings. A therapist may be able to help them get past the guilt of spending so they can enjoy their money rather than get stressed about it.

The poster may also want to talk to a financial advisor. At their level of wealth, it’s truly unfortunate that the poster can’t feel good about paying for a nice hotel room or meal without feelings of guilt creeping in.

One thing a financial advisor can do is help the poster set a budget that includes money for discretionary spending. If the poster’s splurges are planned, so to speak, they may not feel as worried about making those purchases.

Also, it may be that the poster truly does not have a lot of wants. In that case, giving some of their money to charity might make them feel good. A financial advisor can discuss tax-efficient ways to do that.

With help from the right professionals, the poster can get to a place where they have a different outlook on their financial situation. And I really hope for their sake that they can make that happen, because it’s a shame for them to worry about money when they should be celebrating their success.