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Monday, 10 January, 2000, 16:03 GMT

Affluenza: What's bugging millionaires?

A rash of people becoming millionaires over night sounds like the sort of epidemic many of us would like to be struck down by. But swelling the ranks of the lottery winners and internet tycoons may have its own costs.

An array of lucrative quiz shows and lottery prizes; and the e-commerce boom, which has seen numerous bedroom boffins transformed into super-rich multi-media magnates, is threatening the UK with a serious bout of so-called "affluenza".

The Financial Times says some American internet millionaires (and billionaires) are so worried about the effects of their new found wealth on their families, they are turning to an investment bank for help.

Merrill Lynch has reportedly designed a service to counsel the newly wealthy - in the same way that lottery companies offer guidance to lucky ticket holders.

There is, of course, much else to link the fortunes of lottery winners and internet entrepreneurs.

For many in this rapidly growing sector, the rise to spectacular wealth has been meteoric. Rather than the steady empire building of the pre-"e"-era, the new breed of business millionaires often reap the dividends of mere months of effort.

Denied the chance to slowly refine their tastes as they climb the pay scale, some who land a sudden windfall face the uneasy transition from boil-in-the-bag to beluga caviar in just one jump.

Professor Michael Argyle of Oxford Brooks University has studied the effects of large lottery prizes on supposedly lucky winners.

"Having the expectation, the fantasy of winning, is good. The actual winning may not be so good."

"The suddenly wealthy have to think very carefully about what they spend their money on - so it won't disrupt their lives."

Professor Argyle recalls the story of one lottery winner who bought a car, but couldn't drive; purchased more clothes than she had wardrobe space; and tried a host of top restaurants before admitting she favoured fish fingers.

Signing the deed to a new house and a letter of resignation to your boss are normally the first actions of windfall winners.

Camelot's top tips for the suddenly wealthy
Don't rush into anything. Get used to what you now have
Look forward to planning your future and consider all your options
Consult a financial advisor who you trust and feel comfortable with
Ensure you understand what is happening to your money
Make a will

But such rash moves can sever links with former friends, workmates and neighbours, without gaining you automatic access to a new peer group.

Whether your wealth came from a scratchcard or a search engine - you may still be written off as vulgar nouveau riche by the old guard.

Those spearheading the digital revolution also often have the misfortune of being young.

Without the benefits of age and experience, teenagers who have started multi-million-pound businesses in the seclusion of their bedrooms may not have the skills to deal with their success.

Benjamin Cohen, 17, recently weathered the full glare of media attention when it was announced the web site he set up last year is now worth more than Ł5m.

Carolyn Fitzgerald, who spent three years as a winners' advisor for the National Lottery company Camelot, says long and hard thought is the best response to quick and easy money.

"It's very exciting, but people need to slow down and realise that once the money is banked they need to sit back and not make any big decisions straight away."

Although Ms Fitzgerald is quick to point out that people are "not silly", winners' advisors do warn their charges about the likely reaction of friends and family to a major windfall.

And just as you cannot spend your way to popularity or paper over the cracks of family feuds with banknotes, Professor Argyle says that personal happiness is not proportional to the size of your current account.

"The things we really want - love, health, eternal life - can't be easily bought."

There is of course one surefire way to cure yourself of "affluenza" - spend, spend, spend.

Infamous football pools winner Viv Nicholson took just 15 years to rid herself of the Ł150,000 she won in 1961.

Purchasing such abominations as a shocking pink Cadillac, Mrs Nicholson - whose prize would represent millions of pounds in today's money - is now reduced to living off her state pension.

Disillusioned internet millionaires may find some solace in the fragility of their fortunes.

The worth of e-companies is often based on stock market predictions of future profits, rather than real assets or money in the bank.

These "paper" millionaires may even be spared the bother of spending their fortunes, reckons BBC News Online's business editor Diane Wilkinson.

"Some fallout is expected among internet companies, which means not all of them will necessarily continue to be worth the millions they are now."

Surely a case of the cure being worse than the illness.

The E-cyclopedia can be contacted at e-cyclopedia@bbc.co.uk Related to this story:
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