At face value, winning 758.7 million dollars from the Powerball Lottery would appear to be an extremely lucky break. In the case of Mavis Wanczyk, however, laying claim to the largest undivided lottery sum in North American history was both a blessing and a curse.

After discovering that she had won, Wanczyk promptly retired from her thirty-two year career as a hospital worker at Mercy Medical Center in Springfield, Massachusetts. The fifty-three-year-old mother of two was — unsurprisingly — shocked by her win. She seems, however, unphased by her windfall, stating, “I just want to be me, and be alone and figure out what I want.”

But it seems that others want to capitalize on her luck. According to the Chicopee, Massachusetts police, where the fateful lottery ticket was purchased and where Manczyk now resides, a police car will remain in the winner’s driveway until further notice. Numerous reports of neighbors being questioned about Manczyk’s address and whereabouts have surfaced, and the unintended consequences of being a Powerball winner are quickly coming to light. Wanczyk must now accept her role as a multimillionaire and, consequently, a target.

After taxes, Wanczyk took home 336 million dollars in a lump sum and admits that she does not have any large plans in place as to what she will do with her winnings. “The first thing I want to do is just sit back and relax,” she tells reporters.

With a lump sum of cash in the bank roughly equivalent to one third of Hamilton College’s endowment, Manczyk’s newfound wealth begs the question: “What would you do with 336 million dollars?”

In the days, weeks and months following a lottery win, the life of the winner changes drastically, and the terrain that follows can be difficult to navigate. From financial decisions to questions of safety, lotteries have taken the lives and livelihoods of many a winner.

Professor Olga A. Rud, Visiting Assistant Professor of Economics, agreed to a Spectator interview to answer some questions about the strategies of managing newfound wealth. Where to invest? How to invest it? What would you do with all of that cash?

“Diversification and something with low fees would be one of the ways to go,” says Professor Rud when asked how she would invest her theoretical winnings.

“[Accounts and Funds] which are more managed, and which usually charge higher fees, are not necessarily better. They don’t tend to beat the market more than less managed hedge funds. So in my opinion, from what I know, at least on a theoretical basis, I would put [my winnings] in a diversified portfolio where it could steadily accumulate.”

Rud advises against making the mistake of trying to beat the stock market on your own.

“Most people cannot beat the stock market. More or less, it kind of evens out, so if you have a lot of money, you could potentially make a lot of money. So for people who have large sums to invest and can do it in the long term, it is probably a good idea. If I did have that much money, I would definitely put it toward investment, but I am not sure exactly where because I have never had 336 million dollars.”

The tendency with lottery winners is to mismanage their finances due to lack of experience and bad advice.

“We see the same thing with athletes: they get rich suddenly and don’t know how to handle their finances, and then they end up 10 years later with nothing.”

According to Professor Rud, the biggest mistake a lottery winner could make would be “not keeping track of what they have, or thinking that what they have is a lot of money,” and becoming lured into thinking their funds are endless.

The lottery has been criticized since its inception for preying on people with pipe dreams of becoming rich. The odds of Mavis Wanczyk winning were approximately one in 292 million. The majority of lottery players are working class people who just want a lucky break and dream of having their name on the giant check. Wanczyk’s “pipe dream came true” and, for now, she seems to have her priorities straight.

As for Professor Rud, she does not know what she would exactly do with her winnings.

“It depends on the situation,” she says. “I have student loans.”

Now that’s a strategy that Hamilton alumnus would likely agree with.