0
1

[–] newoldwave 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago 

A million in the hand is worth a maybe 100 million any day.

0
0

[–] flope_de ago  (edited ago)

I'd flip the coin. I am too poor for only one million to have a significant effect on my live.

[–] [deleted] ago 

[Deleted]

0
0

[–] flope_de ago 

"Almost" is not enough. Thirty years ago I would have agreed with you, but in an age of capital gains taxes and negative interest rates a mere million won't last you a lifetime anymore.

0
3

[–] SocratesOP 0 points 3 points (+3|-0) ago 

Don't know why everyone would take the milli. It really doesn't go as far as it used to. With the other option I have a 50% chance of retiring before I hit 30. If I don't win it, then life hasn't changed for me. Things aren't so bad now, so the 50% chance is a much more lucrative offer. On average, people would get 50mil from the latter option, while you can only get 1/50 of that with the first.

[–] [deleted] 0 points 4 points (+4|-0) ago 

[Deleted]

0
2

[–] SocratesOP 0 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago 

Are you assuming 100% of people who invest their million will exceed the 100mil? If anything you've now traded a concrete 50% to bank on your ability to invest and multiply that million (which will be significantly less than a mil after taxes). I know - and I hope you know too - that many times your business ventures don't turn out "all profit" like you planned them. The investors making real money have a lot more to work with than a measly 1mil. To always come out in the green you need to be a big fish now, or have good luck. I think I'd rather take the 50% chance at an early lavish retirement.

Just my perspective.

0
0

[–] oedipusaurus_rex ago 

I don't want to retire. I love what I do for a living. A million bucks is more money than I know what to do with, to say nothing of 100 million. It makes more sense to me to take the million than to gamble with that much money.

0
0

[–] SocratesOP ago 

It's not gambling since you didn't put any money up against it. It is just a chance. Obviously you don't have to retire, that's just a personal plus I see out of the 100mil.

If the trade off was you are either broke or you get the 100mil then I could see how this is gambling, but not getting it would mean you keep working at the job you say you love. Doesn't sound so bad to me

0
0

[–] BentAxel ago 

A penny saved is a penny earned. Take the 1 million because there's a 50% rate of failure and that is worse than gambling. Gambling you have a 55% of winning.

0
0

[–] NorwegianBlackMetal ago 

If you invest a million dollars properly you can retire on it. But I choose answer C. I have a gun and i take 101 million.

0
0

[–] rwbj ago 

The million and it's not even close.

Index funds have been hitting returns pushing towards 10% for many years now. That million is potentially worth $100k a year - indefinitely. Even if we assume we pay about 40% taxes on it, that's $60k a year and capital gains in countries like the US are taxed unreasonably low meaning we're paying a lower tax rate on that 60k per year than you'd pay if you worked for and earned $30k a year.

As a software engineer that's enough to be able to work on whatever projects I want for the rest of my life without ever having to concern myself with commercial viability.

[–] [deleted] 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago  (edited ago)

[Deleted]

0
0

[–] DickHertz ago 

Somebody gives you a million dollars and the first thing you do is bet it on a coin toss?

[–] [deleted] ago 

[Deleted]
load more comments ▼ (12 remaining)