The Mega Millions lottery jackpot now stands at a staggering $1.1 billion ahead of Friday’s drawing – which would have been the second highest in lottery history. Players in 45 states, Washington, DC and the Virgin Islands will be hoping that Lady Luck smiles on them as they purchase their Mega Millions tickets today. What is it like to win millions of dollars? A person shares. MEGA MILLION LOTTO DRAW: IF YOU WIN, HERE’S HOW TO STAY SAFE AND SECURE Tim Schultz won $28 million in 1999 playing the Iowa Powerball. “It’s just elation after the win,” he told Fox News Digital in a phone interview this week. The Mega Millions lottery jackpot is now over $1 billion. The draw will take place on Friday night at 11pm. EDT. (Nicole Pelletiere/Fox News Digital) Schultz worked at an Iowa gas station and sold the winning ticket to himself. At the time, he was a struggling college student, passing through school pumping gas. A few months before that, he had a “very vivid” dream that he won the lottery. JACKPOT BIG MILLION 1.02 BILLION. $: SHOULD YOU GET DEPOSIT OR ANNUAL PAYMENTS? That dream was so real, “I felt like it might happen at some point,” he said of winning the lottery. He had a “gut feeling” when he bought the ticket, telling friends and colleagues at a card game that night that he was going to win. Tim Schultz won $28 million in the Iowa Powerball drawing in 1999. He spoke to Fox News Digital about what happened to him — and the secrets he shares for anyone else who might win the lottery this week or in the future. (Tim Schultz) Then it actually happened – he woke up the next day to find out he had won. It was “very surreal,” Schultz said. Media at the time reported that one of Schultz’s co-workers, 20-year-old Sarah Eldar, said she wanted to buy half of his ticket when she bought the winning numbers. Once Schultz won, she said she wanted her share of the lottery winnings — and challenged him in court. One man felt an “intense feeling” when he bought a lottery ticket, telling friends and colleagues he was going to hit the jackpot, he said. (iStock) It turns out that in Iowa, you have to be 21 to play the lottery, so Eldar was not allowed to collect any winnings. MAJOR MILLION LOTTERY DRAW: WINNERS MAY REMAIN ANONYMOUS IN THESE STATES Eldar eventually waived all claims to the jackpot, Playusalotteries.com said. The lottery can affect a person’s happiness positively or negatively, Schultz said — and every winner is different. “At some point I felt a sense of isolation – none of my peers or family or friends had won the lottery.” “Where you live, who surrounds you, who your friends are and how much you earn” are all factors, he noted. “For me, initially it was extremely exciting,” he said. “But once that’s gone — and gone — you’re still yourself.” Customers buy Powerball tickets at a CA lotto store in San Bernardino County, California, in January 2016. (REUTERS/Gene Blevins) He continued, “The lottery doesn’t change who you are, but it magnifies your personality and your ability to do what you want to do.” It wasn’t easy for such a huge life event to happen to him, Schultz said. MEGA MILLION JACKPOT RUNS TO OVER 1 BILLION. DOLLARS AFTER NO WINNER IN HUGE $830 MILLION DRAW “Once that joy was over, I was still extremely grateful for this life-changing win — and I never, ever took that for granted — but there were some things I needed to learn,” he shared. “If I wanted to go on holiday, I had to pay for other people [to go].” “At some point I felt a sense of isolation. None of my peers or family or friends had won the lottery — and I was only 21 at the time, a struggling college student working at a gas station to put himself through school.” “I felt like an outcast,” he continued. “If I wanted to go on holiday, I had to pay for other people [to go].” Schultz said he “learned a lot of life lessons.” “I learned that the lottery can buy you time [with others]and that’s priceless, and winning can be a very, very positive thing.” RAISING CANE CEO BUYS MEGA MILLION LOTTERIES FOR ALL 50,000 EMPLOYEES He added, “I’m the same person I was before I won – I’ve never loved material things, so I felt quite humbled and relaxed about it.” In Iowa, the identities of lottery winners are revealed to the public, and people “came out of the woodwork” asking for money after he won, he said. Lottery forms for the Louisiana Mega Millions, Powerball and other lottery games fill the drawer at The World Bar and Grill in Delta, La. (AP) “I got a team of financial advisors, people who were competent and reliable, who could tell me how much I could and couldn’t spend,” he explained, noting that was very important. “I just developed a game plan, helped people as much as I could – people I loved and cared about were in my life – and did what I felt I could for other people. I did a lot of things for other people. “ “At first I got a lot of media attention, and at the time I was a pretty shy person who didn’t really like that kind of attention. I couldn’t even go to a grocery store without people knowing who I was.” Schultz now interviews other lottery winners on his YouTube channel, noting that they often “have very similar experiences.” (Just below is his interview with a “Cash for Life” winner.) How well a person handles sudden wealth “depends on who you are as a person and what your goals are in life,” he said. Schultz does not share where he currently lives, his family or his marital status, keeping his private life private. “At first I got a lot of attention from the media and at the time I was quite a shy person who didn’t really like that kind of attention,” he said. “I couldn’t even go to a grocery store without people knowing who I was.” “My advice to anyone who wins is to relax, don’t make hasty decisions and seek qualified financial advisors.” He added, “Now I don’t mind that genre at all. I embrace it.” He said he enjoys talking to reporters now that he’s gone to college for journalism and broadcasting. “I like interviewing people too.” Schultz finds it “very cathartic and interesting” to interview other lottery winners. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “It’s one of the rarest things that can happen to someone. It’s a little club we’re in together.” His advice for the person or people who win the Mega Millions? He said, “First of all, congratulations! Then I’d say buckle up because it really can be life-changing. It’s one of the most potentially life-changing things for a person.” Schultz added, “My advice to anyone who is winning is to relax, don’t make hasty decisions and seek out qualified financial advisors. Get an understanding of what you can realistically do with the money – and then try to enjoy life.” Deirdre Reilly is editor-in-chief, lifestyle, with Fox News Digital.
