Ask HN: 27, accidentally became wealthy, lost drive. What should I do?

Start to build your own projects , movement , charities etc

Do not reveal anything. Take this as a template, follow this recommendation. https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/24vzgl/you_just_...

So, you hit the jackpot. You probably had certain motivations to get a CS degree. You also had certain motivations to launch 3 startups. You now need to do some soul searching, and ask, what, apart from money and prestige got you started with CS and each of your startups. These motivations or goals will become your mission. Some possibilities:

1. Provide more personal service in an industry where that is not a priority;

2. Provide a service or product that simply did not exist, but give enjoyment to others;

3. Curb some excess in society, with a minimal amount of harm, that all acknowledge to be needed;

4. Delight a child;

5. Expand frontiers;

6. Invent a new formula that expands society at its roots (for example a new fertilizer that works 2X better than existing).

These are just examples. So you need to figure this out for yourself. Next step, partner with an engineer or finance person who is a skeptic, but a realist. This would be someone who can help you abandon an idea that simply can't deliver on what seemed like high possibilities. You will need that person to help you not shrink your fortune into a small (or no) fortune.. I'm thinking such a person can be an angel investor, such as you might see on Shark Tank (a popular U.S. TV show about investing).

When you start with your next project, ask yourself this question: "Will my kids (when I have them) be proud of what I build for them?", and imagine how you will answer that question in 1 year and in 5 years.

Finally, don't be afraid to lose money. It may be that this fear is making you lose trust in people (in general) and cause you to play it safe. Also imagine, that if you did, fight the good fight, and do your best on your goals, that you did lose most of your money -- ask yourself, "Will I have a good story to tell my grandkids -- something they can learn something from?"

Look into helping others. Create a foundation for a cause you believe in. See what you could enact. You will reap rewards far greater by giving yourself to a cause. Sacrifice, not pleasure is the source of greatness, energy and happiness in life.

I come from a country with a massive poverty problem, and yesterday was hearing about some great initiatives in there. It made me wonder what I am dedicating my life to (regular well paying job, etc.), by living a comfortable life now in a wealthy country (NL). Feel free to reach out for ideas.

However, there is also the possibility that you have completed your karma in this area. It is possible that this was one layer of purpose, which you have now fulfilled, on the way to another layer of purpose, closer to your deepest purpose.

[...]

The next layer of your unfolding purpose may make itself clear immediately. More often, however, it does not. After completing one layer of purpose, you might not know what to do with your life. You know that the old project is over for you, but you are not sure of what is next. At this point, you must wait for a vision.

There is no way to rush this process. You may need to get an intermediary job to hold you over until the next layer of purpose makes itself clear. Or, perhaps you have enough money to simply wait. But in any case, it is important to open yourself to a vision of what is next. You stay open to a vision of your deeper purpose by not filling your time with distractions. Don’t watch TV or play computer games. Don’t go out drinking beer with your friends every night or start dating a bunch of women. Simply wait. You may wish to go on a retreat in a remote area and be by yourself. Whatever it is you decide to do, consciously keep yourself open and available to receiving a vision of what is next. It will come.

When it comes, it usually won’t be a detailed vision. You will probably have a sense of what direction to move in, but the practical steps might not make themselves clear. When the impulse begins to arise, act on it. Don’t wait for the details. Learn by trial and error what it is you are to do.

[...]

And then, one day, a few years later, it is finished. This layer has dissolved. And the cycle begins again, and again, until you have penetrated all the layers into your deepest purpose. Then, you act fully, until that purpose, too, is dissolved in the bliss of the love that you are.

— David Deida