What if?

S

SolesTree

Location
Middle Ga
If you won millions in the lottery would you throw your saddle away? With the recent publicity about the big winners I started thinking. Even though I've never purchased a ticket I began to consider what I might do with that kind of money. After thinking for a while I came to the conclusion that I would NOT quit working with trees. My stress comes from people and bills, not trees. I love trees and tree work. After seeing to my family's financial future ( and my small crew is part of our family) I would splurge on the business a little. Maybe a crane like Truckman's new one or a bucket like Marquis' 75 footer. Luke would just automatically send us whatever the latest gadget is. We wouldn't miss a trade show or ITCC. We would hand pick who we wanted to work for. Oh yeah we would also wear out a few shovels planting trees.

What would you do?
 
Invest so I could live happily on the interest. Get the family all set up (no more mortgages) New truck and chipper, all converted to run on veg oil. Pick and choose the most fun pruning and care jobs, only doing warranted removals (in my eyes). Definitely would not quit!
 
Boy all good stuff, I love to work in trees. So no amount of money is going to stop me. I would just do what you guys said. Buy me some nice toys and CHOOSE who I work for, even helping folks who regularly couldn't afford to care for their trees. PRO BONO work. Planting endless trees where needed. The list goes on. I already live on an island but would travel to the States and get better training and more experience using the latest up to date techniques. Would love to attend an EXPO and meet fellow arborist ( I am not one, just a tree worker ) and take in a few competitions. Like waht Ian said about taking care of the family, paying off the mortgage and vehicles etc. Nice thread got me thinking......
 
lots of great ideas on this thread.

I would still climb; probably a lot more actually. I would travel to climb great trees. First would be one of the west coast giants.

How many trees could be planted with half a billion? And done well.

One other thing not mentioned yet: woodlands restoration.

I'll be honest though, if I were worth a half billion, I don't think I would ever touch a chainsaw again.
 
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I'd use the money to fund a non profit organization aimed at providing preservation oriented tree care to low income property owners.

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I'd start a non-profit that prohibits the start-up of non-profits and farm to table food shops. I would continue working. For funziez.
 
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If you won millions in the lottery would you throw your saddle away? With the recent publicity about the big winners I started thinking. Even though I've never purchased a ticket I began to consider what I might do with that kind of money. After thinking for a while I came to the conclusion that I would NOT quit working with trees. My stress comes from people and bills, not trees. I love trees and tree work. After seeing to my family's financial future ( and my small crew is part of our family) I would splurge on the business a little. Maybe a crane like Truckman's new one or a bucket like Marquis' 75 footer. Luke would just automatically send us whatever the latest gadget is. We wouldn't miss a trade show or ITCC. We would hand pick who we wanted to work for. Oh yeah we would also wear out a few shovels planting trees.

What would you do?

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I'm right there with you Soles... everything except for planting trees.
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You can't win if you don't play though!

I'd do the same, work around here when I wanted with all my new tools, but the real dream would be to follow and film top climbers in the world doing incredible tree work - and sharing it all on the buzz of course. I'd find a way to get the living legends together to work on impossible jobs, capturing incredible footage that we could all watch and learn from.
 
Hang up the harness.

I wouldn't invest a penny into my tree co. Davey only made 2.8% profit on $594 million in revenues in 2010. (investors on Dragon's Den would laugh a business model such as this off the show)

I would invest wisely, use the investment income to support my family. I would work to be a positive influence on people.
 
I'd become a venture capitalist, investing in local business. I'd also buy a property to plant an arboretum and start a permaculture farm.

Help out my family, pay off mortgages and such.

I love tree work, and would become very selective about the work and clients I take on. I'd have several staff who would do arboriculture and take care of the permaculture farm...why?

So I could buy a tall ship, crew it and sail the world with my wife and kids. Ahhh...the imaginings!
 
The lottery sells you a dream, and thats it. I will never win, I will never play. The people I get stuck behind in line trying to pay for my fuel while they piddle away what money they don't have for the slightest possibility to earn more, makes me angry. Then I watch them drive away in a busted up vehicle. The money they spent on lottery would cover the payments for a nice car. Sorry to be a treebuzzkill, my rant is over.
If I won, I would never set foot in any city again and never get stuck in traffic again. Spend my days fishing and climbing trees to set deer stands in the vast wilderness I would purchase up north. Then when I would be too old to do anything, sell it off as urban sprawl would like have reached there by then and make more money.
 
Float plane maybe helicopter. Different boats, bigger shop, new trucks. You know the usual stuff. A permeculture forest garden with timber framed and log home with a tower. And some kind of a party or two. Oh and just so they said good things about me at my funeral I'd save a big chunk of Boreal Forest for forever.
 
I would start/fund an organization that helps kids with major medical issues get better care or for the terminally ill children, at least live their few years on this planet having fun...kinda of like make a wish foundation on crack. I would quit my day job (line clearance) and do private work as I felt like it. I would never work for free either...charge fair prices.
 
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