For the purpose of the thread I'll pretend I'm in a cohabiting relationship. For context of this thread you should know that I have never been in a relationship.
First I'd invest at least half of it, if not more, to make the money last and potentially return even more money. Then I'd help her pay off her student loans or debts she may have, help cover costs of fixing her car if it broke; these kinds of practical sources of stress. Notice that I'd said "help", as in, I would not pay for them entirely.
And then, for a while, I would wait. I'd treat her to nice dinners and gifts sometimes, but nothing to especially rub in her face this fortune I apparently have. I'd want to make sure that she likes me for who I am, and not for what I have - not as a matter of distrust, but as a matter of caution; some people can be "bought". The kind of person I'd really like would not have a pricetag.
If it became obvious that we meant too much to each other to be anything but long-term partners in life, I would open up the secret and really start spoiling her more than the average person could. How I'd do that would depend on who she is as a person and what she enjoys most. If she likes playing the piano I'd buy her a grand piano (but one that doesn't cost everything, since those seem to have nearly limitless prices). If she's more of a listener, then a very nice stereo system and I'd take her to orchestral events. If she likes painting I would buy her all of the brushes she could ever want, and all of the colors she could ever put on them. If she is more low-key and just likes to relax in her spare time, I'd get her the most comfortable recliner, tons of fancy teas, and have a massage therapist to come to our place every once in a while.
In general, though, I'd like to focus on things that provide to her a route to her own happiness, that's why I'd like to target her creative outlets the most. If we've decided to be together before this money was in the picture, then I know she's already happy. I wouldn't allow myself to be with someone who I felt wasn't happy being with me. Outside of that, she already knows what activities make her happy - with my money I would want to lower any of the material boundaries that might stand in her way from accomplishing what she could accomplish through the passions she already has. I don't really believe that I could "enforce" happiness on her with diamonds and fast cars - those are things of superficial, temporary glamour, not long-term satisfaction that leads to deeper happiness.
There's almost no end to what you could buy for someone, but the prices on the tags aren't really what they're worth. I wouldn't buy things for the sake of buying her things - throwing expensive "anythings" at someone, just because they're expensive, wouldn't make the kind of person I'd be interested in happy. I'd want to give her things that show I understand who she is and what she likes, and to promote her happiness, and not to suggest that I'm trying to make up for my own insecurities/shortcomings by blinding her with money. She wouldn't fall for that, anyway.
10 Feb 2014, 1:34 am
