Most of the things we say we will do if we win the lottery don't require winning the lottery to do.

Even if we did win the lotto, most of us probably would not change habits we are establishing now.

If we are waiting for something to happen before we can be happy, we will spend most of our lives waiting.

What would you do if you won the lottery? When an Amarillo couple recently pocketed the first installment of an 11.5 million payoff, the question resurfaced in local conversations. I've been jotting down answers I have heard. Here are some of them:

• Pay off all my debts.
• Move to where I really want to live.
• Quit my job and do something I like.
• Go back to school and take courses I want.
• Do some writing or painting.
• Buy or build something I've always wanted.
• Travel more.
• Help all those people who have helped me.
• Help my church or charity more.
• Take more time off.
• Spend more time with family and friends.
• Be happy and fulfilled.

Did you notice? Most of the things we say we will do if we win the lottery don't require winning the lottery to do. They don't cost millions; most don't even cost thousands; some cost nothing. And yet, most of us are waiting for some miracle to bring them to us. I call this the Lotto Syndrome--waiting for someday to receive that which can be ours today. To address the problem I've formulated some theorems. These are Bellah's Three Laws of the Lotto.

Most of us will not win the lotto. Profound observation, huh? We have a better chance of getting struck by lightening than picking those lucky six numbers. So if we are going to achieve these things (and most can be achieved), we will have to do so on our own, one step at a time.

Even if we did win the lotto, most of us probably would not change habits we are establishing now. This point concerns the things on our lists that don't cost money. I'm convinced, and I think research will show, that if we don't spend time with family and friends before winning the lotto, we will not afterwards. If we are not happy people living on average incomes now, we won't be happy millionaires either.

Law three follows naturally from the first two. The Lotto Syndrome is self-limiting. If we are waiting for something to happen before we can be happy, we will spend most of our lives waiting. If we cannot find opportunities for fulfillment today, we will probably not find them tomorrow. So go ahead and compose your lotto dream list. Just don't wait for someday to pursue the things on it. Most can be yours starting today.