Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?

‘The first thing I did? I went to DionWired and bought a tumble dryer.’ Kristen Peterssen woke up a multimillionaire at the age of 26, and had to grow up very fast. Here’s how she handled the pressures of suddenly coming into money.

- Charis Torrance

It’s the stuff daydreams are made of. Some mysterious uncle comes out of the woodwork and leaves you a vast fortune (and maybe a sprawling mansion) in his will. Or you buy the winning Lotto ticket. Hey, it doesn’t even have to be the jackpot – a few mil would do just fine! The question is: what would you do with your newfound wealth?

In the space of a week, 26-year-old Kristen Peterssen became a multimillionaire. Which sounds amazing, until you hear the rest of the story… Her mother, who had been diagnosed with cancer the year before, passed away, leaving her a retirement policy that paid out R4 million, plus an insurance policy of R1 million. Then, in the same week, a wealthy aunt and uncle left her another million each. She also inherited a house, a flat and an SUV – amounting to another R2.5 million in assets. Kristen hadn’t been particularly well off before.

‘I was naturally overwhelmed, and I’m not ashamed to say, I cried.’ Now, two years later, she shares what she has learnt.

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