Do accountants secretly dream of becoming astronauts? Or do builders wish they could become brewery owners? 

Have you ever wondered what Australian lottery players would do if they could quit their day job? 

We did, so we surveyed 500 lottery players to find out how they would play by their own rules if they scored a major Powerball division one prize, such as this Thursday’s $50 million jackpot. 

While many of our players would initially use their fortunes to banish any bills and mortgages, buy new homes and go on holidays, we wanted to find out what they dreamt they would be doing five years after their windfalls. 

We crunched the data to find out what the most common response was for each occupation and found some interesting results. 

After a year of grounded flights and closed borders, it was clear Aussies are yearning to explore with 56% of Accountants, 57% of those in Advertising, Arts and Media, 53% of Building and Construction workers, 66% of Sports and Recreation specialists and 33% of Hospitality and Tourism gurus saying they would use their windfall to travel both Australia and overseas. 

However, those with the most wanderlust are those in Government and Defence, with 87% of players in this group dreaming of travelling endlessly with a Powerball win. 

It may not surprise you to discover that those in Education (45%), Human Resources & Recruitment (100%) and Community Services (50%) are caring, generous and community-minded people who planned to use their windfalls to volunteer, donate to a non-for-profit organisation or set up a charity.

But what about quitting work for good? 

Well, of those surveyed, 100% of workers in Insurance and 68% of those in Banking and Financial Services said they would give up work and stay fun-employed. 

Interestingly, 63% of survey participants who were Self-Employed said they would give up the stress of running their own business and retire immediately. 

Perhaps they should chat to the 33% of Healthcare workers, 37% of Information & Communication Technology workers and 37% of Manufacturing, Transport and Logistics employees who said they would use their windfalls to start their own small businesses or become their own boss. 

Those in the Mining, Resources & Energy sector might have the right idea, with most of those players (40%) saying they would do absolutely nothing after their windfall. They simply want to set themselves up for the future, and then sit back and enjoy everything that comes their way. 

It’s the opposite for 37% of Retail and Sales workers who said they would be speeding into the future  – either in a new car, caravan or boat! We’re sure they’re in the right place to know where to find the best deal for those items.

No matter what your occupation or how you imagine you’d spend your Powerball prize, there is no doubt a $50 million prize would go a long way to realising your wildest dreams. 

Make sure you have a chance to play by your own rules by grabbing an entry before draw close at 7:30pm AEST on Thursday 18 March 2021. Until then, enjoy dreaming!