Ever heard someone say, “Oh yeah! He’s rich! He’s livin’ the life of Riley!”

Dictionary.com defines “life of Riley” as “a common expression for a carefree, comfortable and thoroughly enjoyable way of living” as in this sentence: “Since winning the lottery, he’s led the life of Riley.”

For most people who struggle financially, real wealth means being able to sleep in, live where they want, travel when they want, kick back or celebrate whenever they want, and not sweat about financial decisions. Being rich, indeed, means living the life of Riley -- carefree, comfortable and thoroughly enjoyable.

But if being rich was that simple, people who come into lots of money in a short period of time would remain wealthy throughout their lives. And most don’t.

Take professional athletes, for example. Sports Illustrated says more than three out of every four NFL athletes face bankruptcy or serious financial stress within just TWO YEARS of departing the gridiron. The same grim reality is true for 60% of NBA players as well. The internet, as well, is full of fascinating tales of lottery winners who “blew through” prizes of $1 million, $5 million, $10 million and
ended up a few years later back at work, living from paycheck to paycheck, and very often buried under debt...