Many persons spend a lot of time playing games of chance, hoping for that elusive jackpot, a lump sum that they believe will solve all their problems. And a very few do hit it and are, if not on easy street, then certainly in a much better position.

But, for the majority of persons, it is a matter of throwing money away in a chance of a lump sum now, money which could have very well gone towards that much prized lump sum later.

It is the idea of the wait that makes the idea of a lump sum such a heavy 'weight' to carry.

"What many people do not realise is that savings is as much a psychological as it is a physical activity," says student accountant and teacher Catherine. "Thrift is something that we do not apply to only one aspect of our lives but throughout it all, so if we waste food we will probably waste money, waste time and so on."

"So while they are waiting on a large amount of cash to drop into their laps, something that almost never comes, they are ignoring the small amounts that they are wasting every day. And even if they do get that money, what tends to happen is that a need suddenly arises and they have to spend it anyway," Catherine said.

This is what has happened to 37-year-old Charmaine and her yearly bonus for quite some time, as almost invariably she cannot quite pinpoint what has happened to the highly prized and anticipated sum, despite all the best intentions of investing it. On the other hand, she was pleasantly surprised when she enquired about the status of her pension in the middle of last year.

"The money that was coming out of my salary I did not even notice, really. And then what is there now, plus what is projected, is so much more than I expected," she said.

Those results above expectations have changed how she looks at money.

"I used to wish for a lot of money at one time. That would be nice, but I have to be practical. Unless I win it or somebody dies and wills it to me it is not going to happen. But if I save a little bit at a time, over time, I will get that lump sum. And it will come at a time when I am mature and probably need it for retirement or living expenses or medical expenses," Charmaine said.

"Sometimes when you get too much money too young it is not good at all," she said.