My advice: - It's not as much money as you think. That might sound ridiculous to people without it, but you're not going to start living the Entourage lifestyl

My advice: - It's not as much money as you think. That might sound ridiculous to people without it, but you're not going to start living the Entourage lifestyle on 5m. You are 20, not 60 and it's unlikely you will ever get a higher return on an investment. It's your duty to protect and grow this wealth. - You can't stop working, I tried and failed. Take some time off, travel, find a new passion or start over with a new company. Your life is just beginning. - I'd suggest reading about Value Investing. I'm not saying you should invest your own money, but you damn well better know what's going on with it and why. Understand that inflation will eat away at this without the proper defense. Understand the ramifications of investments: liquidity, taxes, cash flow, etc. - Keep a low profile, people are going to come out of the woodwork for lunches/pitches/loans/gimmicks. Be polite, but be stern (the answer should almost always be no). - Get a good local attorney and a good accountant ASAP, an afternoon of research should point you in the right direction. Talk to them about asset protection plans. - Stick with what you know (assuming it's computers). People are going to suggest all sorts of things, but do you really want to be a landlord, run a Subway, own a carwash, etc? I'm not saying you can never go in a new direction, but be careful. It's about 1000x easier to lose a fortune than make one. - Buy yourself a nice, not extravagant house. Treat yourself to something "fancy" (say a slightly used BMW, not a Ferrari) and the rest goes away. Set a comfortable monthly budget, DO NOT GO OVER THAT BUDGET. Make a spreadsheet of your investments, get a Mint account, find leaks and plug the holes. - Invest your money in a mix of stocks/bonds/treasuries. Spread the stocks across different markets (US/China/Asia/Japan/Europe), it should be about half of your asset allocation. Keep about 5% accessible. - Stick with your friends and family, be careful with girls and sign a prenup.