How to Avoid Going Broke as a Gambler

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Deny it as they might, the vast majority of gamblers get into the habit with the ultimate goal of taking home a profit. Even though the number-one rule when it comes to the casino gaming and gambling in general is to accept that it’s all about fun and not making money, gamblers across the board still like to think they’ll beat the house one day.

Which is precisely why so many gamblers on pretty much every level find themselves losing control and going bust. A case of temporary overspending or something entirely more serious, getting carried away and losing too much can have unfortunate consequences to say the least. By contrast, if you meticulously manage your time, your money and away you go about gambling in general, there’s nothing to say you cannot enjoy what you do long-term, without it ever having to cause you even the slightest bit of trouble.

So with this in mind, here’s a brief yet potentially helpful guide featuring a few tips on how to avoid going broke as a gambler:

Set yourself a monthly entertainment budget

 

First and foremost, the cash you use for gambling purposes should be cash that doesn’t need to be used for anything else. It should be the kind of disposable income that you can indeed dispose of, without suffering any detrimental consequences. As such, one of the best ways of going about this is to set yourself a monthly entertainment budget, which you will then ensure you never exceed under any circumstances. Be it £10, £100 or £100,000, just make sure it is an amount you don’t mind losing.

Keep your gambling money completely separate
The danger of dipping into your standard bank account or using your everyday credit cards when it comes to gambling is that there is always the temptation to spend ‘just a tiny bit’ more. Which sooner or later, you may find spiralling well and truly out of your control. Keeping your gambling money completely separate from all other money is a good way of avoiding costly mistakes. You can even set up a separate bank account, into which you can pay your monthly entertainment budget and any winnings you take home along the way.

Don’t take the house edge for granted
One of the most common mistakes made by so many gamblers is that of assuming that the house edge is the same at every casino across the board. It isn’t! Depending on the games you choose to play and where you choose to play them, it’s possible for the house edge to vary quite enormously from one to the next. Of course, you should be doing your homework when it comes to choosing the best casinos anyway, so be sure to factor this into the decision you make.

Take cash
If you decide to attend a real-life casino, the single most effective way of ensuring you don’t overspend is to take cash only. This way, no matter how much you win and subsequently lose pumping it all back into the games of your choice, you will never return home having spent more than your allocated allowance.

Loss and win limits
At both ends of the scale, it’s important to know how to quit while behind and also quit while ahead. As such, you should really think about setting very specific loss and win limits, which you absolutely will not exceed under any circumstances. For example, if you start out with £100 to gamble with, you could establish a self-administered rule where as soon as you lose £50, you pack in and quit for the day. Likewise, you can also set a rule whereby as soon as you pass the £200 mark after a successful run, you again quit for the day. The reason being that wins and losses alike can be equally powerful, when it comes to influencing your behaviour and the decisions you make while emotions are running high.

Lower the stakes

 

If you are genuinely in it to have as much fun as possible without getting carried away, it can be just as enjoyable to play lower-stakes games and tables than those that demand higher wagers. The beauty of playing with lower stakes is that regardless of whether you win or lose, your money will stretch so much further and allow you to enjoy so much time at the table/slot in question.

Take care with tips
Unless you can afford to give money away without a second thought, you need to be sensible when it comes to tipping casino employees. You might find that if you start out with say £100 and hit the jackpot with a £1,000 slot payout, you find it instinctive to then tip the waiter that’s been serving you all night £50 or £100. But you really need to ask yourself – are you the kind of person who can honestly afford to hand out tips of this size? If you wouldn’t do so in normal life, don’t do it now!

Ask for smaller notes
If you only have £10 notes in your pocket, you are probably not going to think twice about establishing £10 as the minimum wager you’ll place with every hand. However, if you also have a contingency of £5 notes, you might be more inclined to use these when the odds aren’t particularly in your favour. The smaller the denomination of the notes in your pocket, the less likely you are to overspend.

Take regular breaks
Last but not least, while it may take plenty of discipline (not to mention a stopwatch), you really need to think about taking a break from gambling at least once every hour or so. Even if it’s just for a few minutes to clear your head and take in a little fresh air from the outdoors, it really can work wonders. By contrast, sit or stand in the same place too long without a break and it’s inevitable that you will sooner or later begin making terrible decisions and judgements.

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