This is kind of a funny question because the answer seems elusive at first, but then when you see the answer, you realize that it was sitting there in front of you the whole time. The true reason you never win at gambling isn’t because you haven’t discovered the next super-secret betting system or because you have NO luck.
The reason is simple:
You never win at gambling because you only stop when you run out of money.
Think about it for a minute. If you hang around the casino for hours on end and only leave when you’re out of money, you’re never going to book a win. The key to winning money in gambling is to stop when you’re ahead.
You see, the people who never win at gambling aren’t taking into account the short periods of time they are actually ahead. I’m sure that even the unluckiest of gamblers win bets sometimes. But those people don’t stop after winning. They keep going and going.
Quitting when you’re ahead is easier said than done. How much money do you have to be ahead before you decide it’s time to call it a day? Do you quit if you win your first $5 hand of blackjack? Well, that’s no fun.
Setting a win limit is a balancing act. Set a low win limit and you’re more likely to reach that limit. However, it may not be as exciting as hitting a much higher win limit. Set a higher win limit and it’s going to happen less often.
If you have ever actually asked yourself why you never win at gambling, I suggesting beginning with a smaller win limit. Start it off small and work from there. When I say “small” I mean relative to the size of your average bet.
Begin with a win limit of about 5 units. So if you bet $1 a hand, try a session in which your win limit is $5. You can always ramp it up from there. Start small and book a quick winning session. There, you are now a winning gambler – for now at least.
But remember, the house does have the advantage over the long term. If you gamble frequently, the odds are overwhelmingly against you being a lifetime winner. The only goal with win limits is to at least book a few winning sessions.
Gambling is a form of entertainment and it has a cost associated with it. So don’t go in expecting to be a long term winner. The only thing I’m saying is that you don’t have to lose every single time. The sooner you stop gambling until you run out of money every time, the sooner you can start booking those occasional winning sessions.
You should also set a loss limit. A loss limit won’t help you book wins, but it will help you minimize the damage that comes with gambling too long. It’s no fun to stop on a bad note, but it’s better to stop on a kind of bad note than it is to stop on a disastrous note.