“I’m tired of losing,” writes a member at a popular sports betting forum, who accompanies his regrets with great truths about his betting addiction that eventually led him to quit his hobby.
The frustration after months or years of wagering and losing money in bad bets is a feeling known to most punters. Still the majority of them are constantly fueling their accounts with new deposits of hard cash. Deposit after deposit, money keep disappearing from their accounts.
Yet, only a few have lowered their stakes and even fewer considered to abandon sports betting altogether.
It takes a lot of courage for a bettor to accept poor performance and even more to announce their failure to public domain. The very action of quitting might not be that painful compared to the look of their friends, who now come back and say: “See, we told you you won’t make it”.
The… quitter did not ask for some kind of assistance in his post; he just shared his disappointment in online betting. Nevertheless, several other members replied, suggesting some general tips.
Some of them urged him to avoid betting for a reasonable period of time, until he finds the courage and the right psychology to resume the effort. Abstinence is actually a very good, effective and immediate measure when a bettor gets discouraged by poor results.
When predictions are not confirmed and betting systems do not perform well on several consecutive days, it makes sense to wonder what is wrong. That’s the time to consider changing strategies and tactics.
But it is an even greater disappointment when we pause, look back and see that for many months we lose money on a slowly, heart-breaking steadily pace! Remember, it is never too late to make up our minds and say:
“This is it, I don’t want to give my money away any more” – as the poster wrote.
And in fact, most players do throw their money away in favor of bookmakers and rival gamblers at betting exchanges.
Another useful tip was to lower his stakes to the minimum. However, when a player is used to a particular lifestyle in which serious, high-stakes betting takes place on a daily basis, it is very difficult to manage holding back.
Nevertheless, if doable, the tip provides excellent advice. If players could minimize their losses, they would control the influence of bad betting results in their psychology. That’s a fact. Although they may not be able to quit losing money, at least they would prevent sports betting from being such an expensive hobby.
A well-known online punter and friend, argued that we should not allow our hobby to affect our lives. Indeed, for 95 percent of players betting actually constitutes a hobby. In that sense, as some people spend money in other hobbies and habits, we should always have control over our hobby and never let is consume our lives.
I partly agree. Betting – and gambling in general – is one of those few habits or hobbies that involve the expectation of profit and reward. Furthermore, some bettors have managed to turn their hobby into a full-time occupation with impressive financial benefits.
For example, if my hobby was fishing, even if I was not able to become a great fisherman, my performance would not affect my life. Although I might be envious of other famous fishing experts, this fact would not make any difference. I’d still have my day job to worry about.
In contrast, when stories about successful bettors hit the news, some kind of rivalry and envy emerge. Add to this the dissemination of these articles in social networks and the buzz created about huge winnings in gambling, and we quickly understand why betting is more popular than fishing.
Come to think of it, betting and gambling (poker, for example) are not very different compared to fishing, as players apply the most efficient techniques for the best catch! We are all after the fish!
My own view is pretty much known. I have already written about it several times in the past, in a number of blogs.
Do you bet strictly for hobby? Do you enjoy putting your money at risk? Go for it but bet as less money as possible. Bet the amount of money that will not affect your way of living and your family balance if lost.
Yet, if you bet with the sole purpose of long-term gain and hoping to make money out of gambling on a regular basis, the answer is stay away for a while. Spend your free time on reading and studying the top-10 books on gambling, participating in forum boards and accessing information you can find online for free.
Along the way you will also find out if you have the necessary discipline, professionalism and seriousness necessary to shape a winning sports betting profile.
