Dos and Don’ts of Online Gambling

Dos and Don’ts of Online Gambling
DJ Miller
11/13/2013
Updated:
4/24/2016

It can be great fun to gamble, whether in real life or online. Online gambling is either where there is real money at stake or you’re simply using virtual money. For many beginners, starting off with virtual money is the best idea, since it allows you to learn the rules, see how you would fare it is was real money and just try it out before you do it for real. However, there are also dangers to online gambling, such as addiction or losing more money than you can really afford to. Here are some simple tips and rules to remember when gambling online.

 Take breaks regularly

No matter which website you’re on, it’s really to healthy to keep playing and gambling for hours and hours. This is how addictions begin, since the gambler cannot bring himself to stop playing, even for just a little while. Casinos and online websites don’t make it easy for you to take a break or even want to take a break, so you need to remind yourself to do this. You'll probably find that much more time than you think has actually passed. Set an alarm clock before you begin playing, and stop after the first 20-30 minutes. Taking a break also allows your brain to recharge and you might even go back to it with new strategies and win yourself some cash!

 Set yourself a budget

Rather than just “going with the flow” and seeing how things end up, you should set a budget before you begin. Not only will this ensure that you don’t gamble away more than you can afford to lose, but it also teaches you some discipline while gambling. Once you’ve used up the money that you set yourself, stop playing. You can play again when you feel that you have more money, whether this is the next day, the next week or the next month. With the budget that you have, find games which have a low minimum amount that you can gamble. This means that you'll be able to play for longer and have much more fun with your money, rather than using it all up in the first five minutes.

 Don’t combine alcohol and gambling

While you might think it’s great to have a night in with some friends, beer and a few online gambling websites such as Casino Evolution, it’s really not the best combination. The peer pressure from your friends, the effects of the alcohol and the temptation of the online gambling websites could be disastrous, so try to keep them separate (at least separate the alcohol and the gambling!). If you’re intoxicated while gambling, you won’t be thinking properly, which could mean that any gambling games will skill aren’t played as well as you could have played them, and you could also become much more relaxed about spending money and losing money, resulting in disaster the next morning when you wake up and realised what you’ve done.

 Learn how to gamble effectively

You should learn the skills and tricks of winning money when gambling, even if it means that you lose sometimes. There are certain gambling games, such as Blackjack, where you can learn how to play and the strategies which are needed in order to win money. There are other games which are pure guessing games and therefore it is entirely based on luck. With these games, there are no skills needed or required and it’s just a matter of whether luck is on your side on that particular day and at that particular time. If you’re just starting out with gambling, take the time to read up on the simple rules of the most popular games. If you’re been gambling for a while but find that you'd like to learn how to win even more money, now is a great time to read more information and the basic rules of some of the best games out there.

 Don’t get discouraged if you lose sometimes

It’s really important that you don’t get discouraged, depressed or disheartened if you ever lose money. It’s bound to happen at some point. If your first time gambling was very successful, don’t expect it to be like this every single time you gamble. Some people will gamble regularly for several weeks and lose every time. However, they refuse to give up but instead get very discouraged. Apart from developing an addiction to gambling, this is very bad for your overall health and well-being, so remember that gambling should always be for a bit of fun on the side, and you'll enjoy it the most if you don’t make it a serious part of your life. Play with friends and try new websites to liven it up a bit and bring the fun back.

DJ Miller is a graduate student at the University of Tampa. He's an avid gadget geek and spends most of his time reading or writing. He is a huge fantasy sports fan and even runs his own advice site for Fantasy Help.