Is it possible to make a living out of gambling?
Gambling is a massive industry with a size of around £400 billion. This means that potentially there are £400 billion on the table up to be grabbed which are placed by punters across the globe. So the gambling pie is massive and all we need to do is to grab the right spoon and see how we can take a bite.
The gambling industry is mostly made of sportsbetting sites, online casinos and poker rooms. These are the ones that are profiting significantly and are the bigger winners. Why they are winning so much? Easy, as they have the odds in their side. Bookmakers and online casinos build a house edge while poker rooms take a rake from every pot that is played.
So if you want to win consistently and also win big you need to start a gambling business, there are no other ways. By being a player, you cannot take a bigger cut of the gambling pie than these huge companies. Even the most successful poker player and sports betting professional cannot compete with them in terms of margins.
Having said that, those businesses are not one-man shows. There are lots of people that are employed by those companies that are real businesses with detailed business plans. They do offer a service to the public and in return, they are getting a margin. The service they provide basically is entertainment as this is what gambling is in reality.
For companies to be able to pay their salaries they need to secure a profit otherwise the business is not sustainable. There are two ways to do that: they either have very high-profit margins or they do increase their turnover. ‘Usually, new companies opt for the former. While they increase their customer base, they progressively reduce their margins so to attract a more significant turnover and start competing with the biggest operators’ said John Pentin editor in chief of CasinobiggestBonus.com.
When a gambling operator has managed to get sufficient revenue and profit every year their business is pretty safe but they always have to be careful not to fall behind the competition.
So gamblers are feeding the whole industry. But what are the ways to stop feeding the gambling industry?
Well, the first one is to stop gambling of course. Unless you are a consistent winner you need to decide when to stop. You can, of course, enjoy gambling as entertainment but always remember the house has a significant margin and over time you will be on the losing side.
When you are playing at an online casino, for example, all the games have already built-in the margin. The best way to understand this concept is to think at a coin flip. It doesn’t matter if your choice is heads or tails you are going to lose money eventually in the long run. This is because you are betting on a 50-50 chance but you only get paid less than double your money by bookmakers everytime you bet. Although bookmakers should offer you odds of 2.00, in reality, you are only getting 1.90 for each coin flip. After some time if you keep betting with those odds on this scenario all your bankroll will be lost. This is short what is the house edge.
Risk management in gambling
Although the vast majority of gamblers are losing in the medium to long term some professionals have been able to make a living out of it. This is because they have been particularly good at managing the risk and their bankroll. The best way to go about is to always risk no more than 1% of your gambling capital. Regardless of how you gamble those money you shouldn’t exceed this amount. This rule applies to small and big bankrolls.
Figure out a gambling system
Finding an edge to exploit in the gambling industry is not easy for what we have said above. If it would be easy, everyone would be living with it. In reality, only 5% of all gamblers are able to make a living out of it so it is somewhat challenging to make it. After all, for you to win there must be someone that has to lose. Once you have found the right strategy make sure you are not letting the world know. This is because when that happens your edge will diminish as lots of people will start to imitate you.
Always be disciplined
Now you have found a viable system and you know how much you can bet. This is great but the whole thing will only work if you stay disciplined during the good and the bad times. There are plenty of stories of sharp punters that lost their discipline and bankroll after a long losing streak.
Once you have confidence in a strategy stick to your risk management plan and be prepared to go through tough moments. Do everything by the book and do not question your strategy.
When you would have experienced several months or even years of being successful as a gambler, you might even feel bored! It doesn’t matter how much money you are making: doing the same thing every day will eventually get your bored. At the beginning making money from gambling, might seems like a dream comes true. But similarly to other businesses the routine will dilute and take the pleasure away.
The best way is to exploit new markets and try and improve your strategies. Burnout can happen to successful gamblers so remember to take breaks and enjoy what your hard work has produced. You should never forget to enjoy life as eventually, this is the meaning of living.
Even if at the moment you are having difficulty to break event you shouldn’t despair. Stop gambling your money and look for an edge. Put down your system in a paper and when you feel ready give it a go without risking more than 1% of your bankroll! And here you go! Good luck.
