The data is unambiguous: Kenyans bet more than people in the majority of other African nations. In fact, only South Africa and Nigeria are ahead of Kenya in this segment. According to data obtained by the British investigative publication Finance Uncovered, Kenyans were betting over M-Pesa for $1.3 billion annually by 2018—more than the nation’s Ministry of Health’s annual budget. These numbers are even bigger now.
In other words, gaming has taken on a life of its own in our nation. This isn’t to mean that you should completely give up gambling, though. Playing on Kenyan online casinos can be a lot of fun, a stress-relieving activity, which can bring you some profit along the way. But, you would be smart to put some preventative measures into place in order to stay afloat. Need assistance doing so? Then continue reading. We’re going to provide you with some suggestions to assist you to stop gambling with all of your money.
How to Stop Spending Your Whole Budget Gambling
When you’re in the thick of gambling, it can give you an adrenaline boost unlike anything else. But if you’re not careful, it could get out of hand and cost you a lot of money.
Fortunately, by using the following advice, you can stop this from happening.
Set Apart Money for Gambling
Leaving aside monthly or weekly gaming money is one of the most crucial things for frequent gamblers to undertake. You can prevent yourself from using your rental income, grocery money, or other necessary income to gamble by doing this.
First, make sure you have enough money to cover all of your basic expenses. If you’re inclined to do so, we advise adding part of your income to savings as well. Whatever money that’s left over can then be used for gambling. Generally speaking, it’s a good practice to keep your money for “necessities” and your gambling money apart. You ought to consider opening a second bank account as a way to do that. You can save yourself from unintentionally placing excessive bets if you do this.
Smart Money Management
Prioritizing savings is a smart strategy before prioritizing money for gaming, as was hinted at above. You can never predict when an emergency (such as a house or car damage, etc.) would arise. Avoid putting yourself in a position where your gambling prohibits you from paying bills in an emergency. Also, consider your future savings (i.e. college funds, retirement, etc.). Long-term financial stability is considerably more significant than gambling in the overall scheme of things.
You should aim to maintain three to six months’ worth of funds as an emergency fund. When you have amassed such savings, then can start gambling. You ought to be making equal monthly contributions to your long-term savings. Amounts will differ depending on each person’s overall income and long-term objectives. Consider speaking with a financial expert if you’re having problems saving money.
Establish a Budget
You ought to have a budget established whether or not you enjoy gambling. Your spending and income can be tracked with the use of a budget, which can also let you know if you’re managing your money responsibly. Our recommendation is to get specific with it, utilizing a smartphone app or spreadsheet to allocate particular sums of money to particular expenses on a monthly basis. You can record financial transactions in your spreadsheet or app as they happen.
It’s a smart idea to plan how you’ll use your gaming wins while creating your budget. Will you include them in your gambling fund? Or perhaps you’ll spend them on enjoyable activities? You may make sure that you’re spending your earnings responsibly and safely by choosing a destination for them. In other terms, you won’t just throw them out on the spur of the moment.
Set Win/Loss Ceilings
Many gamblers struggle with the inability to set limits. There’s a good chance that if you bet for a sufficient amount of time, you’ll lose money. You must therefore establish boundaries for yourself. Usually speaking, setting win/loss limitations is the best method to accomplish this. This includes proactively establishing a financial ceiling for gains and a floor for losses.
For instance, you might declare that during a single gaming session, you won’t win more than $500 and won’t lose more than $250. If you happen to hit either of these numbers in the middle of the session, you need to leave right away. This is a surefire way to make sure you never lose far too much money at once. Of course, you have to exercise considerable restraint and discipline in order to adhere to this self-imposed rule.
Keep Your Debit and Credit Cards Hidden
Those who gamble in brick-and-mortar places like casino saloons are far more likely to make impulsive purchases. Because of this, you ought to leave your debit and credit cards at home if you plan to wager in person.
Instead of carrying your cards, you should take cash out of your bank account and bring it just in paper form to the casino. When you do this, you make it virtually impossible for you to spend more money than you had planned to. In other words, you’ll get away from the chance of spending on the spur of the moment.
Use Small Bill Denominations
Gambling with only small dollar bill denominations is another approach to make sure you’re not blowing your budget.
For instance, place 10 $1 bills instead of one $10 bill on the table. A set of 10 one-dollar bills appears to be more money even though the real numbers are equal. You won’t be feeling as if you have as much money to gamble with, so you won’t be tempted to bet further than you can spare.
Play Games with Low Limitations Only
You’re well aware of the minimum limits because you frequently gamble. These restrictions specify the minimal sum of money that must be bet in order for a player to participate in a certain game. These restrictions cover a wide range, from modest to grandiose, and everything in between.
While you’re free to play any game you can afford, we strongly advise against doing so. You face the danger of losing only modest amounts of money by playing only low-limit games. You won’t get into the situation of losing as much money in lower-limit games, but you also won’t be able to win as much. Also, you’ll still experience the adrenaline that makes gambling fun.
Consider your financial status and make sure you have the resources required to engage comfortably before joining any game or placing any bets.
Take Breaks Often
Excessive gambling is a real thing, just as there’s excessive drinking. Regrettably, excessive gambling is usually the cause of problems for gamblers. Instead of being a fun hobby, gambling turns into a habit that causes people to spend more money than they intended to.
The good news is that you may avoid this by planning regular breaks. For illustration, if you enjoy gambling a lot, you might plan a week each month during which you play for free. This will stop the cycle of unrelenting spending, give you time to gather your thoughts and make sure you don’t develop any bad habits.
Opt for a Different Hobby
Without a question, gambling is thrilling. It provides the ultimate rush for some of us. Yet that doesn’t imply that we ought to do it always. You need to live lifestyles that involve more than just gambling money. In other words, you should opt for pastimes other than gambling.
It doesn’t matter what the pastime is; it simply needs to be something to keep you from risking your money: gym workout, running, surfing, carpentry… it’s irrelevant. It’s a worthy attempt if it piques your attention and prevents exorbitant sums of money from gushing out of your bank account.
Consult a Therapist
You should seek out a therapist if you suffer from a serious gambling addiction and have suffered significant financial losses as a result. Why? You probably have an addiction to the activity.
There are many different varieties of psychological therapists, many of whom focus on gambling addiction. These experts can assist you in locating any underlying psychological issues you could be experiencing in order to help you address the source of your addiction.
Therapists can help gamblers stay in check by making sure they don’t spend excessive amounts of money at once. They resemble gambling supervisors in this sense. However, keep in mind that in order to benefit from therapy, you must be motivated to overcome your issues. You’ll just be wasting more money if you’re unable to kick your gambling habit.
Conclusion
You need to exercise extreme control and restraint if you don’t want to lose all of your money gambling. You have a great chance of sustaining your financial stability if you consistently apply the advice provided above.
