THE INNER GAMBLER
The angels and demons of slot play
By Frank Scoblete
They hover in, over and around those machines, airy beings floating their powerful ideas into your mind. They are the good voices and the bad voices; the ones telling you to play, play, and play some more; and the ones that tell you to take a break, don’t chase your losses; wise up.
These are the angel and demon voices of the gambling game. You might be surprised at which voice is the true one and which is the false one; which voice is actually leading you to a major loss and which is there to support you and allow you to make the correct decisions.
Sometimes the sound of a particular voice, the tenor, is not what the voice actually wants for you and from you, especially if you happen to be the weary player. That pleasant voice can be your demon. Remember that the demon often comes in the colors of the rainbow promising a pot of gold at the end of it. There is no pot of gold for most slot players. Those pots are millions and millions of one against you.
Oh, yes, that pleasant sounding voice can be your true enemy; while that harsh, grating, scolding voice can be a good friend who wants for you safety and sanity. A powerful hammering voice is sometimes the honest and true voice; and the gentle voice, the ingratiating and seductive one, is the voice of which to be feared.
Here is one example: Marion has been playing the slots for several hours today and she is down quite a bit. It hasn’t been her day; she knows it. As a veteran slot player she realizes she should quit; take a break; do something else before resuming any kind of play. But those voices….
Your win is coming; it’s just around the corner. You quit now and you can’t win today; you have given up. You must win sooner or later and with these losses the sooner will show itself shortly. Trust this advice. I am here to help you.
Hmmm, Marion thinks, that voice is right. I must win sooner or later (right? right?) and since I have had a rough day my sooner must soon to arrive! I’ll play some more. Just a little more; just a little bit more.
Marion! Marion! Don’t be a fool! The house has the edge. Take your loss and get away for a while. Only a foolish player plays past her bankroll and you are past your bankroll right now. Go away! Go away! You can return later but now is the time to run, run and run. The slot machines aren’t going anywhere. They will be here, won’t they?
Hmmm, Marion thinks, maybe I should take a break now? I’ve been playing for quite a while. I want to be able to enjoy myself later, after I have dinner with my family and friends. A bigger loss than this could make me miserable. The slot machines will still be there in a few hours. I don’t want to lose everything now when I have later to play. That was my plan, wasn’t it?
Oh, Marion. Oh, Marion, you came here to play. Forget dinner. Your time is coming. Your big win is coming. You know what you should do? Go to another machine; a higher denomination one, so that when you win a jackpot it will be a huge one. You must win soon and why not win on a bigger denomination? You’ll sock it to the casino when you do. Isn’t this what you want to do, dear, dear Mar- ion? Isn’t that the sensible way to play?
Hmmm, Marion thinks, my win is coming; I can’t just keep losing, can I? And why shouldn’t I go for bigger wins? I always want the biggest win I can get and with my win just around the corner a move to a bigger machine may be the way to go. Some spins and my win comes and I make back everything I lost and then some. Isn’t that the sensible way to play?
Marion, take a break. Your time will come but it isn’t here now. Accept the loss. Do not move to a larger denomination. You are not that level of player. If you continue to lose, you will hurt your chances later on because you will have exhausted your playing money. Be reasonable; not foolish.
Hmmm, Marion thinks, is it really reasonable to continue to play and to take a chance on a larger denomination machine hoping I get back all my losses and then some? Isn’t that the foolish thing to do? I budgeted the amount of money I can play with and if I lose that I will be out of the game for this trip.
You can always get more money from your credit card, right?
Hmmm.
Be wise and don’t get caught up in the moment. Stop playing.
Hmmm.
Think of that big win; think about how happy you’ll be.
Hmmm.
Use your head; take a break before you become broken.
Hmmm.
Think of the great story you can tell everyone about your victory.
Hmmm.
Be wise, Marion, be wise.
Dear readers, which voice will Marion listen to? Which voice would you listen to? All the best in and out of the casinos!
