The chances of a person drawing a royal flush is the same regardless of who he is. But why do some people lose so much and why do other people seem so damn lucky. You know the rules and you know the odds, why is it your still losing. Loser? Probably not, but to make sure check out this list. It won’t guarantee winning but might help you avoid the loser tag.

1. Decide on how much you are willing to lose (and win)

People lose a lot of money gambling due to lack of planning. They gamble way over their head because they don’t know when to stop. The reason being they didn’t plan when to stop.

2. Don’t borrow other people’s money to gamble

If you can’t afford to lose money, don’t play in the first place. The added pressure of playing someone else’s money is too much. Losing your own money is difficult enough, so if you don’t have some, don’t play.

3. Set the alarm.

If you’ve already decided how much you’re willing to lose, well and good. Now it’s time to set a time limit. You can’t play forever and you shouldn’t., especially if you’re playing in a casino. The games favor the house in all cases, the longer you play the chances of you losing increases. So, set the alarm and then leave when it goes off.

4. Time out

Don’t play continuously without a break. The excitement and the adrenalin can probably get you going non-stop but when fatigue sets in, you start making bad decisions and make mistakes. So, rest up and relax. Then go back in.

5. Do other stuff.

Preoccupying yourself with only gambling breaks your inner balance. True, focusing gets good results but focusing only on one thing alone leads to bad things. Doing other things gives you a different perspective on other things that you do, it gives you possible insights that you may miss when focused on one thing only.

6. Don’t gamble when you're stressed or emotional

Not being in the right frame of mind can cost you big on the table. The most obvious thing that you would be lacking is focus. If your mind is preoccupied with other things and the state of your emotions is a mess. Those things lead to poor judgment and critical mistakes.

Simple plays become more difficult and most things become confusing. The poor emotional state you are in means playing emotionally instead of smartly.