A look at the ups, and downs of lottery play
The lottery is an entertainment game that a lot of us love to play. The anticipation of possibly winning millions or tens of millions of dollars, even though we know our chances of winning are extremely slim, keeps us dreaming and playing and hoping to beat the odds and become a millionaire.
In fact, even if we don’t win, we enjoy buying our tickets and checking to see if we have won anything. And like all things, there are good and bad things about playing the lottery.
Pros
- Entertainment – Playing the lottery is a form of entertainment. It provides a temporary anticipatory feeling of a positive outcome or current anticipated outcome and enjoyment similar to watching a movie, going to a concert, or seeing a play.
- Excitement – Not only is there an excitement created by the anticipation of checking the ticket and winning a prize, but also in the hopes that that prize may be the top award jackpot. It is the excitement factor plus the entertainment factor that makes playing the lottery so much fun.
- Winning money – Everyone likes money and a large lottery win can provide the money needed to pay off bills, clear up debts, and upgrade a home or car.
- Living a Better Life – If managed properly, a large lottery win can provide a better lifestyle for the winner both materially and mentally for the rest of their life.
- Raise Money for Charities – One mandate of lotteries is to share profits among charities to help them provide products and services to the less fortunate such as the homeless, the poor, and many other clients that need a helping hand.
- Support Government Programs – Lottery profits also go towards supporting educational and health sectors of the government to improve schools and hospitals.
Cons
- Not Winning – One of the letdowns in lottery play is the realization that the player has not won anything. Even though this is known in advance that the player has such a small chance of winning, it still can be a disappointment when no prize is won.
- Spending money – It takes money to play the lottery and sometimes when there is no money to buy a ticket, a player may find other not so moral or legal means to obtain the funds to continue to buy tickets.
- Problem Gambling – Some players can become addicted to the lottery in which they either try to chase the jackpot or try to win back the money they have already spent. They may not stop until one of the above events happens.
- Becoming the Priority in Life – Once addiction becomes out of control, gambling on the lottery may become the only priority in life, superseding family, work, hygiene, food, and other factors of everyday living. Severe addiction like this can lead to the breakup of family and relationships and the isolation from everything in their life.
However, most players end up in the middle of the pro’s and con’s such as when they may be excited that they won on the lottery draw but also feel disappointed they didn’t win a higher prize. That is how must of us are. And remember to keep being that way. Play the lottery for entertainment and excitement but never be disappointed if you don’t win a prize as you do understand that even a free play is against the odds of you winning.