Blog

The Psychology of Long-Term Investing vs Short-Term Gambling.

August 17, 2023
by Ahmad Radi

long term investments in gambling

In contrast, gamblers often focus on short-term gains, seeking to win big quickly. They may also rely on intuition or luck, rather than careful analysis and research. With gambling, you’re on your own to decide what to do and how much money to do it with.

Stocks Mentioned

MoneyLion will then choose a selection of stock and bond ETFs personalized to you. An ETF is a bundle of securities providing a mix of investment options. ETFs may include a combination of stocks or bonds across one or more industries, geographies, or investment styles. By purchasing a cross-section of securities, you lower your risk and avoid putting all your money in only one asset. A company with strong performance can deliver a decent return on your investment.

The Stability People Crave But Pretend Not To

Long-term gains are generally taxed more favorably than short-term ones. Most often, investing is the act of buying and holding an asset for the long-term. To classify as a long-term holding, the investor must own the asset for at least one year. Whenever a person spends money with the expectation that the endeavor will return a profit, they are investing. In this scenario, the undertaking bases the decision on a reasonable judgment made after a thorough investigation of the soundness that the endeavor has a good probability of success. The gambling industry has played a colossal role in the global economy over the past decade.

Why is short-term investing considered gambling, while long-term investing is not?

It focus on hoping for a win based on luck rather than analysis or strategy. Risk level in Gambling is extremely high, the odds typically favor the gambling establishment (the “house”). Investments can take many different forms, including stocks, bonds, real estate, and venture capital.

That being said, there are investors who gamble with their investments. Some of them buy and sell huge quantities of shares in a single day (referred to as trading), and some bet on stocks to go down (shorting). These are high-risk options and not sustainable in the long run. Also, there are investors who just buy ‘hot’ stocks, without understanding what they are getting into – which is simply gambling, but with stocks instead of horses or cards. Gamblers have no way of predicting the outcome of the random event on which they have staked their money, and it mostly depends on luck. In the case of an unbiased die, all six outcomes have equal probabilities, and the gambler could win or lose money based on the outcome.

What About Professional Gamblers?

Experts recommend hedging strategies such as diversifying into regulated jurisdictions and prioritizing ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) criteria. For instance, Evolution’s 44.8% revenue share from regulated markets in Q1 2025—a jump from 39% in Q1 2024—demonstrates the value of this approach 15. Investors should also monitor legislative trends, such as California’s AB 831, which seeks to criminalize sweepstakes gaming and extend liability to suppliers 16. With a retirement account, you can save money to pay for retirement expenses. Sometimes they even match your contributions to the account (up to a certain amount). Or, you may choose to go through a private broker to set up an individual retirement account, commonly known as an IRA.

You can also lose your investment if the company doesn’t perform well Forest Arrow Game or goes out of business. There is no surefire answer when it comes to gambling and becoming rich. While some people have won big, others have lost everything they put in.