Richard Lustig is a seven-time Powerball grand lottery prize winner. Yes, you read that right. He has won the grand prize for the Powerball seven times. He has won so many times, in fact, that he has written a book detailing tips on how you could win the lottery as well. Despite the chances being slim, hearing a seven-time Powerball winner’s techniques and secrets could still be worth a try. It’s the lottery after all.

Despite the skepticism of experts reported by Business Insider, Richard’s methods are still worth a try. The nations luckiest man: Richard Lustig has won the Powerball’s grand prizes seven times. He has since written a book sharing his secrets to winning titled Learn How to Increase Your Chances of Winning the Lottery.

In the book, he shares his winning strategy and shares that trial and error was applied prior to perfecting the formula of winning. Despite critics saying that his method is pure madness and nonsensical, he has the record to show for it and would like to help others increase their chances too.

Lustig warns against using “quick pick” draws. These numbers will give you the least chance of winning due to a random sequence. This means that although you might think all number combinations present you with the same amount of “luck” there are certain combinations that will give you a better chance of winning.

Richard also implores you to go beyond the usual birthday combinations and use the entire spread. He also shares that although it is unlikely that you will win the sequence with a birthday combination, you would likely be splitting the prize with 20-40 other people who bet on the same birthday combination as you. Compared to spreading out your numbers and adding in larger ones, you would likely only be sharing your pot with one or two others.

In addition to this, he suggests that you stay consistent with your numbers. Lustig states that once you have figured out which numbers are more likely to show up, bet on them every chance you get until you find the right sequence that lands you a win. If you purchase more than one card, he also urges you to choose different sequences.

He further explains that choosing a group of numbers that is mostly different each time will increase your chances of winning. In regards to being consistent, he also suggests that you never miss a draw date for the game you’re betting on.

Lustig also acknowledges the fact that lottery betting is easily addictive. You can only increase your chances of winning by betting more which is why he suggests that you responsibly play to your limits. This means you should never bet above your means. Yes, you could have more chances of winning but if it means you could probably lose your home’s electricity because of betting, you should take a step back.

Plenty of Professionals in the field of finance will tell you that the lottery is never worth it. Although it can be tempting with the potentially huge payout, they have a point. The odds are stacked against you, and while playing moderately wouldn’t hurt you too bad financially, it still isn’t a wise investment of your finances (or time).

Paul Dreyer is a mathematician that works for the RAND Corporation. Paul and the Corporation are critics of Lustig’s “methods” and feels as though they’re a madman’s logic. Dreyer shares that the probability of winning the big prize in a lottery is one in 292,201,338.

Dreyer further notes that although it is a no-brainer to play the lottery due to the prize being $700 million, players are forgetting the costs that come with winning the lottery.

In the unlikely case that you win the lottery, Dreyer shares that you would be paying nearly half of your earnings to taxes. This includes federal taxes, state and city taxes.

Dreyer further shares that the overall cost of winning the lottery might not be worth it if you look into how much you’ve spent prior to winning.

Although Paul clarifies that he would prefer not to be a lottery grinch, he is concerned regarding the fact that there are plenty of participants who put their hopes into winning the lottery despite not having the means to support their continued betting. He further shares his sentiments stating that he hopes people learn to value the money they earn and invest in better ways that are guaranteed to return your investment.