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Poker is not dying |
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LemOn[5thF] Czech Republic. Nov 14 2010 21:11. Posts 15163 | | |
Below is my adaptation of an article I have found recently that seemed very helpful to me. Here is my personalised version/notes:
When you scroll through LP and online forums you will see the miserable impression that online poker profitability is plummeting into horrible depths. Many people talk about throwing in the towel and getting into a regular job just for that reason.
Fuck them, you are smarter than that. Here is a refresher of reasons for playing this this game:
''More DIfficult'' does not mean ''Not Worthwhile''
You all hear the stories from old schoolers about the Party days. Waiting for aces and stacking off with TPTK and make bazillions with no effort. The games these days are much more difficult than back then. They are becoming increasingly more competitive and challenging, and it’s not as easy as it once was to earn $500k/year. I know, you are thinking what I am right now “So the hell what?”
You can still make extremely high hourly rates and income; all you have to do is work hard. That's it, there is no golden pill, no hidden passageways to poker oracle, no secret societies not even the Free Mason’s are involved.
Poker success, like most things in life, is based on your willingness to put in the ability and effort. You can still get dramatically more dough than with most other jobs, assuming you are disciplined and aggressive with your poker efforts. But poker is not just about dough for bitches and ho's. You also get the additional benefits of:
-Mental and physical freedom
-Flexibility
-Creative Outlet
-Competitive Challenges
-Exponential potential with virtually no or a very thin ceiling
Success: Process vs Product
Take this Guy, John Wooden. He is the only person ever to be inducted into the basketball hall of fame both as a player and a coach.
To him, success was not the output, but the process. If you work hard and strive to be your best then regardless of the outcome you have succeeded. This outlook is brilliant and not only because of its simplicity.
At first it might seem that the idea behind this is that success shouldn't be measured by the tangible and material. What is the real point and what is the most important however is that this approach draws attention to the level of discipline and enjoyment in work that is at the core of your excellence. By focusing on the process rather than outcome, you will see preparation as an end in itself. Our output, and in poker it is cash for bitches and ho's, is then a by product of our energy given to the process, and not the main goal and focal point of our energy and attraction.
If you look at poker in this light, your motivation can be geared towards to simply become a better poker player, and not just towards making the most money. We of course all look towards our bottom line, that’s why many of us play poker and want to succeed, as ho's are getting real expensive if you don't just move to Thailand like many LP perverts. Upon reflection however, you should see your learning and improvement as the measure of our success. This not only increases your potential to succeed but will also drastically alter your perception of and sensitivity to the definition of happiness you employ and derive from your work.
If my goal every day is to get better, to improve as a poker player, to review hands and concepts and get comments, play around with theory and discuss poker with friends, my profit/loss for the day has no effect on my perception of my own success for that day. I don't give a shit that I lost 20 buy ins in a day when I analysed 20 tough hands learned two new concepts and found a way to be a better poker player like Here.By approaching poker this way my feelings of accomplishment and happiness are protected.
As poker players and gamblers of any kind, we all know that the actual monetary output each day is irrelevant. What matters is the long run. The day to day, week to week, sometimes month to month (perhaps year to year for live and MTT donkeys) fluctuations are not of primary importance, and may or may not mean much. We train ourselves to ignore it. Unfortunately though, we are still human and it’s difficult not to in some way feel the influence of our results for that day.
CHANGE YOUR DEFINITION OF SUCCESS
A large part of the reason why we let our rational mind falter and be smashed by the rocket of the BFG called negative emotion is that our rationale already has holes in it. It’s not strong enough to withstand the impact of our rushing hormones as they rise from the sub-cortical depths and try to rein havoc on our reasoning capabilities. Part of the deficiency in our thinking is the fact that as poker players, we focus way too much attention on the bottom line, and not the work it takes to get there.
By putting the spotlight on discipline and improvement, we not only feel more gratified, but we become much better poker players. In one swoop, we are both improving our level of happiness and satisfaction, while simultaneously increasing our output (and getting those ho's). Success is achieved before the war begins. Preparation and discipline then become the primary contributors to victory.
Start with the process
Okay so now you are considering the notion that maybe the games aren’t the problem, it’s your focus and drive. To that you add acceptance of a definition of success that centers on discipline and motivation, and not on the score at the end of the game. Now what are you going to do about it? Where do we begin to expend this flurry of positive and hopeful energy, that will actually allow you enjoy this game and not be one of them miserable people?
Start with the process. Spend more time of your day studying, reviewing, reading and watching, instead of actually playing poker. Think of your poker sessions as the secondary initiative, the primary one is simply to learn and try to get better. I don’t mean to say that you should necessarily play a lot less poker then you do. I mean that you should probably be putting more effort into improving. Become curious again.
Why do we take the lines that we do?
Why do we bet as much or as little as we do?
Why do we fold the third nuts with 100 hands on villain?
Why does opponent x always perform action y in situation z as you notice while reviewing your hands against him/her? What can be done to exploit that next time you happen to find yourself on the same table?
INVEST MORE TIME FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF YOUR GAME!
Reviewing your own sessions is one of the most important contributors to your success. Not only are you establishing reads on opponents you will almost surely play again, but also your knowledge of ranges stays very sharp. Essentially poker is about narrowing ranges to identify our opponents’ cards. When you’re not reviewing, take some time off every day and simply watch some of the other regulars play. Whether it’s players at your stakes or much better ones at higher stakes, watching others perform will help tremendously with the two objectives mentioned above and with countless others as well.
As poker players in 2010, we have a wealth of information to satisfy our poker curiosity. Books, forums, videos, articles, public reviews or a free session from AndrewSong that you get after awesome blog post are all there because people are interested in getting better. Yet not many poker players actually view their improvement as the primary objective. This mentality alone can be a great contributor to you separating yourself and rising above the pack. Utilized properly and effectively, it can make you soar to new heights. Take advantage of all that our modern technological information age provides and start trying to be better poker players.
Motivation: The key to unlocking process for progress
Many poker players and humans in general for that matter, suffer from a lack of motivation. It really does get hard to go to school when you don't give a shit, or to be reviewing your hands when its much easier to just fire up 9 tables, mindlessly grind and post a whine blog. Now of course some less eager people will tell you they’re fine that way, and in their eyes they’re not suffering at all but actually quite content with their energy level and how much they care.
That’s fine, but for those among us who strive to move forward and always grow, lacking motivation can be quite the ailment. This is in fact so common, important and complex, that it requires its own hours of videos, miles of articles, textbooks and courses at universities. Oh wait, it does have all that and more. You can just go out and get them. To mention a few:
Physical Activity
Our brains and bodies were not evolved to sit around all day in front of a screen. Sitting on our ass all day without much physical movement will hinder our brain’s natural propensity to release hormones which make us feel energized and happy. Whether it’s going to the gym, playing sports, shagging ho's in Thailand running or dancing, staying active is integral to our success.
Isolation
Another potential obstacle is isolation, and is a consideration that would requires its own article. Online poker can also be a very isolating job. We don’t travel to offices in a flurry of traffic and get bombarded by bosses or employees with demands, deadlines and other nuances of the traditional working environment. Although a welcome departure from the conventional aggravations, the subsequent loneliness of the online poker player at work can threaten our productivity. It doesn’t have to be this way.
Our physical and mental freedom demands we take all areas of our lives into our own hands and to push forward independently. This is true not only of our work ethic but also of the substance in our social lives. After all, unlike other professions we can decide, at all times, who we talk to, for what reasons and for how long. We have control over where we work, at which times, which days and on which continent.In that light, the nature of the poker profession allows for a level and flavour of social interaction more dynamic and fulfilling then that which a normal job could generally provide. When you get stuck in a busy office all you will ever know are your close colleagues. People hardly get together with others as you see on How I met your mother. Your social interaction will be limited mostly to your peers and family, as there simply isn't time and energy for other interaction when you work 60 hours per week.
Of course, we have to actually work at our social life and are not simply flung into a social atmosphere and forced to interact as people thrown into a job are. If you are not sociable person it can be tough to make non-poker friends, and you will have to put hard work into overcoming that. Well, you still will be in a way better position that some IT guys who work 60 hours per week and are not flung into the interaction with actual humans.
POKER GIVES MANY POSSIBILITIES, USE THEM
Fortunately for us, we are now focusing on the process and simple improvement is our success. The result is more time out of our normal grinding environment. This could mean spending more time reviewing in nearby coffee shops, broadening our poker circle for more diverse viewpoints, or taking more time out of our lives to simply socialize with friends and meet new ones. Our goal is to augment our satisfaction and happiness by altering our definition and feelings toward success, while diversifying our methods.
Of course, by changing our definition of success to process rather than output, we create a greater variety of success inputs. Spending more time on studying now renders us more successful. Exercising and socializing more to increase our energy and happiness is a success in itself. The days of looking at our stats software to get an idea of how to feel are over. If it helps, erase your win-rate and profit from your stats software and take a look at it once every so often to get an idea of how you’re doing. Ultimately though, as long as you’re striving and working, those numbers will not matter; you are succeeding.
Going Forward
The Party Poker days are over and you can't just overlook these things. More work is required, more focus and dedication, more discipline and training and more health and happiness. You know what? This is actually a welcome challenge. If attacked properly and with vigor, the challenge of making it and excelling in the online poker environment of today will be a massive boost to your personal energy, mental strength, health levels and it will enthral you with diverse and exciting experiences. This is why poker is so damn attractive to me. Unlike the office, where a weak day/hour, sloppy off the job time management, or eating crap will not make your work performance and output/wage significantly lower, in poker these days you always need to challenge yourself and lead a balanced life or or your performance will be immediately affected and you will lose your edge.
Our objective now is to make the best decision on every action in every hand, and continuously strive, both on and off the tables, to ensure we accomplish that task to the best of our ability. By altering our definition of success and consistently improving, increasing and diversifying our efforts, we can reach new heights.
The games aren’t “dying”, the challenge is just beginning.
based on:
+ Show Spoiler +
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| 93% Sure! | Last edit: 14/11/2010 22:17 |
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thumbz555 United States. Nov 14 2010 21:16. Posts 3281 | | |
ADD kicked in and all I ended up doing was looking at pictures. Couple good pictures though; I enjoyed them. |
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LemOn[5thF] Czech Republic. Nov 14 2010 21:20. Posts 15163 | | |
| | On November 14 2010 20:16 thumbz555 wrote:
ADD kicked in and all I ended up doing was looking at pictures. Couple good pictures though; I enjoyed them. |
Some people here were complaining that I don't post links and references to vids and articles I base my posts on + Uni mentality of being scared of plagiarising made me put the link there -.-
But you have a very good point post edited I don't want to make it an ad, just source the original article. |
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| 93% Sure! | Last edit: 14/11/2010 21:30 |
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A+ I like you Lemon, let me buy you a beer sometime. |
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mnj United States. Nov 14 2010 21:47. Posts 3848 | | |
pictures make reading this alot easier
but sometimes i wonder if maybe it is time to throw the towel |
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LemOn[5thF] Czech Republic. Nov 14 2010 22:00. Posts 15163 | | |
| | On November 14 2010 20:47 mnj wrote:
pictures make reading this alot easier
but sometimes i wonder if maybe it is time to throw the towel |
Towards reading walls of text? Yeah man I agree xD. Focusing on the process of learning, making it your goal and forcing yourself to study the boring but very valuable sources can be so damn hard.. Like the original article is pretty dull, and just a wall of text without pictures in small font. Or e.g. when you know you need to recap dull math concepts and calculations it gets almost impossible when winnings are the only thing that are your goal and that gives you satisfaction. Watching those 8 hours full of math from Wilt on Tilt that need 20+hours extra hours of analysis and calcs is an unbelievable challenge for me when all my immediate goals in my mind are to recoup my losses from last 5 days, and that's what will drive my satisfaction. Changing this mindset and making poker enjoyable experience and long term results way better really needs hard work.
It took me some 1.5 hours of persuading myself to read and analyse this article while doing fuck all, and I had to make it a blog post with which I had fun to even do it eventually.
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| 93% Sure! | Last edit: 14/11/2010 22:03 |
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vlseph United States. Nov 14 2010 22:11. Posts 3026 | | | |
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| The only hands a nit balances in his range are the nuts, the second nuts, and the third nuts. | |
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Spitfiree Bulgaria. Nov 14 2010 22:30. Posts 9634 | | |
This article should change some stuff about me. If not i d better just quit poker ...
Great read should be moved to articles department of the site |
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Sanity United States. Nov 14 2010 22:45. Posts 1076 | | | |
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Etherone Canada. Nov 14 2010 23:03. Posts 753 | | |
| | On November 14 2010 20:20 LemOn[5thF] wrote:
Show nested quote +
On November 14 2010 20:16 thumbz555 wrote:
ADD kicked in and all I ended up doing was looking at pictures. Couple good pictures though; I enjoyed them. |
Some people here were complaining that I don't post links and references to vids and articles I base my posts on + Uni mentality of being scared of plagiarising made me put the link there -.-
But you have a very good point post edited I don't want to make it an ad, just source the original article.
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he meant attention deficit disorder A D D, not add. |
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Xanthos . Nov 15 2010 01:10. Posts 110 | | |
Well with this much effort these days better to just get a normal job. Construction worker holding a sign makes $25/hour these days so not so terrible |
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Ket  United Kingdom. Nov 15 2010 01:35. Posts 8665 | | |
Fucking a+ awesome read and these are all the same conclusions I've come to at points in this year thru a combination of self discovery and being hinted in the right direction by the ideas of peers and good articles. Lemon sounds like ur a smart guy and ur on the right track at least mentally and with approach.
I love that last pic and caption |
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dogmeat Czech Republic. Nov 15 2010 03:28. Posts 6374 | | |
| | On November 14 2010 21:11 vlseph wrote:
TL;DR |
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EvilSky Czech Republic. Nov 15 2010 04:21. Posts 8915 | | |
But what is best in life lemon ? |
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morph1 Sierra Leone. Nov 15 2010 04:32. Posts 2352 | | |
this is something i was looking for... ty lemon  |
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| Always Look On The Bright Side of Life | |
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By.Elite Canada. Nov 15 2010 05:33. Posts 25 | | |
Thanks for your last 2 blogs. Informative and motivating. Keep postin' that good stuff man. |
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LemOn[5thF] Czech Republic. Nov 15 2010 08:39. Posts 15163 | | |
| | On November 15 2010 03:21 EvilSky wrote:
But what is best in life lemon ? |
I have struggled answering this question for the last years, and and had discussions with many people in various stages of their life.
The answer is simple: There is no answer.
Be it through experiences, challenging yourself, talking to people or trying new things you need to find how your own mind works, what are your needs and what is best for you and what is your passion. You need to find that answer yourself.
For example one of the happiest people I have ever met was my line manager at a family bakery. He has just enough money to pay off his mortgage and have a car, but nothing more really. But he loves his job, always trying to find new ways to improve things in the bakery, he even opened a 'Bread club' where he experiments with bread dough and personally delivers the new breads to customers.
Many people would hate this job, one bakery all your life, same people, its 'dirty' little to no chance to be a millionaire, but for him the family business of his grandfather and father is everything and he wouldn't be happier elsewhere.
Or the office - being an analyst or middle manager all your life - many people love the security, pension, holidays and sick leave and knowing that every day is almost the same, and that they get the same rating year after year and get 0-3 promotions all their life if even that and have little impact on the company performance. They couldn't be happier and stability and certainty is much more important to them than personal growth.
Poker is a great alternative and a job with plenty of opportunities, but it is on you to find out if its the best in life for you or not.
I personally haven't found the answer yet. That's why I didn't quit uni and why I will finish it, why I moved to a different country 4 years ago, why I forced myself into a work experience. I like to experience as many things and keep as many options open as possible before I find my true long term passion and life direction. |
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| 93% Sure! | Last edit: 15/11/2010 08:49 |
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Surprise United States. Nov 15 2010 12:48. Posts 275 | | | |
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| the games you own at, end up owning you | |
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ivanildo Portugal. Nov 16 2010 03:09. Posts 87 | | |
ty lemon. very motivating post. |
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Chewits United Kingdom. Dec 21 2010 16:27. Posts 2539 | | |
Sorry for bump, but I missed this and felt the need to share.
Solid read, should be article on here. A++ |
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| I am a degen. Do not believe in any of my advice. | |
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