Quit work and focus on poker?

Okay so this question has been bothering me a lot lately so I thought I would get some opinions from people that have already been through the same situation.

A background to my life at the moment.. I'm 23, I still live at home with my parents. I deferred university at the beginning of this year (nearly halfway through an information systems degree) to work at a small business for $20/hr. I really disliked university.
Current job is quite nice, very relaxed and flexible. In 5-10 years time I could see it being an above average income but putting in a lot of hours. In the last week or two I've told work that I would be cutting down to only two working days per week to focus more on poker (and potentially phase it out by years end if all goes to plan?).
I do have a car loan (~$100/week repayment).


Now poker wise, I play 2/4 and sometimes 3/6 FR with a comfortable bankroll. I just banked a 10k month last month @3.7ptbb. Also I've been getting coached (may aswell shout out to James(Dzoo), I know some people were curious who) for a month or two. I began the year with $1,000 and at NL50 FR. Play ~30-40k hands 8 tabling/month. My latest blog post has a decent wrap-up.

People who have taken the plunge, what would you recommend?
Keep working and play on the side? Go back to full hours?
Wait until I have a roll for $5/10? (1 good month away)

I'm a bit confused but I really think I could make 150k++ next year if I focused on it.

Family members know and I haven't sold them totally on the idea, but they're generally supportive of what I do. Be looking to move out sometime next year aswell.

Hopefully get some decent discussion going.





Potential blogish post, but they usually get bumped off before decent replies
Also I just had my biggest losing day 2 days ago, so this isnt a run hot lets quit post

i would do it in a heartbeat if i was in your situation

i'm stuck in the middle of a long degree at uni and i cant see myself deferring since i've already done too much to go back. but i want to play poker full time for a while, like 6months to a year and take it from there.

what have you got to lose? you already make heaps more than at your job.

but its not really a financial question. its more of a social thing i think, will the people around you think differently or disapprove if you do play full time? will you still do normal stuff with your friends or end up staying awake all night and sleeping all day? are you still going to have any order or structure to your life (while playing poker full time)?

On September 07 2008 06:09 lachlan wrote: i would do it in a heartbeat if i was in your situation i'm stuck in the middle of a long degree at uni and i cant see myself deferring since i've already done too much to go back. but i want to play poker full time for a while, like 6months to a year and take it from there. what have you got to lose? you already make heaps more than at your job. but its not really a financial question. its more of a social thing i think, will the people around you think differently or disapprove if you do play full time? will you still do normal stuff with your friends or end up staying awake all night and sleeping all day? are you still going to have any order or structure to your life (while playing poker full time)?

Cool post, the what to lose is a good question. I should've throw a few up these up in the OP.

Potential problems?
-How hard is it to get a home loan with no solid income? I wouldn't be declaring winnings I dont think. (Someone in aus, please confirm)
-I'm not as good as I think
-I'm jumping the gun and quitting too early and may shut down a good career oppourtunity
-Dealing with swings that may affect my playing when its my sole income (will never know until it happens)
-Sustainability, will this be an option for 5-10-20 years?

Socially it's not a problem, I would love to lead that lifestyle. Parents may be apprehensive and rightfully so as I live under their roof, maybe I can show them this thread one day

if you have a career with growth potential, why not just maintain what you are doing now? have the best of both worlds in my opinion.


just slowly move up ranks in both. then you get a clearer picture i think if one lags behind the other.

Its not about how big your roll is imo, you should be more concerned with winrate, and you should wait and see if your winrate is consistent before you do this.

I agree with EvilSky, having several 10k months is worlds different from having a 10k month last month. Aside from that, I wouldn't put too much stock in lost "career opportunity" unless this particular job really offers something unique. Getting your first job post-poker may be more difficult but it's not like a couple of years is going to make any difference in the long run.

Cause, you know, age 25 or 26 is washed up in today's world. Hopeless.

yea i would deff wait..if you can make 10k a month while keeping the 20$/hr job why not do it and jus claim the 20$/hr so you can get good credit and be makin loads of money on the side with poker

lol, honest i would just do it if i were u. i dont see how it matters if you can earn 10k a month or not. if u manage to earn 3k thats still more than u earn at your job working three times the hours. and if your living with fam you shouldnt really need much money anyway. and, if you do for some reason, u have ur roll to fall back on in an emergency.

if ppl here are stating ur biggest problem is whether you can win 10k or so consistently, i think that is not even an issue here. at 400nl, as long as u finish in the green at the end of the month it will be plenty to get you by.

i would be more worried about my short term plans and long term plans (next 15 years of my life, what do i want to achieve, where do i want to be), and make sure you can achieve them if you do take on poker. or set out some sort of timeline like play poker for one year then re-evaluate.

and about getting a loan, yeah you would be kind of screwed there i think. are you looking to buy a house?

On September 07 2008 07:09 wakeboarrder wrote: yea i would deff wait..if you can make 10k a month while keeping the 20$/hr job why not do it and jus claim the 20$/hr so you can get good credit and be makin loads of money on the side with poker

who needs good credit when youre paying everything outright with CASH MONEY.

STUNTIN STUNTIN ITS A HABIT

thats like this guy asking if he should call a shove with pocket Qs!

On September 07 2008 07:46 byrnesam wrote: Show nested quote + On September 07 2008 07:09 wakeboarrder wrote: yea i would deff wait..if you can make 10k a month while keeping the 20$/hr job why not do it and jus claim the 20$/hr so you can get good credit and be makin loads of money on the side with poker who needs good credit when youre paying everything outright with CASH MONEY. STUNTIN STUNTIN ITS A HABIT

yeah WTF

QUIT COACHING ALL THE FULL RING PLAYERS D_ZOO

to Siro, i think moving out of my parents house would be my first priority

Just do it. Try everything atleast once imo

How long have you been working?!

I'm soon finishing my university studies and I have no intention on going to work after it. I don't really see the upside to it, unless you're about to really make it as a career. Having a degree and work experience is important, because if in 5 years or whatever it's not either possible to play poker or you don't want to do it anymore, you can probably get a job then.

I mean taking a year or two off, just to try it out shouldn't have a big impact on your long term career plan altho they might set you back a little, right? Just do it! ^_^v

it worked for me, should work for you! ^_^

On September 07 2008 09:34 Muhweli wrote: How long have you been working?! I'm soon finishing my university studies and I have no intention on going to work after it. I don't really see the upside to it, unless you're about to really make it as a career. Having a degree and work experience is important, because if in 5 years or whatever it's not either possible to play poker or you don't want to do it anymore, you can probably get a job then. I mean taking a year or two off, just to try it out shouldn't have a big impact on your long term career plan altho they might set you back a little, right? Just do it! ^_^v

lol i'm the same... my degree is 5.5 years (engineering/commerce) but i probably won't work at the end of it, more like a backup plan

If you really think you can make $150k next year, why not stay at home for another year and just buy a place outright the year after that? (or at least take out very little mortgage)

i quit my job at like nl10.. it rly made poker more stressfull and harder to move up.. on the other hand ive been loving the shit outa my life in the last year.. i would say stick at home until you have these two things, then quit ur job and do w/e...

1. a place of your own.. a decent apartment thats paid up for 6months or a year.

2. a car ( doesnt have to be baller, especially if u dont like cars )

and might b a good idea to put away some money for a nice vacation, like PCA or somehting sick..

if u got all that taken care of, id say feel free to quit

this is the easiest quit your job ever if you're winning at 600 NL + have a comfortable roll already and have a lot of motivation/potential to do more.

depends, if its a job you can get again easily, or if you can get a similar job easily then its time to quit, if not then don't quit until you're asgood as the decent 5/10 regs.

i didnt read everything but heres my opinion

just do what ur doing

keep ur job, but low hours. so if poker goes bad you have something to fall back on

if you completly leave your job:
#1 u might have some trouble getting a new one as good as this one, if poker goes bad
#2 u might get bored of doing only poker as a work, and no longer enjoy it, which is bad

anyways low hours job won't ur hurt ur win rate too badly, and its good for your mind to do some other activities

do what you feel will make you happier. but don't just make the decision on a whim of course. but from what I see it seems like a pretty easy decision to ease up on that job and focus on poker a bit more and get a taste of how that life style is. Try it out for a while and if the life style doesn't suit you then you can always get your original hours back at your job and just quit poker.

also: a big thing to consider.

does your daily/weekly/monthly results really affect your quality of life/state of mind/etc if that does i don't recommend playing poker for a living. otherwise you'll just end up hating the game and what you do for a living as how you run dictates how happy you are. and that's never good.

jesus am i the only LP FR player who never made it anywhere?

On September 07 2008 17:57 shaneomac wrote: jesus am i the only LP FR player who never made it anywhere?

oi mate! you're not alone there. LOL

fuck money
do what makes you happiest

it would be different if u had prospects of equity but u dont

also sounds like u actually prefer ur 20/hr job

u snurfing some chick there or wat

Fuck jobs
Fuck "careers" (aka suck this dick and lick this anus)
Fuck "standard" life

Do whatever the fuck you like/want to do

On September 07 2008 07:46 byrnesam wrote: Show nested quote + On September 07 2008 07:09 wakeboarrder wrote: yea i would deff wait..if you can make 10k a month while keeping the 20$/hr job why not do it and jus claim the 20$/hr so you can get good credit and be makin loads of money on the side with poker who needs good credit when youre paying everything outright with CASH MONEY. STUNTIN STUNTIN ITS A HABIT

THE NAME YOU KNOW OF, A LITTLE BIT OF CHANGE NOW YOUR BOY DONE BLOWN UP, DON'T BE SCARED...YOU NEED TO GET LIKE ME



STUNTIN IS A HABIT

on a serious note

here's what you do

play overrolled at 2/4 and 3/6. keep up the solid winning. cash out 85% of your profits at the end of every week. continue this until you have saved up about 150% of your basic expenses for each month, x6. so, suppose you have... rent = $1,000, utilities = $200, food = $300, car payment = $400, insurance = $100. that's $2k per month. so save up $3k x 6 = $18k

then quit work, continue grinding and playing well, and start taking controlled shots at 5/10.

start playing more tournaments also

some points from my experiences:

-working a lot of hours greatly hinders poker (for at least me and most ppl i have heard of). out of college i decided to take a job. it was great during training when everything was new and fun and meeting new ppl and didn't effect playing hours at all. it was some of the worst times of my life when i was working 10+ hour days always tired and stressed out. i don't even want to think about all the equity i lost in barely playing and when i did play being tired, tilted, and stressed and the geometric impact it had on future equity.

However, some people are really good at planning and balancing things. Would you play a lot more than 30k hands/month on your A game if you quit your job? Would your social life suffer?

As sawseech said it doesn't sound like you hate your job or situation so I guess really consider all the pros and cons.

-whatever you decide to do make sure you are fully committed and dedicated to it. have a plan and don't fuck around.
-really consider your social life/activities/etc to keep your life balanced.
-weigh all your options, all the data, opinions of people you value and then go w/ your gut. maybe my only regret in my life is going against my gut and taking that job. i'm not telling you to quit your job but if that is what your gut is telling you deep down is the best decision then fucking gamble dude.

i think myth's advice and plan for now is EXTREMELY good and "game theory optimal" so to speak but again really think everything through as their might be a more optimal path.

i advocate work/poker at the same time but i dont really have a job and i play 100nl. yeah work is for fools yo, quit now srsly

No reason why you can't work full time, put in 40k hands a month and make 150k a year. Obviously this sort of lifestyle is the true grind and you can get burnt out.

As long as one doesn't interfere with other I would say do them both. Its good Idea to have a backup plan always and if you quit the job now and take some ungodly swings you won't have something to fall back on so easily. Just maybe let everyone know at work that this is your secondary job.

On September 08 2008 06:01 Babs wrote: No reason why you can't work full time, put in 40k hands a month and make 150k a year. Obviously this sort of lifestyle is the true grind and you can get burnt out.

Most of the time u get home very tired/angry/unfocused and you can't play properly while doing it full time you are more focused and overall your game is sharper. I think you get burnt also in regular jobs as you do in poker, now if you try to make a living out of this game u'd better be sure of what you 're doing.

Since I have been working with OP I can share some of the things I have mentioned:

- keep the job and just work less hours if u REALLY don't want to go or if you think its hindering your progression (esp while getting coaching)
- try to put together a couple of consistent months to better gauge ur winrate
- wait until uve reached 5/10 and see how you do there to really claim poker as a successful career
- def wait until a downswing happens and see how you handle it and picture urself having no fixed income while on this ds. How does it effect ur play? How does it effect u mentally? How does it effect ur life away from poker?

5/10 is where most people will never really get past esp for extended period of time since it is kind of an an entry level to high stakes from mid stakes. Don't get me wrong you can make an unreal amount of money at lower limits, it just tends to be more of a grind for most (always exceptions this is just my opinion). So I like to use 5/10 almost as a glimpse into what ur poker career will consist of. If u think ur way over ur head there even when properly rolled then ur life regarding poker is based on how much u want to grind meaning u can make a good, really good or amazing amount of money at lower stakes but need to be prepared to put in the time and effort that it takes and the effects that has on you (could be none could be severe). If when rolled, u find 5/10 fine and are wining at a decent rate then by all means quit that damn job! haha