I was a poker pro from approx 2008-2011. I started at NL25 and moved up to be a full on NL200-400 regular. Back then the poker community was pretty tight, guys helping each other out, staking, coaching... and the games were way softer than they are today. I loved the intellectual, the statistical and mathematical aspects to the game. It's a special privilege to be able to "own" people for a living. I fucking loved it.
The day black friday hit, I had just over 20k seized from my FTP account... that made me think. Made me depressive, since that was a large chunk of my bankroll (and net worth lol) so I started taking university classes. I started getting into economics, business. I started reading about game. (I actually discovered RVF through 2+2 poker forums.)
I realized that spending 50h a week infront of a computer, even though I was making like 50$/h doing it, it just wasn't a life. I was disconnected and had a fucked up relation with money, I was also living a degenerate gambler's life, ordering food 10x a week and as much as I could make money I loved spending it like a fucking idiot. (strippers, blackjack, clubs, prop bets ect)
There are some fundamentals I learned from poker that I know I'll carry with me for the rest of my life... (not being result oriented, recognizing value, taking risks with positive equity, statistical analysis, being able to think ahead, to strategize, to plan... to manage a bankroll). These are all things poker have taught me and I'm grateful for them.
However, I am now making just as much moneyn (if not more) as I used to, I am banging all kinds of beautiful women, I am eating well, I'm investing, I am fit. I'm still keeping my mind sharp, and I have a balanced lifestyle. Compared to before, it's not even comparable.
This is mostly due to learning about game, and business.
The day black friday hit, I had just over 20k seized from my FTP account... that made me think. Made me depressive, since that was a large chunk of my bankroll (and net worth lol) so I started taking university classes. I started getting into economics, business. I started reading about game. (I actually discovered RVF through 2+2 poker forums.)
I realized that spending 50h a week infront of a computer, even though I was making like 50$/h doing it, it just wasn't a life. I was disconnected and had a fucked up relation with money, I was also living a degenerate gambler's life, ordering food 10x a week and as much as I could make money I loved spending it like a fucking idiot. (strippers, blackjack, clubs, prop bets ect)
There are some fundamentals I learned from poker that I know I'll carry with me for the rest of my life... (not being result oriented, recognizing value, taking risks with positive equity, statistical analysis, being able to think ahead, to strategize, to plan... to manage a bankroll). These are all things poker have taught me and I'm grateful for them.
However, I am now making just as much moneyn (if not more) as I used to, I am banging all kinds of beautiful women, I am eating well, I'm investing, I am fit. I'm still keeping my mind sharp, and I have a balanced lifestyle. Compared to before, it's not even comparable.
This is mostly due to learning about game, and business.