Things that I learned in 2010

My review of last year's poker activities and results will generate several blog posts in the near future.  I guess I better start with the financial, and it wasn't good.  It was about as close to a breakeven year as anyone could have.  After playing over 1,400 tournaments, and paying around $4,000 in entry fees, I took a slight loss, down $67 for the year.

I'm both disappointed and embarrassed by that number.  I'm disappointed because I really expected to make a few thousand dollars, build a bankroll so that I would be playing at at least the $10 level by the end of the year, and be well on my way to, in the not-too-distant future, making more money playing poker than I ever did doing anything else.

I'm embarrassed that I did so badly, and  I'm embarrassed that I contributed almost nothing to the family finances.  Fortunately my wife made enough money to get us through, along with my state retirement check. But it got really tight, and I didn't expect to put all that pressure on her.

That said, I learned a lot, and I'm convinced that this year will be a whole lot better.  I'll tell you why I'm still optimistic in a future post, but for now, I'll  note a couple things that I learned .

I keep records that are very complete, with much more information than even the Internal Revenue Service* would ever need to see.  I keep track of my hours, in 15-minute increments, with every activity detailed.  I keep track of what kind of tournament I played, when it started and ended, how I did, and what the buy-in was.  When I study, I keep track of what I was studying, and for how long.  The same with administrative time--whether I was updating my Poker Hours spreadsheet, writing a blog entry, or making new sets of flash cards to study, it's all noted.

That turned out to be one of the smartest things I did.

When I was scanning through all those records and getting my results for over 1,400 touraments together, I saw patterns.  I saw what worked and what didn't.  I realized that I can be much better at organizing my time.  So, without further ado, here are a couple things that I learned (more to follow in future posts).

1. My sessions were way too short.  There were too many days when something like the following happened: I would go to 2+2 to check on my poker forum posts (study time) for 15 minutes, then play a tournament that lasted 45 minutes, take a break, then work on my records for a little while.  That kind of schedule hasn't worked out well.  Too many breaks means too many opportunites to get sidetracked.

I need to make all of my sessions longer--whether the sessions are study, playing, or administration.  I know myself and my Attention Deficit Disorder, and I know that every time I finish a tournament or a study session, it's way too easy for me to go to the bathroom, refill my drink, get a sandwhich, and turn on Fox News at the top of the hour to see what's going on.

Before I know if, I've wasted an hour.  Then it's time to eat, there is another distraction after that, and before I know it, my 10-minute break has turned into two hours.  I need to make all of my sessions longer, and tackle bigger projects.  For example, instead of getting on 2+2 for 15 minutes to check for reaction to my posts, I should plan on being there for an hour or two.  I could check my posts, then check the Beginner's Forum for players that need help with something.  I could do that for an hour, and even extend that study time by opening a poker book or working with my flash cards.  I need to be doing something for at least three hours before I even consider taking a break.

Of course, since I hit my study hard that day, I could take a large block of time the next day for tournaments or administration.  This change in time management should help me be a lot more focused, get a lot more accomplished, and help me become a much better poker player.

2. I am a natural night person even more than I realized, and I shouldn't fight it.  As mentioned in earlier posts, when I tried to put myself on a normal (first shift) working day, it didn't work well at all.  I was depriving myself of sleep trying to force myself to get tired, so that I could be, in the words of Benjamin Franklin, "early to bed and early to rise."

But when I switched by to a more normal poker schedule (most of the live-game pros get up around noon and play all night), it fell right into place.  I was setting my alarm for noon or 1 P.M., but more often than not, I was awake before the alarm went off.  It was never that easy on a day schedule.

My wife and I agreed that I should stick to the night schedule at least for the next month or so.  To be honest, my wife's reasons for wanting me on that schedule aren't just about poker.  When I'm up all night, I have the ice and snow off her car before she has to leave for work at 5:30 A.M (I usually end my final session sometime between 2 and 4 A.M.)

There still is the problem with church.  Sunday night church services used to be common in the United States, but that is no longer true.  If I want to go to a service at my church, Sunday morning is my only option.  Once the winter weather is over, I'll have to work out some kind of compromise where I got to church part of the time, but not every week.  It's kind of a wierd situation.  I'm not really one of those people who has to work instead of going to church on Sunday, but in a way I am.

The better I get and the higher the tournament buy-ins, the harder it will be to make church a priority.  The big times to play on PokerStars (and other sites as well) are weekends, in particular, Saturday night (when the most players are online and the most tournaments are available) and Sunday afternoon (when the so-called Sunday Majors, tournaments with prize pools of up to a million dollars, are held).  One of the Sunday Majors can last as long as 12 hours.  Playing all night Saturday, and playing one or more of the Sunday Majors on Sunday afternoon (and possibly well into Sunday evening), would make morning church difficult to fit in.

But, as I said. there has to be a compromise somewhere. It might be going to church every other week, or maybe sticking to the night schedule for a month, then the church (day) schedule for a month.  I don't plan to quit playing poker or quit going to church.  Of course, taking more time for church will be a lot easier once the financial pressure has lessened.


* I try not to use abbreviations which would unfamiliar to people who do not live in the United States.