If you take out the money, poker is just a video game, and frankly a lame one at that. You can feel the same sense of mastery playing Call of Duty every day for years on end, but it doesn't make you any less of a one-dimensional shut-in. It's. Not. A. Life. Unless you're somehow a genius at poker and a moron at everything else, you can choose a path that is healthier, more enjoyable, more well-rounded and probably more lucrative in the long run. Poker is brutal on the mind and the soul and you can go to any casino and see that it doesn't produce good humans.

Do you honestly think that centering your life around a video game is a healthy lifestyle? The fullest use of your human potential? I mean at least don't kid yourself. The money is the ONLY thing that makes poker a tolerable occupation. So unless you're making HUGE amounts of money and have NO better option you should be looking for something else so that you can have a real life and actually participate in human society. If you are making huge amounts of money, disregard. If you are okay being a one-dimensional shut-in, disregard. Everyone else reading this knows what I'm saying is true. Don't let yourself become a 45-year old video game professional without a single life-skill, professional skill or connection to the real world. Get out while you can.

Wow you're bitter

Word. Sella and toothsayer have just laid down utters truths ITT yet The denial of poker pros on their personal situation is staggering

Here's another thing I'm not sure has been discussed . Who you end up with as your life partner has an enormous effect of the quality of your life. By being a "professional poker player" you just whittled down your options by ...I dunno ~95%? . Pretty bad move

Yes the real world is nothing but extremely envious of you kaby. Because there's nothing better than 40 hours a week of being a video game specialist

yep totally staggering.

anyway, toothsayer makes legitimate points, Sella is just projecting his personal issues on all poker pros. and i would guess you're trolling but sometimes these things are hard to tell.

and of course tons of people would envy (or at least respect) what kaby has done, whether they're poker pros or not.

Hmm, I'm sure quite a few of those in their 50 hour/week cubicle jobs getting micro managed and yelled at by their "superiors" would love to be in kaby's position.

i love the hierarchy thing about getting out there and being a part of society, "hey man u play a video game for a living, ur ****ing cool" u r in fact bitter.

lmao at the "narrowing wife candidates by 95%" comment, cool story bro. no matter what 19/20 woman have just over looked you because you acclaim to be a poker pro, no good candidates marry poker pros, **** no. they want the real men that hold down jobs and take part in society.

sometimes poker isnt the best profession but sometimes it is. i dunno, i can say ive done quite well through poker, so maybe im biased. ive got the house paid in full, the cars, the bills and ****, got the SEP funded well, got the hot wife who can cook , the two kiddy kids, i dunno its good, lifes good.

are there times where the grind is stupid, mundane, dull, "what the **** am i sitting here playing poker right now?," ya, not that frequently though and ive played a **** ton of poker, got more royal flushes than Sir Johnson had slaves.

thing is, when it becomes that, u take a break, or u fight through it, or you cope with the fact its your job and your once, strong passion, and play on. Maybe sometimes u think about getting a different job, finishing the degree. I dunno, but the checks are still coming, which is always promising and that keeps the fire going, 10, 11+ years(so, perhaps, im in the minority, and im not seeing some of the gloom)

Also, in those 10-11+ years I can pretty much say, like my friend used to say frequently but it wasn't true "do what the **** I want."

i do whatever I want, each ****ing day, generally speaking. There are responsibilities that need taken care of(kids, house, bills, the usuals) but after that i dont have to worry about getting stuck at the traffic jam coming home wasting an hour of my day, o **** and it happened three times this week. today was a Monday, did what I wanted. didnt wake up to an alarm clock. trimmed some things around the yard, shot some pool downstairs and helped the wife organize it a bit when things needed moved(shes on maternity leave/works 3 days), took a bike ride, smoked some jane (thats another issue and one that has been mildly tamed and continuing), soaked up some sun, barely put much thought into poker(ambition has been mildly low the last few days)

perhaps im getting a bit off topic now and not sure where i want to go with this but, the gist of posting that was, mostly to say, I have been living my life the way I have wanted to for my time as a professional poker player (29, some schooling done). I will also note that in that time, part of my time was allotted toward poker(holy ****, no way) but the beauty of that is, that for the most part, that is what I wanted to be doing with my time That is something to be grateful for. I mean sure I'd rather be traveling the world sniffing coke off 10's asses but that's probably what I always really want to be doing, but there are dreams and there is reality. So, i will try to be responsible as I can be and continue doing the things I have grown accustomed to and netted me my assets in life (the fam, the assets, the goods)

So, my point is, I hate when people have to tell others what is wrong and what is right and that "u need to be producing in society." and "u need to be developing social skills!" sure, mine aren't the best, i notice it sometimes, but i'm pretty friendly to and usually can smile. "see i'm smiling right now"

the rest is yet to be told. maybe one day i will be more sociable than Facebook and I'll be waving my finger at the people who told me to develop social skills. Or, maybe I will ship 3 milly in 8 days of playing poker within 6 years and grab my cock in front of the cameras yelling "king in the castle," or maybe i will continue to grind a mediocre salary playing a few hours of poker each day or every other, whatever it is, I am going to try my best to pursue it, whatever I think "it" is.

I dont think anyone really plans to play professional poker for 25 years of their lives. I believe any successful poker "pro" has adopted many skills, which have lead to that success(fortitude, math intuition, emotion, others)(I'm not talking poker pro for 2 years, i'm talking about proven track records) Meaning, the work ethic is there, thats what matters, after poker, things should be ok. So, wherever I go from here, I will be grateful for what I have done, I have put in the hours(worked), I have earned income, I have built skills in the process.

"you are a poker pro, its no different than being a call of duty pro." so be it. I think critically about a game, I question, I ask, I think, I expand, I feel confidence build, I feel confidence dwindle, the list goes on. Last I checked, I don't see anything wrong with those activities. Or, maybe there are more productive things to do, or find those things in another sense or area. Should I drive the bus for a school and make sure the kids get there safely and feel proud of myself? Should I constantly check job openings, tweak my resume, work on my interview skills, search for more jobs, get a phd, search for jobs, tweak the resume, network like crazy, tweak the resume, build the resume, work on interview skills, land the big job, that's what will equate to life happiness?

We're all trying to figure it out...some play the pokers, some think those that play the pokers are dumb but in fact those that play the poker could be smarter than them or in fact it could be the other way around and those that play the pokers truly are dumb.

we're all posting on a forum, so maybe we're all losers with no life skills. just sucks 95% of the female population is automatically excluded from landing in dis here situation.

If you cant work out that "professional poker player" is about the last thing a fmassive chunk of females wants to hear from a prospective partner you just don't know them at all. You write/rationalize like a 14 year old, can definitely see the effect full time poker has had on your brain in this. Just like Toothsayers excellent post earlier



...can be seen all over your posts

OMFG you are the fkn WORST poster on 2+2. Do you really you spend all day looking for threads discussing the role and future of poker professionals in society?

I'm sorry you couldn't make it as a pro, really truly sorry.

As a fellow Kiwi I am truly embarrassed that you are from NZ but at least you have removed this fact from your profile.

Do everyone a favour and never post on a POKER forum again you pathetic, hating, can't make it, reg-fish loser.

lol, I too have noticed that bumpnrun pops up in every post discussing the downside to playing poker professionally to state his heated opinion

yes, I forgot to mention the negatives

haha spot the guy who plays a lot of poker and has a hard time getting the girls. Classic.

Dont worry virgin, Im not a kiwi. Removed it as i was just living there for awhile

Im a 32 years old successfull mid high stakes player and my girlfriend is a very succesful optometrist in canada. I'd say she comes from a conservative backround (china) and she has nothing but respect for what i do and so does her family. Each time i go to a party on her side they are all crazy about my traveling lifestyle and so on.

people like bumpnrun is either a massive loosing player or a guy just bitter about the fact poker successful players have a happier life than 99% of the working force because we dont have to lick balls, do unpaid overtime, take orders from someone we dont like..etc

I'd say the perfect job is to the freedom to make your own schedule (trading to some extent) and work from anywhere in the world. If someone can do this with a job other than poker, my thumbs up to you you accomplished what a lot of people openly or silently dream of!

I can vouch for the fact that most people you meet in society think its "very cool" or "fascinating" to be a professional poker player. One important thing that helps this is that I dress well, keep in good physical shape, know how to speak properly. It helps to "look the part".

I couldn't imagine telling people what I do being dressed like crap and looking like a bum from the casino.

Not sure how the whole trend of wearing "hoodies" to go play cards ever got started, but I would say it has to be one of the most negative aspect of the mainstream's perception of poker players.

As far as women caring about what you do, they could give a rat's a** what you do as long as you have enough money to provide them for the lifestyle they are accustomed too.

Go back to school. If you get your masters in finance or an MBA you will be in a much better position. There are a lot of MBA grads that are in their 30's. Plus colleges can help you find something through career services once you are there. If you go finance route, go full-time to get Masters in finance or an MBA. Summer going into your second year you should be able to land an internship, following yr when you graduate you will be fine. check out this forum if interested in a career in finance. http://www.wallstreetoasis.com/

It's been a year since the start of this thread. OP, where are you now? Have you made the move back to the US?

My 2 cents: Transitioning into a full-time job will be quite difficult. You've crystalized a certain mentality by never having a real world job and playing poker (hard way to make an easy living). You've grown accustomed to the freedom of making your own schedule, and being owned by a company will be soul crushing for you.

Transitioning into live poker may be the best solution, at least short/medium term. Sure, you'll scrape your knees a bunch at the beginning, but like other people said, the live micros of 1/2 should be beatable for you if you put in some time and study. DO NOT ASSUME that it'll be an easy transition. The level of play is laughable in many spots, sure. but there are many other factors that live play may surprise butt-hurt you with.