~ PLO and Life ~ The art of balance ~ - Page 5 - Small Stakes Pot Limit Omaha

"It's not what you have, it's who you are." I heard this recently and liked it. I don't know remember where, but pretty sure it was on something that was not sophisticated at all, a comedy podcast or bad television sitcom or something like that.

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10-06-2011 , 03:09 PM

#102

Jabonator

nice piano there

Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 13,289

That instantly reminded me of a song lyric by Shinedown.

I know now it's not who you are, it's who you know

It=/=what you have
It=who you are
It=/=who you are
It=who you know

Syntax error.

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10-06-2011 , 10:05 PM

#103

MAYDAY89X

stranger

Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 8

“If you're going to try, go all the way. Otherwise, don't even start. This could mean losing girlfriends, wives, relatives and maybe even your mind. It could mean not eating for three or four days. It could mean freezing on a park bench. It could mean jail. It could mean derision. It could mean mockery--isolation. Isolation is the gift. All the others are a test of your endurance, of how much you really want to do it. And, you'll do it, despite rejection and the worst odds. And it will be better than anything else you can imagine. If you're going to try, go all the way. There is no other feeling like that. You will be alone with the gods, and the nights will flame with fire. You will ride life straight to perfect laughter. It's the only good fight there is.”
― Charles Bukowski

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10-07-2011 , 02:14 AM

#104

napsus

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 9,540

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10-14-2011 , 09:16 AM

#105

napsus

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 9,540

Quote:

Tired of Being Tired

‘A man grows most tired while standing still.’ ~Chinese proverb

Post written by Leo Babauta.

It’s tough being tired all day. I’ve had days like this, when I’m struggling through the day and don’t have the energy to tackle anything that matters.

Hell, I’ve had years like this.

When you’re tired, not much seems appealing. Life is dulled, and you don’t get much accomplished. Worst, you don’t have the energy to change the situation.

These days I don’t have many days like this, but when I do, I rest. We have gotten good at ignoring our body’s signals — much of our lives is training our minds to pretend our bodies aren’t tired, so we can be more productive.

This is wrong. It ends up in burnout and less production, because we inevitably run out of energy. Listen to your body — your long-term health and sanity depend on it.
Why We’re Tired

Mostly we’re tired because we don’t rest enough. Yeah, I know: duh, Leo. But if it’s so obvious, why do we ignore it?

The Spanish famously have siestas. When I get tired, so do I. It’s a luxury not everyone can afford, but even when I had a day job I would find ways to sneak into a back room and take a power nap of 20 minutes.

We don’t rest enough. It’s not as important as other things: waking early, getting stuff done, attending to a thousand meetings, being sucked into the world of online connections and reading, god-forsaken television.

So we cut rest in favor of these other things that are much more important, and then wonder why our energy levels are low.

But there’s more. If you’re like me, you drink coffee in the morning. You might drink more later in the morning, to keep yourself energized. By the time afternoon rolls around, you’re in caffeine withdrawal. This is often why people are sapped by mid-afternoon.

We also run ourselves too fast, like a sprint, when life is much longer than a sprint. Try it: go outside and sprint all-out for two minutes. Stop, breathe for a sec, then sprint again. See how long you can keep that up — most can’t go very long. Our days are like a series of sprints.

Note: Sometimes chronic fatigue can be a sign of deeper problems. For athletes, it’s often a sign of overtraining. For others, it could be a sign of depression or other medical issues. If it’s a continuing problem, I’d recommend getting checked out, just in case.

How to Get Started When You’re Too Tired to Start

My first suggestion is to take a nap. If you’re too tired to take other steps, taking a nap is easy. If you can’t take a nap, at the very least disconnect from digital devices. Computers and smartphones are powerful tools, but being on them for too long tires us out.

Disconnect, get outside, take a walk. Cancel an appointment or two if you can. Stretch. Massage your shoulders. Close your eyes for a few minutes. Breathe.

These are small things you can do right away, and they will help you become more rested.

More Solutions

Once you’ve taken the first steps, you’ll be a bit more rested and can take a few more steps:

1. Sleep more at night. If you’re not getting at least 7 hours of sleep, you’re probably getting too little. Lots of people need a full 8 hours, and some need more. Go to bed earlier — the Internet will be fine without you. I like to read before bed (a book, not websites) as a ritual that helps me sleep. It takes awhile before your sleeping patterns change. If you have insomnia, try my simple cure.

2. Take stretch breaks. We sit for too long at the computer, sapping energy. Get up, stretch, every 20-25 minutes. Walk around for a minute or five. Move in any way you can — do pushups, squats, lunges, jump up and down, do a dance. Get the blood circulating.

3. Exercise regularly. You needed me to tell you to exercise, I’m sure. But it’s amazing how even a little exercise can help you to feel more energized throughout the day. A huge workout session can leave you exhausted — in which case you should rest — but shorter workouts leave you physically just a bit tired, but mentally you feel amazing.

4. Cut back the caffeine. If you go cold turkey with caffeine, you’ll really have no energy. But cutting back a little at a time, while doing some of the things mentioned here, won’t be bad. And you’ll skip the afternoon withdrawal, which can ruin half your day. If you feel tired from drinking less caffeine, take a short nap.

5. Be less busy. Seriously, we’re too busy these days. Cut back on commitments, put space between things, allow yourself to have a slower pace. Your energy levels will thank you.

6. Focus. While most people multitask, in truth that’s mental juggling. And there’s only so much you can do in a day. As most of you know, I advocate single-tasking — it’s basically doing one thing at a time, and being fully present while doing that task. This really transforms anything you do, from work tasks to conversations to chores like washing the dishes. It’s less tiring, mentally, and it can make anything you do more enjoyable. Life is less tiring when you single-task.

7. Hydrate. This is actually a huge factor that most people don’t realize is making them tired. Drink water throughout the day. You don’t really need 8 glasses of water (we get some in food and other drinks), but drinking more water doesn’t hurt. Your pee should be a light yellow if you’re well hydrated (not clear, definitely not dark yellow).

8. Freshen up. Sometimes a quick, cold shower in the afternoon or evening can be refreshing. Or change your socks. If you’re sweaty, a fresh outfit also helps. Wash your face. You’ll feel brand-new.

9. Work on something you’re excited about. If you’re passionate about something, you’ll feel energized. If you don’t really care about your work, you’ll be dragging. Read this if you need help.

10. Work with interesting people. If you work with other people who are passionate about something, you’ll feel more excited about the work you do. It’s incredible to work with a partner or group of people who care about what they’re doing, who are fired up. If you don’t have that, seek it out.

11. Learn what makes life effortless. We thrash about in the water all day, making the swim exhausting. Instead of working against the world, learn to glide. I write about this more in my new book, The Effortless Life, which comes out next week. More soon!

‘A lot of people are tired around here, but I’m not sure they’re ready to lie down, stretch out and fall asleep.’ ~Jim Jones

http://zenhabits.net/tired/

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10-14-2011 , 10:08 PM

#106

Pickaface

journeyman

Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 375

Quote:

Originally Posted by napsus

i'ma buy this "uncertainty" book fo sho

I've ordered this book after reading your quote. Probably getting it early next week and will read it immediately if I manage to finish my current book I'm reading, The Art of Learning. Seems definitely like an interesting book and has good rates on amazon. Have you read it yet?

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10-15-2011 , 01:42 AM

#107

napsus

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 9,540

i've read about 25% of it, can't say that it's anything life changing. the beginning was very interesting, now it slowed down a bit. maybe it picks up again later on....

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10-15-2011 , 05:19 AM

#108

McStraddle

grinder

Join Date: Apr 2006 Posts: 669

Quote:

Originally Posted by MAYDAY89X

Pretty gangster quote....although I don't agree with some of the stuff like losing your loved ones in the process I get the point and find this very wise and enlightening.

Edit....also can't go more than 3 hours without eating so scratch that off

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10-15-2011 , 12:41 PM

#109

monox

centurion

Join Date: Dec 2009 Posts: 105

I'll donate one that inspired me a lot these days:

Ever tried. Ever Failed. NO MATTER. Try again. Fail again. FAIL BETTER!

-Samuel Beckett

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10-18-2011 , 05:17 AM

#110

napsus

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 9,540

"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win"
-Mahatma Gandhi

...poker-wise I think I'm still in the first phase, but convinced to be laughed at soon

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10-18-2011 , 09:15 AM

#111

Travbana

old hand

Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 1,573

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aowB5...layer_embedded

Really like the speech by Eric Thomas in this video... Makes you think twice how hard you really try to get good at PLO,i guess i kind-a-want-it.

"When you want to be successful as bad as you want to breathe, then you'll be successful!"

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10-18-2011 , 10:40 AM

#112

_______

journeyman

Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 276

In a similar vein, here's an excellent motivational video from Will Smith:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5nVq...eature=related

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10-18-2011 , 10:43 AM

#113

napsus

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 9,540

anyone wanna share how to best balance between working, poker, exercise and gf/friends?
i'm really struggling with this one.
the main question being how to get in the poker hours without feeling completely wiped out.

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10-18-2011 , 10:52 AM

#114

Travbana

old hand

Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 1,573

Quote:

Originally Posted by napsus

Neep help on that one too.
Got a standard 7-16 work, often train after work so im like home at 18.00.
When i lived with my last girlfriend she wasen't to pleased when i started grinding after i got home from the gym.

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11-03-2011 , 12:10 PM

#115

napsus

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 9,540

Voici mon secret. Il est très simple: on ne voit bien qu'avec le cœur. L'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux.

Spoiler:

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11-04-2011 , 05:37 AM

#116

Godspeed_EJ

grinder

Join Date: Jan 2010 Posts: 688

Quote:

Originally Posted by napsus

This is such an individual matter, but my life goes like this.

M-F
9am-16pm work
17pm-19pm exercise (3x)
20pm-22pm grind (3x)

Those days when not grinding/exercising spend time with girlfriend/family/friends, reading etc.

Don't have any specific plans for weekends, but try to grind at least one evening either Friday or Saturday and one daily during weekend as well.

Basically 6h of grind during working days and another 6h during weekends. I can't handle much more grinding since most of the time at the office is spent behind a monitor as well and I have developed a growing hatred towards computers.

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11-08-2011 , 09:21 AM

#117

this_passing

소녀시대 애교 대박

Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 6,442

act without acting
serve without serving
taste without tasting
big, little
many, few
repay hatred with this way.

map difficult through easy
approach great through narrow.

the most difficult things in the world
must be accomplished through the easiest.
the greatest things in the world
must be accomplished through the smallest.

therefore the Master
never attempts great things
and so accomplishes them.

quick promises
mean little trust.
everything easy
means great difficulty.
thus for the Master
everything is difficult,
and so in the end
nothing is difficult.

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11-08-2011 , 10:13 AM

#118

GoGetaRealJob

QuadMasterSupreme

Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 7,072

Napsus, Trav, just quit your jobs and start taking poker seriously

Seriously though, talk to the gf and agree on a strict grinding schedule. She'll feel involved and your sessions won't get too long.

I remember how my wife wasn't really dissappointed with me trying to become a poker pro... but she wanted to be involved in making that decision and wasn't too happy when she learned I had been planning this on my own. Poker puts pressure on a relationship, for obv reasons.

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11-08-2011 , 02:12 PM

#119

napsus

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 9,540

this will most likely happen sooner rather than later because of my situation at work.

my gf is absolutely fine with me taking a chance to pursue poker for 6-18 months and see how it goes...i've kept her on the ball all the time, i probably mentioned about my dreams on our first date and she admired that i kinda think outside the box and have passion to look at unconventional paths. she also sleeps sick amount of hours, like 10hrs every night...goes to be at 10pm and wakes up 8am....and feels like a zombie all day if she only slept 8 hours lol...so we have time together in the evenings and when she goes to bed i start to grind....

the sucky part is that i feel my thought process in poker getting a lot better all the time since i take the time to think things through. the hard part is to grind in the evenings after work. on the vacation i was grinding a bit how it would not to play tired, and it truly makes a world of difference. i'm giving my villain an edge on me almost every time i sit at the table since i'm most likely dead tired.

due to the situation at work i've made thorough calculations about where i should play, thinking both short and long term in order to grow my roll....between ongame, entraction and stars. it's really not an easy decision especially since i don't wanna play between two different sites, i'm weird like that.

i'm fairly sure i could make a decent living playing poker and living in bangkok (about which my gf is absolutely thrilled about after our trip) when i would get a solid chance working on my game. atm it just about paying back my debt asap and then resigning.

if it doesn't work out (which is very possible, i'm very realistic about this), i have a big safety net to land on since i have made a ton of connections during my 4,5 yrs at the bank. pretty sure there are 5-7 firms that would be happy to have me on their roster in Helsinki even after not working for 2 yrs.

the plan is also to work learn trading on the side if i quit work. it really fascinates me....a talent much harder to learn than poker.

we'll see what happens, i'm excited

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11-08-2011 , 03:27 PM

#120

Jabonator

nice piano there

Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 13,289

http://www.iltasanomat.fi/ulkomaat/b...426751349.html

Seriously though, good luck with this. For many I would be skeptical about going pro because "you feel like you can make it" at relatively small stakes based on a relatively small sample, but I feel you're smart and analytical enough to not make any false, optimist assumptions on these things. For many the motivation to be a poker pro are the hopes of an easy income and a lazy lifestyle, but for you it seems to be getting out of a well paid job, which is wearing you down. Actually, I don't think you're hoping to make more money with poker, and would be happy to be a pro with slightly less income than at the moment. You also seem very interested in learning, which is obviously huge.

As I said to you previously, do not go to the point of burnout in your current job. I've witnessed it, and even after getting over it, I believe it can mess up/affect the rest of your life.

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11-08-2011 , 03:37 PM

#121

napsus

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 9,540

i'd be willing to cut my salary by 50% to do a job what i enjoy doing and what i'm passionate about...i'm not looking for a lazy lifestyle, i love learning, studying and doing things for which i have no time now. i'd also start studying psychology in a german institute (mostly over internet)

yeah i was super close to burning out after summer, don't really feel like doing that when i'm 30yrs old.

very true i have no decent sample size, not guarantees that i'd make it...but i also wanna push myself. i already made it somewhat big in 2 fields of life, why not a third one.

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11-08-2011 , 04:45 PM

#122

JesusEatsCheese

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 6,646

just starting to try and learn PLO and the variance is already scaring the **** out of me

a bit cheesy but ive always loved this quote by Modest Mouse (from the song "float") and think it ties in well with a poker mindset

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11-09-2011 , 09:56 AM

#123

napsus

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 9,540

this applies to poker very well

Quote:

5 Simple Principles for Becoming an Expert

Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Corbett Barr of Expert Enough.

There aren’t shortcuts.

Merely direct paths.

Most people don’t take them, because they frighten us.

Things that look like shortcuts are usually detours disguised as less work.

-Seth Godin

For the past month, I’ve been studying people who have become skilled and knowledgeable enough to be called “experts” in preparation for the launch of a new blog.

I’ve interviewed experts, spent time with them and have asked them whether shortcuts exist to becoming an expert (and received some incredible responses like the one from Seth Godin above). I’ve even read books by people who study success and expertise (expertologists?).

Part of me expected to find some secret shortcuts to becoming an expert, and part of me knew better. I’m most interested in how people gain expert-level skills and knowledge on multiple subjects quickly. Being a renaissance man has always appealed to me, as has getting very good at just a couple of things. Both types of expertise are as fascinating as they are useful.

Despite wanting to believe secrets and shortcuts to expertise exist, deep down I think I’ve always known what you probably know too: becoming an expert takes hard work, focus and dedication.

There are certainly ways to become an expert faster than traditional teaching might dictate, but there’s no getting around putting your time in.

The good news is, becoming an expert is much like changing a habit. The fact that secrets don’t exist is a good thing in my book, because we can stop wasting time searching for secrets and start making direct progress towards our goals.

Instead of looking for secrets, rely simply on these best practices for becoming an expert:

1. Realize expert is a relative term.

I’m a big believer in relative expertise. For most purposes, you don’t need to be the world’s foremost expert on something to benefit from what you know. Being expert enough means knowing enough or being good enough to accomplish your goals, however modest or grand they may be.

Someone once told me to think about expertise as a scale from one to ten, not as an absolute. If you’re a two or three on the scale, you’re expert enough to help people who are ones and twos. In fact, you might be better suited to helping beginners than a ten on the expert scale, because you’re closer to their level and better understand where they’re coming from.

2. Learn from books and experience.

There’s a time for learning and a time for practicing. A true expert needs to have both expertise (book learning) and experience (real-world practice).

For example, if you want to become a bodybuilder, all the reading you can possibly do won’t help you actually build muscle (unless they’re really heavy books). On the other hand, would-be bodybuilders who just jump into lifting weights without learning about best practices won’t know time-saving techniques and principles for optimum rep counts, resting time between sets, nutrition, supplements and more.

There’s a balance between learning and doing. Most people spend far too much time doing one or the other. If you’ve been mostly learning, it’s probably time to start doing. If you’ve long been practicing without the results you’re looking for, it’s time to learn more and time to focus, which brings us to point #3.

3. Focus.

Just as Leo advocates for changing habits, focus is a powerful ally for gaining expertise (especially in the beginning).

When you start learning something new, it’s easy to become daunted by everything you have to master to reach your final goal. Instead of just focusing on the very next step you need to take, it’s easy to be overwhelmed by the bigger picture.

Focus is critical for two reasons. First, it helps you pay attention to the task at hand so you don’t become paralyzed by the thought of everything to follow. Second, you have to focus so you can ignore all the possible distractions that are always waiting to pull you off your path.

You can follow Leo’s four steps for changing habits to focus on what you need to become an expert:

1. Start very small.
2. Do only one change at a time.
3. Be present and enjoy the activity (don’t focus on results).
4. Be grateful for every step you take.

4. Get outside help.

When I asked productivity coach Charlie Gilkey about whether shortcuts exist to becoming an expert, he pointed out another critical aspect of gaining expertise:

When you look at peak-performing experts, you’ll often see that they have either coaches, involved mentors, or a pack of growth-oriented friends that help them excel. You simply can’t gauge your performance as well as someone external can, and, past the “competent” stage of skill acquisition, it gets increasingly harder to both observe what you’re doing and find quick and easy answers as to how to improve.

At some point, learning and practicing will only get you so far. You need feedback from outsiders to uncover more opportunities for improvement.

5. Make mistakes.

Fear of failure might be the biggest opponent you’ll face on your road to learning new things.

Take something as simple as learning a language. As language hacking expert Benny Lewis explains, people who speak a language learn it. People who don’t speak a language don’t learn it. It’s simple: you need to learn and practice. What keeps many people from practicing a language is the fear of making mistakes and embarrassing themselves.

You have to be willing to make mistakes in order to learn and grow. That’s what practice is. The sooner you get comfortable with making mistakes, the quicker you’ll learn your new skill.

What’s on your wish list to learn and do?

Maybe there’s a skill you’re actively trying to get better at, or maybe you’ve been afraid to get started. In either case, try these five simple principles and see if you can make a breakthrough.

Try becoming a (relative) expert in something you’ve always wanted to learn or do. There are few things as rewarding and fun as acquiring new skills and knowledge that enrich your life.

http://zenhabits.net/expert/

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11-09-2011 , 10:06 AM

#124

Mt.FishNoob

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Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 12,241

cliffs..

1. read the word 'expert' in dictionary
2. study how to be expert in expert books
3. try hard at being an expert
4. find other experts to help be expert
5. keep trying to be expert until you are expert

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11-09-2011 , 10:23 AM

#125

Mt.FishNoob

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Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 12,241

Quote:

Originally Posted by napsus

when porn enters the equation it is impossible. Basically, don't watch porn and start with exercise as it increases everything else, whereas the others will tire you out. I play 1 or 2 hours of poker, then force myself to excercise, then everything else seems easy and gf is pleased. Then there is ****ing starcraft. argh. Don't get starcraft if you like competive **** because it is addicting as hell. My least productive days consist of- wake up, surf porn, forget shower, smoke biff, play starcraft, ignore girl texts, smoke biff, watch porn, take toilet, eat cereal, smoke biff, lose at poker because 10 tables is like 15 rubic cubes all spinning round.

Then compare that too, wake up, watch porn, stop watching porn because I R so strong and keep energy, go running with dog, do squats, eat protein and lots of food because I actually have an appetite consisting of ore than the desire to fill my mouth with sugary crunch, 2.5k hands, 30min break, 2.5k hands, txt girl enquiring on her wellbeing and saying miss you, 5k hands + mtts, pick gf up, make gf shake and go sleep, win at starcraft, do gf again, go to bed reasonable time of 4am

Last edited by Mt.FishNoob; 11-09-2011 at 10:29 AM.

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