I pay for all of my own life expenses.

Let's try tweaking your expenses that you truly do have a choice over. Separate your true needs from your unnecessary desires.

1. Car Insurance: $120/month @ 1440.00 per year. Shop for a better deal / ask around who has an insurance agent that is very reasonable or shop online. Get the highest deducible you can afford with the minimum amount of required coverage.
2. Internet: $60/month @ 720.00 per year. Find free Wi-Fi hot spots on campus or nearby. Try DSL or sign up for a year service with ( x ) ISP at a rate cheaper than you currently pay.
3. Various subscriptions : @ 60.00 / month. Pick one or two at the most and cancel the rest.
4. Dining out : @ 600.00 per month. Start out by going out one night less each week and see how far you can cut back.
5. Owning a high maintenance vehicle - sell it for as much as you can / get a very gas efficient used car that will probably cost a lot less in auto insurance.
6. I have to drive 80 miles to get to the nearest legal card room- is there any bus service provided by the casino / or other public transportation available ? Can you find another player willing to car-pool in order to cut gasoline expenses ?

Thanks for your advice regarding the friendship. Once this summer is over, I won't be paying for anything. In fact, I want him to pay his share this summer. It has put a strain on our relationship in the past.

I agree with the dining out. It's excessive right now, and not very good for my health. Instead of the frozen pizza you mentioned, I'm opting for healthier choices though.

I disagree with the smartphone comment. A smartphone adds so much value to my life that I don't care if I'm $200-300 poorer for the rest of my life for having it. There are certain things I'd never be willing to give up unless I was about to hit the poverty line, and my phone is one of them.

About the limp/fold analogy. Your point is valid, and those little things DO add up. Especially the meals, they add up quick. But all these limp folds excluding the dining out add up to what... less than $1-2k a year? It's simply not an amount I am willing to sacrifice things for or stress over.

Guys, I think you aren't getting that at one point in my life, I was making some incredible money considering the amount I worked, and the age at which I achieved it. I've become accustomed to a certain lifestyle. I plan on restoring that element of my life in the near future, and experiencing even greater success in the next 5-10 years. I work harder and smarter than most people and I expect to win.

I'm sure you guys are also intelligent and will most likely be successful, seeing as you take the time to post on 2p2.

The car insurance was the best deal. I checked out half a dozen companies and this one was by far the cheapest.

Internet: There is no free wifi in my apartment complex. Also I need a secure and reliable connection to conduct business. This expense can't really be cut.

Good post. I quit my job 18 months ago to play full time. I understand everything you're talking about first hand.

As others have stated, eating out costs A LOT. I've learned to cut back and buy groceries and cook my own meals.

Whenever my roll has gotten lower than I'm comfortable, I move down to $1-2 for a while. At first I had to swallow my pride and do what was in my best interest. It was hard to pass up playing the $2-5 game and be stuck grinding away at $1-2. It was what had to be done though.

I suggest you move down in stakes also. I personally would rather pay 100BB's deep at $1-2, than short by like you suggested of 60-80BB's at $2-5. If you do this you will have a lot more buy-ins and be properly rolled for your main game, which I think is very important.

Just what I think of your current situation. Best of luck!

You have a lifestyle leak.

$60/month is probably super fast internet in order to run netflix, etc. Find a $20/month plan and cancel the subscriptions. Thats $60/month savings right there.

Eating out is a huge leak. For $1000 you could probably feed yourself for 3 months (if not longer). Instead you spend it in one month.

Rich people aren't rich because they have a lifestyle they are accustomed to. They are rich because they are tight and careful with their money. When they hit a certain point then they go out and buy the stuff they always wanted. Who cares if at one time you were making huge amounts of money and became accustomed to a lifestyle. Imagine how much you would of had in the bank if you saved it all.

Drop the lifestyle and your false thinking that you have to have it. Not sure how much time you've put into poker, but if its less than 2000 hours your in for a surprise.

Actually 1000 would not even feed me 2 months, I'm 135lbs. You guys must eat some seriously bad diets.

I actually eat a very healthy diet that is broken down into a 40/40/20 plan based on 2600 cal/day. Chicken, fish, greens, fruits, wheats, etc. I go to Walmart to buy my stuff, not whole foods or w/e. It probably costs me $100/week to eat like that. (170lbs here)

Can you buy your produce organic? If you take the time to research you will surely understand why I recommend.

Also the older you get, the more you need whole foods.

^well to each his own.

Point is eating out is killing him and so is his have to have lifestyle.

Yeah quit eating out, eat in. Learn to cook/prepare your own meals. It's very rewarding.

instinct you could eat really healthy for under $500 a month living in the midwest. Big thing of chicken breasts + veggies/fruits/yogurt/etc. and you are definitely eating for under 100 a week.

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To OP if you need internet for business, that should be netted from your business expenses as a tax deduction and you should just show lower business income in your initial post.

Suggestions:

1. When your rent is up, find a new roommate (don't just get a place on your own). Split rent and utilities with them.

Also, I don't know where you're at, but $1,400 for a 2 bedroom apartment could be cheap or could be awfully expensive.

2. Find a poker buddy. Car pool. Get some entertainment from them in the room.

3. Find the library by you/buy a kindle. Use that to replace your subscriptions.

4. Drink/dine out less as mentioned by others. What helped me when I was young was to just cook 4 meals at a time and freeze/refridgerate the rest. That meant I spent a lot less time cooking.

5. Up your car insurance deductible

To be honest I cannot fathom how your expenses are that high without accounting for random spending. I think I spend about that much in total for my wife and I to live and we both are college educated with decent jobs. Plus we're not cutting it nearly as close to the bone as you are--we're saving for retirement, paying down debt, building home equity. Not saying this as a brag, just as a point that it feels pretty irresponsible to me to spend literally every penny you're making already, especially when you know that income is about to drop.

You also haven't mentioned what you plan to do when you graduate in terms of income.

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Can you elaborate on why you would table change after winning? If a table is good, you need to learn to be confident with a deep stack. Otherwise you are leaving huge potential profits on the table.

The biggest boost to your bankroll isn't the time you double up; it's the times you double up your double up and turn your 100 BB into 400-500 BB.

Also, what you are describing sounds like ratholing unless you are changing games (i.e. going from 2-5 to 1-2). Just table changing isn't enough to drop back down to a short stack. This is not allowed in most card rooms.

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You really need to build "random expenses" into your calculations. Things like property taxes, extra maintenance (stuff for your apartment car, etc.), travel to home, gifts for other people, travel for vacation, drinking, miscellaneous crap you do/buy (golf, attend sporting events, etc.) You are missing hundreds of dollars of expenses a month in all likelihood. Plus you need to start preparing for emergencies (which will happen in the real world). If I were you, I'd take my bank statements/credit card bills and figure out the real amount I'm spending a month.

You need to be brutally honest with yourself about this if you want to avoid going broke. You can't just assume that money will magically appear for miscellaneous expenses.

Trust me, I am aware of those expenses. I have a bunch of miscellaneous expenses that I only briefly mentioned in the OP.

I plan to counteract them by making extra income on the side from poker, and a lucrative job in the summer if that doesn't work out. The job I'm thinking of could possibly pay 6 figures over the course of a year but most likely will pay about $80k. With that considered I don't really see cutting back to the bone as really necessary

Also my expenses per month should drop by literally $1000 or so by september because i'll be moving and my situation will be different. Won't have to pay for someone else's stuff and my share of the rent will be like $500 or lower

I have to admit, I find it a bit strange that you're 'picking up' poker right now. Perhaps I misinterpreted your post, but it sounds like you're somewhat new to poker.

Nevertheless, I support your efforts.

Perhaps try posting some hand histories in this thread. I'm sure the 2+2 community would be more than willing to help out a bit.

Oh, and don't buy in for less than 100BBs

Oh, and you can totally get by on $60 a week for groceries (like $250 max per month).

I can't believe I'm suggesting this, but... does your casino comp meals? I play 3-4 times per week, and I find that comped meals actually save me a lot of money (4+ meals I don't have to pay cash for per week).

60 a week? LOL

I've always been confused as to how people live off of only $200-300ish a month for food. That just seems crazy to me.

I eat out a lot (like 1-3 times a day, more frequently once or twice) and spend about $800 on food every month.

That is kind of ridiculous, but if I didn't eat out much I'd still be sitting at $500+. I weigh 190lbs at 6'1". Gotta eat.

Also the Casino does have a pretty generous comp. If I'm playing I basically get the equivalent of $2 an hour to buy food. However, Casino food really isn't the best for you...

Eggs for breakfast ... even add potatoes or a bagel-- costs me under $2.

The guys living off that don't have a physically strong body. Which in terms effect the endurance of these guys. Not allowing them to play "a" game 100%.

The diet of one is often overlooked.


Here is my breakfast I'm 135lbs. 3 Eggs, 1/4 of a red pepper, onions, spinach. Cup of fruit salad, Kiwi,Strawberry, Banana,pineapple and a slice of bread.

Didn't you just say that you weigh 135 lbs?

Yes, I do yoga, rock climb, and I bike. I also can do 35 pullups straight. 1 arm pullups.

I actually do understand how $200-300 a month on food is POSSIBLE, however I don't see it as feasible :/ I just plain do not want to cook 100% of my meals

Who said you had to cook 100%, mix it up with a raw vegan meal 2x a week.

Plus preparing your meals ahead of time so you just have to throw it in the oven is a huge time saver. Builds character

I will definitely look into cooking more of my meals. It's something I've neglected to work on for a long time. I've just been floating on my past success recently. And I've been spending way too much money for over a year now (Given that my income has been decreasing).

My wife and I eat on $400 a month. That seems high for a college kid. When I was in college, I bet I bought about $150 worth of groceries a month.

I think as others have said you have a major lifestyle leak. If you are spending $600 a month going out, then I would imagine most of that is at bars with your friends.

It sounds like to me that you have case of wanting to keep up with the Joneses. Fancy apartment, cool subscriptions, spring break vacations, going out to the bars, etc. If I were you, I would try to break that now. Because while you are losing money now, it is really going to cost you when you get out of school and you have a big home, fancy cars, etc that you really can't afford but you got to keep up.

Honestly, I bet credit card companies are drooling over you. You fit their ideal clientele.

So your answer to your cash flow problem is poker. It may workout for you, but how much can you really commit to that right now? I am assuming you have your normal academic time, plus your hanging out time, etc. How much time do you really spend studying poker?

You seem like an intelligent guy and you have a good start to life with the business. Don't blow it. Cut back on your expenses. Quit going out so much. Finish school, get a job (you will be an excellent candidate with your prior entrepreneurship experience), and then enjoy some of life's finer things. Or save money now and travel for a year after you graduate.

Ok. I think I get it now.

You're spending more money on food, because you're eating organic hippie food. And that's fine-- my roommate is the same way.

I spend less because I'm a very selective shopper. I choose to buy less expensive vegetables, fruits, etc. Sure, my chicken is corn fed and my vegetables may have been grown with pesticides...

But frankly, I just can't afford the organic stuff.

Haha, much love my man. It's so ****ing expensive. I hear you on that. I'm fortunate to have some organic chickens near my house as well as a few farms.