The day you stop improving is the day you'll begin your poker demise.

The jump up from low-mid to higher stakes is tough. Learning to deal with players who are actually very good at LHE is something you never really need to do below 5/10.

I think the rates for most coaches are too high for a 1/2 player. If you pay 50 BB+ an hour I don't think it'll be worth it, considering that you can get a coaching site subscription, where you can find all you need for 30$

Interesting. Actually something that I will give serious thought to.

I agree with all of this, aside from the part Boc disagreed with (read: never stop improving). The hard part is finding a good coach. There's no filter on who becomes a poker coach, and many charge a lot to do a little, despite having no experience teaching. Trying out a bunch of coaches is probably a good idea, but finding a mentor who can help you plan a strategy for improvement and offer a little extra guidance is probably a lot better.

FWIW, I'm not currently looking for new students, so the above is my unbiased opinion (not that I would give a biased opinion otherwise, but, you know...).

this

you're quite foolish if you spend $100/hr on how to learn to beat 1/2

i should become a coach for the common man, charge only $25/hr

It really depends on how seriously you take the game. If you regard it as a profitable hobby that supplies supplemental income, then whatever. If you want to deposit $100 and run it up to a solid bankroll before incurring the expense of coaching, that makes some sense. It's what I did.

However, if you decide that you want to be a professional poker player, perhaps before you're even playing, then it's more efficient to have a budget for your education. Invest in your future. That's what law and med school students do. At least with poker you won't be paying off loans for 10 years. But by laying out a little cash up front, you can expedite the learning process. I probably would have made at least twice as much over the past 3.5 years if I had done this. (Assuming I found quality coaches).

just watching johnnyrocket's low stakes videos on stox is by farrrrrrrrrrrr the best usage of money for a low stakes player. coaching should be done when you hit 5/10 imo

I'm not sure your $1/2 sample size is compelling. But seriously, $25/hr would probably be well worth it for someone trying to beat $1/2, provided you can communicate what you know as effectively as you employ it in your own play. The biggest problem with poker coaching these days is that people believe:

Good Player = Good Coach

While it may be hard to impossible to be a good coach without being a good player, it's frightfully easy to be a good player and a poor coach. It's an additional skill set. Not everyone with one has the other.

switching from pitcher to coacher? SkillGambler will be excited to hear this

If you would coach for $25, I think you would do a good job.

yeah i know, thats why i specified 'hire'

but i certainly see the benefit of getting coaching early, as it would allow you to rise in stakes that much quicker.

i'm just kidding about me coaching but your points are all good. I'd be a ****ty coach because I don't do mathematical analysis beyond figuring outs and pot odds. I open pokerstove about once every 3 months

plus i'd probably feel guilty charging $25 an hour to tell someone that his opponent's a moron and needs to call down with almost all pairs

I think we just found the ideal coach for La Peste

he folds to much, and refers to his opponents as fellow human travelers?

I don't think a coach is worth it's money at 1/2. All the basic ideas behind things are in videos on the different training sites, so I think that's about all you need.
I got coaching between 2/4 & 3/6, and found that it didn't improve my game as much to make it worthwhile (although I also say that about all trainingvideo's except Bryce's).
Maybe if there's someone who can teach me to multitable without losing as much of an edge as I do now I might try it again, but for general play I don't think I'd try coaching again.

It might depend on your general capacity to learn for yourself and/or how stubborn you might be to take advice from somebody though.

I definitely think 5/T is a cut-off. There are a lot of solid (and better) winners at 2/4 and 3/6 that are struggling to be winners in short handed 5/T.

I play mainly 2/4 and 3/6 and have started to look at coaching for the first time. Why not take every advantage going? If you are spending a lot of time doing something like poker why not get as good as you can to use that time productively? I think looking to move up to 5/T is a good time for coaching, but someone that has been stuck in a rut at smaller stakes may find it just gives them the jolt they need in the right direction as well. If so it has been a good investment for them.

Well, I think Im quite good at learning by myself. I studied all my degree on my own and almost finished a PhD, good qualifications etc.

I enjoy watching videos and stuff on Stox. I have an additional problem and thats the language (I suck at english).

I really appreciate all your comments, I think I'll try to climb to 3/6 before hiring a coach. Doing pretty well atm at 1/2 and thinking about taking some shots at 2/4.

Thanks guys :-)

lol, this is the case for every limit jump in poker.

There are 5/10 winners struggling to beat 10/20 and 15/30. 10/20 winners that struggle to beat 30/60. 30/60 winners that struggle to beat 50/100 and 100/200. 100/200 winners that struggle to beat 200/400. And 200/400 winners who struggle to beat 500/1k+.

Poker basically gets tougher every time you jump up limits. With rare exceptions due to extraordinarily wealthy whales.

I've never had a coach and done most of my learning through watching videos.

I'm pretty sure my coaching sessions would consist of him yelling at me to fold while I continuously click the call button.

so why don't you learn while playing? I know it's crazy 'n all, but some of us learned without the videos or training sites or coaching.

2/4 is only slightly harder than 1/2. just start playing and don't be afraid.

I'll try

WTF you can't be serious?

How would this not be serious? Don't you think that poker, and especially playing poker for a living is an ultra-competitive endeavor? Most players, and that includes posters in this forum, are self-taught and will never be winning players. If you think you can win by learning as you go and posting HH threads you have another thing coming.

I am a fossil, so I read poker books (outdated now, but gave me a huge edge in those days). Today video training sites are more relevant, but getting personal coaching in addition (assuming you find someone competent) while you are fairly raw is going to be speed up the process by light years.

I might be a little out of line talking like that in a strat thread, so here comes a short serious post.
Anyone who plans to play poker for a living before he even plays serious limits is insane and should wake up.
Also I can't find words for comparing learning to play cards to something as complex as med school. Poker isn't a serious job which you are able to count on getting money off in 5 years. Being a poker pro isn't a great accomplishment you can be proud off. Unless you are making extremely much money off poker or have a finished education in the bag I would tell anyone who thinks about going pro to forget it immediately.

Sorry i think my post wasn't really good to understand. I think it is a good thing to get a coach and improve all the time independent form the limits you play. I just think most rates wouldn't be worth it for micro limit players etc.