Great job going to church when you could be punishing weekend warriors.

I've been living off poker for almost 1 year, and when I have to answer the question "So what do you do for a living" I've found that the response I'll get is determined by the way I tell it.
For instance: Usually if a person asks what I do for a living, and I respond "I play poker" the immediate reaction is confusion and mild disgust (caused by lack of knowledge about poker + bad rhumors). This starts the conversation negatively, which is almost irreversible.
I've come to know that it's better to play it sneaky. Start out by telling the person something that makes your occupation seem interessting/funny/exciting, without revealing that it's poker (not yet). It's commonly known, that people create interest when they are curious, and you have to exploit this. Answer in short and build the conversation with their questions. Let them think they are trying to clear up what you do for a living, while in reality you are just running the show by adding mystery to the case (it's also commonly known that women are turned on by mystery).

Let me make a short example of how it could go down:

Person: "So what are you doing right now?"
Me: "Not much, just relaxing and having fun."
Person: "Well, are you studiying or working?"
Me: "Well, really neither of the two."
Person: "How do you get by then?"
Me: "I am as fortunate as to live of my hobby"
Person: "Wow. How is that?"
Me: "I spend some hours playing a game where I intellectually challenge myself, and money is at stake whilst I battle against different opponents."
Person: "That doesn't sound to shabby at all, hehe. What game is it?"
Me: "It's a game called Texas Hold'Em. Poker. Do you know it?"
Person: "Yeah of course I do. I've heard alot about it, but I did not know that you were able to live of it as a hobby like that.."
Me: "Well, if you put enough effort and dedication into it you certaintly are. So what are you doing right now?"

(...)

In the conversation above we introduce our job as a fun hobby that we are blessed to have, before we tell the person that we live off poker. It's vital that we assume that the person might not know of poker, this way it seems more humble and the other person is also urgent to tell that they indeed know of the game (which automatically makes it more cool, because it reminds them that it's universally known = acknowledged). Finally we convince the person that it's not all fun and recklessness, but that we also put effort into this occupation and that we take our life seriously. We avoid going into depth about poker by turning the attention to the other person (which everyone likes btw) and from here on the conversation should progress smoothly.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^ you may think that is a good idea but almost everyone on the other side of the conversation think you are the absolute biggest sketchball on the planet during your great buildup....

once they hear you play poker for a living its confirmed.

If that is what you think, that is what you get.

I've found that it's succesful and almost always makes the other person instantly accept what I do for a living.

It's definetely better than to tell lies, conceil it or tell it carelessly. Be proud of what you do, express it in a fair manner and thus will you find the approval you seek.

Really that has to be one of the dumbest things I have ever read.

Really? Asides from comparing it to child abuse, it sounds perfectly sensible to me

In my school my geography teacher found out from other students I made a lot money from poker.

One day he made me give a presentation to the whole class about poker

not fun.....

I agree. Private school kids are always so strange.

heh i was sure he was trying to get us into amway before i remembered which thread I was reading.

1 more... I was on a real heater this summer told my best m8 I was £35k in July. He obviously told his family....

Then I went round to his house for a big lunch one day and started speaking to his dad and dad's mate about poker. His dads mate is a horse gambler degen so loved that I made money from poker and backed me up.

But his dad is biggest anti gambling scariest guy in the world. He is a billionaire (UK CEO of one of biggest private companies in the world) and I have already had previous experiences from him about poker before.
For example when another boy I knew was staking my friend to play cash games online he cornered me on his sons birthday and interrogated me in their cinema when I was alone watching football, whether I was doing it and if not who was staking him!?!

So what happened at the lunch was the guy was backing up my poker.. I was telling them how I am not gonna blow all my money, bankroll management and never had a losing year etc.... Then his dad drops this!

Friends dad: "Do you ever go to casinos to gamble"

Me: "yeah I play the big games there, they are fun and I do okay. Have you ever gambled in a casino (Obv expecting him to say no...")

Friends dad: "I went once in France 10 years ago, with a work friend and I had $1000 on me, I played baccarat and was winning $20000, then I decided to go double or nothing and ended up winning $40000 and left"

Me: "Whoa what did you do with all that money, thats insane well done"

Friends dad: "I came back to London and gave it all to charity as I thought it was, dirty and not properly earned money"

Me: "SILENCE"

HOW THE HELL DO I COME BACK TO THIS ONE?

ffs stop crying!
U make big monies on poker and can buy really nice things...wow that must be so difficult for you. If it gets too annoying you can always start losing. If u want to I can be your coach on that subject.

Two options imo.

1. "Do charities accept dirty money these days?"
2. "Nobody makes billions through honest hard work."

hehehe that one is awesome!

i can't imagine the writer of this story wins monies playin

He's pretty much right though. Poker money, on the other hand, IS earnt money - you DO put in work to get it. That's what you need to talk about with this kind of guy. Assuming you do win, anyway. Talk about equity, talk about the statistical analysis, talk about hand ranges and probabilities you can infer from them. Basically, talk about how poker teaches you how to think about decisions

If someone asks about Poker, tell them you will only agree to talk about it if they are willing to listen to the whole bit. because the worst thing that you can do is tell just half of the story like telling them its like flipping a coin with a 10% advantage, and they are like 'but you have a 40% chance of losing', you must also explain long term. thats why its a all or nothing deal, talking about poker that is

When I first read this I thought you yelled "SILENCE!" at him.

That's a pretty good comeback imo.

That one wins


I once told my friend i dont play that much an that on average i am up around 1000$/month, which is enough to pay for my students expenses.
Now everytime we are in a ******ed homegame when i go busto they r like: haha, i kicked a pro out, i could win online easly too. It really comes close for me to start getting into conversation with him how much he in fact knows about poker -not that i know so alot, but more than him i do, i guess - hitting FD on flop and putting all your money in against top set, and telling all the time how u cant ever win that coinflip, and yes its a coinflip because there are 4 different suits and u got twice 25% on turn and river. Then be smart and try telling him it actually wasnt a coinflip.

Top Set VS FD on flop is not a coinflip IMO.

I was talking from friends perspective there. Its obvious we all know it isnt. - i am talking about texas holdem. No omaha, there he could actually be in right, but he hasnt heard about omaha.
For him it was, thank god its not anymore, now he is only callmachine on FD not anymore pushing allins on flop

What? This is a perfect opportunity to teach them all the concepts a donkey needs to know:

• how to deposit monies
• Always fold AA, that way you don't lose money when you get sucked out on.
• Raise when you have sh** cards like T2o because that way when you hit a big hand nobody will expect it.
• they should always limp because <make up a reason>

That's not a good thing. You cost yourself a lot of money in the long run there. :P

I find it so surprising people have these views because any business in that sense is gambling. If I start a busines there is no guarantee that the demand for my product or service will net me a profit over the cost of running the business. Tons of people start businesses that don't make any money, which means it really lost them money. Often very significant and combined with the time they put in.

But how much did you lose?

haha, we just cant get rid of it huh
Its so ******ed/distrupting/stupid really.

In general poker is presented to public like a gambling, so most people see it as a pure luck only related thing, where is impossible to win and is therefore bad for them and everyone playing it is a gambler. And when/if u tell them about size of your BR (bad idea imo) they are all like: WTf, why didnt u cash it out yet, u got lucky so far, dont push it.