Chin Up

I was reading Iggys blog where he writes about Poker not really satisfying his life very much. He quotes Dr. Al who says “We need to relate to people with affection and to the world with meaningful work.”. What is meaningful work? I tried to think about why I enjoy my work most of the time. It is very simple. We need the affirmation that we are good at something. Some people like me get this from peers who “ooh” and “ahh” at my programmatic genius. Other people are not fulfilled by work and get there praise from other sources, like the family, charity work, etc.. Digging deeper into this it is very easy to see why Poker as job could be unfulfilling.

Start off by looking at your co-workers. The people you are “working” with are your mortal enemies. Your purpose in your job is to rob them naked and make them homeless hoboes on the streets of Vegas. You want to utterly and completely destroy them, leaving just enough hope in there shriveled up souls so that they will come back for some more. Are you going to be praised by these guys? Hell, would you respect that praise if you just took someone’s entire stack and they said “Wow, you’re a great player”, hell no! You would say “Of course I am to a filthy fish like you”. So you get no affirmation from your these people.

So in a feeble attempt to give you a little purpose I say look around you Iggy. You are very highly respected in your field. People who have sat at your tables, other bloggers, those who are truly your peers all think you’re great at your job. I am totally out of your league, but I truly appreciate how you play the game and aspire to that level. So cheer up a little. If that does not work go save some kittens or something.

In my own Poker life I have had several points where it seemed like a great idea to play poker professionally. I actually have a great personality for doing so once I stop getting so mad at stupid people getting lucky. I already sit at a computer screen for hours on end. If the screen contains C# programming or cards it would not make much difference. I have the ability to focus for hours on end sitting still and letting the time fly by. I have no problem being alone although I think it would be a good idea to go somewhere at least once a week so as to not forget the human language. I however have no aspirations to play poker professionally. It is a nasty, hard, game, and until I learn to accept the good with the bad I would fail miserably. Until I learn to be a loser and thus become a winner, I will never be able to handle the game. For the moment it will stay as a side job. Bringing in some income and passing the time away. Someday I might revisit it when I believe in the game again but for now I am fine with the place it has in my life.