7 deadly sins

I confess its been 7 or so months since my last update. Ive been a busy boy playing poker, learning new formats, getting in some big live games and trying to stay sane.
I'm going to discuss some bad things in regards to online play and then talk about how i deal with them.

Online poker deadly sins

Sin 1 Not having enough fun
Sin 2 Playing tournaments
Sin 3 (Not) Controlling your emotions
Sin 4 Not waking up fully before grind sessions
Sin 5 Chatting too much/ or any distraction that does not let you focus on your game
Sin 6 Being on your computer way way to much
Sin 7 Being lazy

"but finally I've learnt this, (if you don't do enough things that make you happy and keep your life separate from your work) your whole life can become a grind"
As a professional poker player you must have some other vices outside of this game, we all need an escape. The reason for this is probably based on variance which comes from the land of tournaments (at least more then in any other field of this game).

I think there are many controllable factors which mostly tie in with not being lazy. You need to use your time wisely when you are not forced to work, but this is not just for work this is also for the time you dedicate to your family your relationships and all other aspects of your life.

You can control your sleep patterns so you wake up well in advance of your sessions, for some people sessions are scheduled in but for me this would make it seem very much like a grind if i was obligated to play x hours at x time. In fact it is one of the reasons i don't like jobs...the freedom to be my own boss is highly important

In online poker tournaments on the major sites all players get a five minute break every hour, if you were ever going to use your time wisely this is the period in which it must be done. Personally i spend this five minutes away from my computer stretching and doing general fitness to get blood circulation happening and clear my mind from the fast passed decision making that happens the rest of the time. Toilet breaks, showers and quick meal preparation also fill in this time. Usually i prepare meals before sessions so i am never distracted by hunger, any meal that can be reheated in the microwave during breaks is a winner.

Turn off your facebook, twitter etc and don't get to involved in skype chats when you have more then nine tables ruining. This seems pretty obvious but distractions are super bad and will lose you money long term. You only have a small amount of time to process information on tables and shortening this time by allowing yourself to be distracted is the equivalent of playing a whole lot more tables with none of the gains.

As professional poker players we are going to be tied to our computers a whole lot, this can be balanced by some amount of live play and getting outdoors when you finish your sessions. We all need some escapes from poker at times try to make these activities which distance you from your desktop.

Controlling emotions is one of the hardest things to deal with. There is no easy solve, but it is important to stay positive and give off positive energy to others around you even when things are not going well. I personally struggle with this and catch myself doing things that i know are bad from this perspective. You don't have to keep it all inside but limit your venting and negativity as much as you can/ or just don't play tournaments because they are the most tilting thing in the world :)

With all this said have fun with your poker and fun with your life. Remember that you took up this career because you love this game, if this is not why you are here then may i suggest a different path.