[Closed] Bratislava pokerflat aka mission: Phil Hellmuth

- include poker in your cv. (edit: i talked to many ppl who have mid/high management positions ... the rly smart guys who are working for smart companies who can offer smart jobs we might be interested in ... will understand very very fast what kind of skillset we developed in order to make a ton of money playing poker. those ppl will also know how to transfer those skills to the specific job they offer. if ppl think u are gambling and its lame playing poker (or chess or quake or whatever) it shouldnt bother u too much. these ppl are not open minded enough. u dont wanna work for those ppl anyway)

- ofc, put some time into how u wanna sell it. e.g. if sb asks me what i do for a living i just say: i exploit markets, people and systems. i also coach other ppl to do the same.

- if ppl ask what that means in detail, i will explain. i wil explain them everything they wanna know about the gambling market, my trading/investing plans and my general future world domination/business plans. i wont tell them im the best, but at the same time, i also wont understate my winnings and successes.

- i think its great u know your strengths and weaknesses spot on. most ppl lack in this regard. u seem to know pretty pecisely where u are rly strong in and where u might have some leaks

- i think ever saying like "im the best slovak plr out there" is wrong. u wont ever know imo. some ppl are just passive and shy in rl and wont ever tell anybody who they are. also, how can we define "being best poker plr" - i mean u are obv talking about nlhe cg $ won. u are not talking about plo or stud cg or trny $ won. i dont think u are overconfident in this regard. i think u are simply overestimating a) your nlhe game and b) equate your nlhe skill with overall poker skill.

- most important in life are 2 things imo
1) being healthy and living in a safe enviromnent with ppl u love/like and enjoy as many happy moments as somehow possible without harming other ppl (for private life)
2) contacts & networks. i finished university like a pro and i also have a very solid cv with internships etc etc. however, who cares? i def dont. simply becaue, every day (subconscious or conscious) im working in my contacts and networks. cuz in the end, u wont start your sicko life changing business cuz u apply somewhere like all the other random standard ppl out there .... u will start your sicko life changing business cuz u have contacts and networks in specifc fields. i believe in poker plrs as a very smart and sophisticated group of ppl. some of them might join my path for future business ventures. however, dont underestimate "normal" ppl, who - atm - dont earn 5 digits every month, but might be brains who can change the world longterm. dignify all your rl friends. some skills may not pay off in $$$ shortterm, but they will longterm. make sure u have a balanced network of ppl around u. be nice to all of them. dont underestimate ppl. also dont underestimate this forum. maybe we gonna change the world one day. poker is only a game, but it can train incedible skils ....

Maybe some companies like McKinsey might be very well interested in your skills. They really need great analysts, some of my friends (premium math or computer science grad students) were on a stay at McKinsey and liked the company quite a lot.

Hey TLN. Very interesting read. I don't dare to comment, as I don't know you personally, so I might dis-interpret the message.

But I want to say - You'll be good, mate! Vast majority people all over the world sometimes feel that "some other path may be better than the path they are walking on" and literally ALL the people are sometimes in doubt. The routiny is boring, whatever it is. If I feel depressed, I always turn to people who I love and it heals.

btw do you guys watch big bang theory, how i met yr mother or similar stuff?

I think it is great mood / morale booster ♠_cool: Always makes me happy after watching

Originally posted by Cornie4ever
btw do you guys watch big bang theory, how i met yr mother or similar stuff?

I think it is great mood / morale booster ♠_cool: Always makes me happy after watching
Those 2 are jsut awesome + I also watch 2anda half men and shit my dad says and Family guy + American dad + Top gear... I always laught at theese ♦

1. big bang
2. family guy
3. 2 and a half men

if ur down watch them in these order 1 episode each, they helped me thru alot of downswings honestly. sadly i saw every episode, and i started them again, big bang i saw like 10times each episode or more even :))

yeah, that´s exactly it I realized these funny series make you feel happy and enjoy life if you are in downswing, feel depressed, emptiness from poker etc. That´s a ray of sun in our empty grey $$$-oriented souls haha ♦ ♠_cool:

Originally posted by Cornie4ever
yeah, that´s exactly it I realized these funny series make you feel happy and enjoy life if you are in downswing, feel depressed, emptiness from poker etc. That´s a ray of sun in our empty grey $$$-oriented souls haha ♦ ♠_cool:

Yep, but its not a good way to deal w it though (Howeve, I do it anyway)

i think that if u devote so much time into poker it defintly should go into your CV.
i would make it dependant on the position though if u list it under previous professions or as a hobby.

i have it in my CV as a profession for example, but without any details. even if u dont apply for a position which has aynthing to do with poker, it can lead to a lot of interesting topics. but it should be at least of some benefit for the company.
if its interesting for somebody, he will ask u about it anyways, than u can still say that u have been a rockstar poker player in your country

earning his living as a pokerplayer is something which is totally out of the norm, it sets u apart from the majority, may it be good or bad, but at least u will polarize

Originally posted by supeyrio
did you know that some psychologists actually visit other psychologists for therapy? thats because they are human too and having have to interact with all the negative people eventually wear them out too!

regarding whether one should put poker player into one's CV. i actually thought about that before. basically there are two sides to a coin. putting poker player into your CV will result in you being rejected by majority of your prospective employers. just think about whose $ you win? fishes. players who think that this game is about the gamble, or simply majority of the people who associates poker as a gambling game. they are also the same people who decides if you do get the job or not, and i doubt many will be impress with you being a gambler. you can explain dam thing about poker to them, but it'll never change their thinking of poker being a game for degens(trust me on this, i spoked to many people about poker, till date, i have yet to fully convince my parents about poker despite having countlessly repeat the poker theories to them).so if you're desperate for a job, bad to include that in CV.
on the flip side, by putting poker player into your CV, you filter out the majority of the employers who either doesnt share the same interest, or lack the capacity to assess and accept ingenuity and logic as seen by his disapproval/failure to understand the benefits of you having had been a poker player. so the ones that eventually hire you should already form high expectations of you, thus pathing a bright future for yourself; also you can expect a cordial relationship with an employer of such.
thus it really depends on your objective whether to include being a poker pro into your CV or not- just want a job fast or, want a really good job.

at the end of the day, what does a degree actually bring about? does one actually apply all the skills learnt into one's job? other than specialized fields e.g. medicine, lawyer, etc, few actually do. besides, there are also those that take up a specialized degree but dont pursue a job in the same field. yet they can do exceedingly well in the new field w/o much "knowledge" as well.
so what is the purpose of the degree other than equipping us with a skill?
i guess it is also a "mark of excellence". one has to be adequately competent to actually complete a degree course, and ofc one has to be more competent to complete a degree course that is more recognized.
point is as long as you can prove your competency in other manner, e.g. making 6figures from poker, you would still be given the opportunity you deserve.
at the end of the day, would an employer promote a degreeless salesman who brings in six digit sales or a phd salesman who brings in sales of 5 figures?
degree only open doors that some might not be able to access to. but this doesnt mean that ones without degrees have their options limited. with the right amt of luck, a capable person will eventually scale heights of his own ability. well i believe all billionaires are PHD holders.. NOT....

nice post, sir, liked reading it

actually at some areas, e.g. economics, being PhD means even that the guy was not ready (or able) to find his place in real business life and hence stayed under the safe wings of university being graduate of economics myself and working from the 3rd year, I could not wait to finish degree so that I can freely do something that makes real sense (real business) rather than learn useless theoretic macroeconomics models. I felt so happy when I left a school with degree not because of degree but because I accomplished what was expected and now I can do real business.

...and I know many losers who stayed at uni for PhD just because they did not have other options.. (usually shy girls or guys, who had "excellent" from most of the subjects )

...

Originally posted by Cornie4ever
...and I know many losers who stayed at uni for PhD just because they did not have other options.. (usually shy girls or guys, who had "excellent" from most of the subjects )

...

ya completly agree...cant wait to graduate and find my spot in real buisness

hey guys!

it took me some time to even read all of the posts, am so thankful for such great feedback.

I think the most important point abt the CV what most of u mentioned was that it depends abt what skills is the employer looking for. In any financial orianteted work I guess it's very valueble to mention poker career and bankroll management, skills in coaching (interaction w ppl), while if i wanted sth more social as sth to do w fe medicine, ppl would prolly conclude rightaway they dont rly need a gambler..

I actually know I will never end up with too much of social work so i guess i ll be putting it there. Also abt guys who said sth like: comon, set ur own business, u have money etc.. Well.. how abt i dont feel like it yet? Or might not in the future as well? I want to do sth i like and money ofc would not be much of an factor. I ll have hopefully some 50y of life ahead of me- what do w such potenial.. I dont want to be just printing money, need to find some higher purpose. And for that purpose I unfortunately will be most likely forced to follow some constraints of this society, to which i ll ultimately serve anyway, so it makes all perfect logic.

@vaxkukian and sth abt chess: y, thx for such a long post, i mentioned few details abt my life earlier in the blog (other blogs). W chess i was close to ~2200 performance at my peak, my ratings were still growing quite quickly and i am sure to have achieved a level of ~2400 if i would continue in few years without actually spending as much time as u ve mentioned. The problem however is that 2400 also doesnt rly mean that much, IM, but rly cannot live from it and to go above that is rly rly tough and prolly brings more sacrfices than joy. I personally tho dont want to play on pro-level ofc anymore, but i find it as a nice, challenging hobby which also goes with a lot of travellling, meeting nice intelligent ppl.. Kasparov is a sick machine indeed!
Abt goals: i have all my goals written down, i have a daily scheduler and i also have weekly/monthly goals which i try to follow. My planning is very structurized.. other thing is that i dont follow it as much alw space to improve.

@Joenaes and sth abt trading: looking forw to speaking w u and TT abt forex and such thx for the inspiring tips, i am reading few other magazines now as well and starting to get few small insights.

@supeyrio: rly liked this in particular: " a capable person will eventually scale heights of his own ability " nice inspiration sentence thx

@TT and abt this forum and confidence: great post abt the overview on life, thx sir. I especially like how u "merge" ♦ ur perception of potential in ppl. U re a true leader, distinguishing and valuing any qualities in a rly broad spectrum. bow! This community indeed is invaluable, greatly intelligent guys and supportive- hope to carry on having such ppl around for a lifetime for sure. I esp like it's not full of insultive haters like 2+2. Abt svk: i said (was written is such way also i believe) it abt NLcg (HE) ofc. Ofc i am not comparing myself in any other format, i admit to be a fish anywhere else. The plrpool in Svk is not that big that i wouldnt be able to judge abt NLHE tho - my odds for the challenge are going up so anyone who thinks that can beat me has more than an ego reason now to accept. I deffo love challenges and i stand by my guns of claiming that i am the best cg NLHE plr in the country unless proven otherwise (it's in many portals, in the most read pokermagazine- what else should i do to get action?- i give action to anyone anytime). I want others to go up and improve and try to beat me- this is the most effective way i can improve myself afterall as well, so it is way more than a matter of pride for me too ofc.

@PhDs : ♦ sick level, never rly thought abt it the way that it could be sth showing a leak but actually when thinking abt it, makes ton of sense.

@serials: I watch The Big Bang Theory and Mr.Monk ♦ - love him. I dont rly know the other that much, but will have a glimpse when feeling down again. thx for recommendations.

sorry to anyone i didnt reply in particular, i rly appreciate all the posts, got me thinking a lot. Currently i am in a very tough situation decisionwise. I have too many options for too little time and i need to rly face my inner callings. I ll try to listen to them these days and see where that brings me.

gl everyone.

Originally posted by TheLastNail
@vaxkukian and sth abt chess: y, thx for such a long post, i mentioned few details abt my life earlier in the blog (other blogs). W chess i was close to ~2200 performance at my peak, my ratings were still growing quite quickly and i am sure to have achieved a level of ~2400 if i would continue in few years without actually spending as much time as u ve mentioned. The problem however is that 2400 also doesnt rly mean that much, IM, but rly cannot live from it and to go above that is rly rly tough and prolly brings more sacrfices than joy. I personally tho dont want to play on pro-level ofc anymore, but i find it as a nice, challenging hobby which also goes with a lot of travellling, meeting nice intelligent ppl.. Kasparov is a sick machine indeed!

Fully agree re chess. I have one IM norm and 2370felo myself, also junior czech champion, played for the czech team, world youth championship etc and it is worth nothing anymore Even gm2500 has hard time to earn for living through chess.. also chess are really boring nowadays, it is no more about creativity. computer science made the creative chess and talented people slightly fade away, now it is more about memorizing games from huge computer databases and learning shitloads of opening variations..

hey TLN, would you mind sharing your thoughts on this hand nl200 QQ OOP facing 3bet

It' s a standard spot, but I would love to finally understand it deeper ♠_confused:

thx a lot

it's always sunny in philadelphia, the office, better of ted, the good guys. if that combo doesnt make u happy, nothing will ♦

hey friends, I started my own blog today. Will keep posting around my life in gibraltar, my poker career and spread the news on czech/slovak community plans as well Gibraltar mission aka CZECH/SLOVAK Community rulezzz

@Cornie: lovely keep on rolling.. cze-svk comm ftw!

@randomdonk: @USA -hmm.. taxes

@all:

my 2nd HU challenge is out officially from yesterday:
Slovak HU challenge II

this time i offer my 20k vs anyone's 10k on the line. If some Slovak is roaming this forum and not the local ones.. come on! This is ur chance let's rock n roll ♠_love:

today we played a bit live w Ivan after a long break from live games actually. Just NL100 and 200 for 4hr. Shipped many stacks Bit of a rungood helps, life's good, just stinking of cigarettes now terribly, fml. The disgusting feeling like even after a shower u just want to take off ur skin. Smoking should be banned in clubs!!!

Very ecstatic now abt the upcoming weekend.

weeeee. also: did i tell u i love minesweeper? ♦ what an addictive game
also tried fb poker lately. shortstacking strategy ♦ ♦ ♦ nobody folds- jsut push any Ax, Kx, pairs.. wanted to get to 1m from practically ntg within 2h, sucks it doesnt support multitabling, i got close, but lost almost half of my chips on 5k/10k shot ♦ (brm of 50bb for the limit ftw ♦) Tbh, i got outplayed a few times ♦ these ppl just never fold, but can "merge ranges" well ♦ AI with anything any street, almost alw 4handed or more.. rly not easy to judge abt the equities.. kinda challenging indeed ♦ - also, to see the steam when i shove any 2 in HU and then guys call me w 94o - sick edge from Qxhighs+, shoving donkament for lolz, i like it- almost as some live game w Ivan sometimes . i ll play again some day and will try to go for 10m or sth, just to get to know if sb ever folds a pair to a 3barell on "ultranosebleeds" there ♦

Also yesterday Ivan said he ll play me HU online on 100 to practise his HU skills till sb loses 10BI.. a memorable brother bloodshed to come ♦ reports abt Jhigh calldowns and 4th pair valuebets soon

♦ ♦ haha, you are on the best way to become addict on spider-solitaire, mate

Now this is what I'm talking about:

Respect ♠_thumbsup:

Edit: Somehow the scarf doesn't fit?!

solitaire? nooo.. tried it, lacking dynamic..

i was addicted to hearts few years ago and played till i didnt win by 4 consecutive taking of all point cards-hence they all surpassed the 100 on penalties ♦

..abt the scarf: it's my lucky scarf man! the only one i didn't forget somewhere.. tho this reminds me i should prolly wash it once in a while