Becoming a Better Professional Part 2

1. Deliberate practice

Musicians use deliberate practice. Golfers use deliberate practice. It is simply the most efficient way to practice that I know of right now. It's just identifying something to improve on, and then doing it over and over again, hour after hour, until the hole is patched. It's easy to just sit down and play poker and work on many things at once as they come up, but I should look to working on something specific each and every day. I should either look for a special session to do it, or just focus on it during the whole time I am playing that day. I should also re-read "Talent is Overrated" and take notes to use. The second thing on this list works hand-in-hand with deliberate practice of a leak.

2. Review play daily, weekly, and monthly

I need to be actively looking for leaks and thinking about my game and strategy as a whole. That's the way to build a stronger technical game. Daily reviews will allow me to look at individual hands and how I could have played them better, do the math, and get advice. I should be reviewing both HEM and videos. Weekly Reviews give me a higher perspective and make the stats more accurate. I can use this information to know what to work on and study the following week. Finally, the Monthly Review gives me a bird's eye view of my game and strategy as a whole. I can use this to look at stats and groups of hands (cbets, 3bets, etc) and find leaks as well as think of ways to improve my entire strategy and know what to work on over the next month. I need to set up a process or checklist for each to make things run more quickly and smoothly. I also will file the weekly/monthly reports to have a record to changes I've made or planned to make.

3. Be accountable

This is incredibly important. Being accountable is another trait I admire in GSP. He admits fault even in things that are not really his fault. For example, in the Alves fight, he said something snapped and hindered his performance. It was because their fight happened sooner than expected and he didn't have enough time to warm up. Most leave it at that; nothing they could do about it. But then hesitates, realizes he should never be making excuses, and then he says that it was his fault. He is a professional and the champion, and as such, should have planned for things like this and began warming up earlier. He accepts responsibility and is accountable even when it wasn't really under his control.

The reason being accountable at all times is so important is because it forces you to look for something you could be doing better, regardless of whether or not you actually can. Maybe you could have done something about it, but it is easy to miss and would never immediately realize it if you weren't diligently looking for it. If you are accountable, you will search for that hidden problem. Maybe you don't see a way to avoid what happened, but you discover something else related you could improve on. It may even lead you to thinking outside of the box.

If we are not accountable, we don't look for ways to improve. We don't think we are at fault, and then there is nothing to change. But we must always strive to improve and we always can. Being 100% accountable gives us the opportunity to improve; to find some area somewhere that is not perfect. It is a habit that will keep us busy looking for ways to reach our full potential. So when things go wrong, I must swallow that pride, admit that I could have done something better even if it's true or not, I can see it or can't see it, and create a habit that will always keep me searching and striving to be a better player the next time.

4. Coaching

Everyone needs a coach; an outside perspective. They will teach you things, make you question things, and give you a new view to a problem that you would not have seen on your own. It will also help to create a network of players that could be very beneficial in the future.

Also, I should look into coaching others when the time is right. That's one of the best ways to understand concepts and reinforce my foundation. It will also provide an outside source of income and provide some name recognition which could be helpful for future networking.

5. Consistent schedule with time off to relax

The body adapts to a schedule and to operate at peak performance, I need a routine schedule to follow. It will build daily habits and take more burden off of my mind about what I need to be doing and allow more focus to be on what I am doing right now. It will be less stressful and provide a healthier lifestyle. I also need to plan time off just to clear my head and relax or have fun. That will insure my performance can stay at it's peak without getting worn down over time.

6. Optimal sleep (amount and time)

Obviously, sleep is incredibly important too. Everyone needs different amounts of sleep to operate at their best. I need to research sleep, how to get the best sleep, what the optimal amount of sleep is for me, and implement that so that I can perform at my peak the next day with a clear head, lots of energy, and less stress.

7. Exercise

Exercise gives us energy and a healthy mind and body makes us feel better during the day. Sitting in front of a computer screen all day is not very healthy so I need a good routine that will keep me clear headed and relieve the most stress, as well as increase my heart rate to burn the most calories during the day while I'm working. It sounds like it will be mainly cardio. I need to research and experiment with routines that give me the most energy, focus, and mental clarity. It will also relieve stress and allow me to sleep better during the night.

8. Specialized Diet including supplements

Right along with exercise, diet is very important to keep me clear headed, healthy, focused, and energetic. Sugary drinks, junk food, large meals early in the day, too much caffeine at night, etc. are all things I must avoid to stay at my peak during the day. I should look at any supplements to improve focus if there are any. I also need a diet that can provide the energy for a cardio workout without making me too tired for the rest of the day. I will obviously do a low fat diet, and look into a low carb diet or some other "mental" diets that may be out there.

9. Meditation/Vizualization

Meditation is a great form of stress relief as well as a way to clear the mind. Just like we need to allow the body to recover after strenuous activity, we need to let the mind do the same. Clearing out my thoughts will allow me to focus more on what is at hand right now. Visualization is an important technique for establishing a stronger comfort zone with new things, syncing the mind with the body during performance, and gaining mental experience before the work.

10. Keep great records of monthly results

This will allow me to make better plans for future goals and projects, reduce stress from financial uncertainty, and allow me to keep better records for taxes. It can also come in handy as a reference tool for possibly future coaching.



Each one of these should be individual projects to work on implementing and then becoming habit or routine and allow me to be come the best player I can be and become a true professonal. Most of them qualify as individual folders for the GTD system and I will create that by Friday.