Dream Works

A recent post focused on a poker-related dream we had while we slept. But there's another side to "dreams."

Maybe you've dreamed in your mind about becoming a "Poker Star." You want to turn pro and make a lot of money doing it.

That thought has crossed our mind as well in recent years. Based on our own experience, here are some things you need to consider before making a commitment:

1. WORK ON YOUR GAME. Athletes in (ahem) real sports practice a lot. That's a good idea for poker players, too - and online games make it easy to do for free.

All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty. - Proverbs 14:23

But we'd add a caveat to that....

2. DON'T BECOME ADDICTED. Stay balanced in your life. If you have family responsibilities, don't neglect them. And always put God first....

Jesus replied: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment." - Matthew 22:37-38

3. YOU CAN'T WIN 'EM ALL. We doubt there's a poker player alive who's made every final table they've ever entered (unless they only entered once). If they did, more people would be playing.

Losses and setbacks will happen. They even happened to Jesus, after He said some challenging words:

From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him. "You do not want to leave too, do you?" Jesus asked the Twelve. - John 6:66-67

Most of the 12 main disciples stayed loyal to Jesus, even beyond His death and resurrection. They became founding figures of the church.

We've had a lot of career dreams over the years, including a poker route. Most of those have fallen short. In fact, statistics show most business start-ups fail. We suspect that's true in poker as well. So keep these things in mind, and plan carefully.

(Do any poker pros reading this have advice they'd like to add?)