The Well: BalugaWhale (summary 08/11/06)

bubaloo · #1 11-27-2007, 03:30 PM

The Well: BalugaWhale (summary 08/11/06)

[ QUOTE ]
A stranger is being shown around a village that he has just become part of. He is shown a well and his guide says "On any day except tuesday, you can shout any question down that well and you'll be told the answer" . The man seems pretty impressed, and so he shouts down: Why not on tuesday? and the voice from in the well shouts back: Because on tuesday, its your day in teh well .

[/ QUOTE ]

Hit me with it. Answers will come and go.

 What's the most degenerate gambler thing you have ever done? 

Well, when I sucked I used to ask everyone for money at home games so that I could keep playing, it was pretty bad.

Then there was going busto like 4 times.

Then there was asking my dad to stake me.

So yeah, theres a few

 What single most important thing did you do to go from being busto to being succesful enough to now beat up higher stakes for lots of monies.

Clayton says that the only 2 players that give him trouble at $400NL are you and Jam.

What do you do that gives people so much trouble? (has your "Call" button been removed from your s/w ? )

How well does the "keep raising till they fold" strategy work at uNL/SSNL levels cos down here I find they call way too much. 

The single most important thing was to manage my bankroll appropriately during huge rushes and huge downswings. I was very aggressive moving up from 25nl to 400nl in a matter of like 2 months, and very quick to move down to 200nl and even 100nl when I had a really bad couple of weeks at the end of the summer.

In terms of strategies for MSNL, I am raising and 3betting a ton in position, and playing very tight UTG. This aggression puts people in really difficult spots vs me, and a lot of the standard TAGish players get frustrated and make big mistakes.

at lower stakes, FE is greatly reduced. That's okay, you just need to remember to value bet the hell out of your hands and learn how to read people. Learn how to spot someone with TP who won't fold, or with a FD who will bluff the river, or who is floating and will bluff the turn but won't call a turn bet. People don't change so quickly or so much as you increase stakes that the reads you develop from uNL and SSNL don't absolutely apply in most cases.

 Poker career?
Favorite posters on 2p2? Some favorite posts you have linked?
Goals for the year? 

Poker career:
Was bad live game 50nl, lost a few hundred bucks in the long run, became bad online limit player, built up a roll at 1/2 limit and lost it, built up a roll at .5/1 limit and lost it, etc. (ps limit sucks). Decided to play 25nl with my last 25 bucks, built up a roll, lost it, but by that point I was so psyched on NL that I had to learn and get good. So I built up another roll and lost it all. Then, I built up one more roll at the start of last summer, and thats where I am now.

favorite posters:
[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]orange[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img], i think Gildwulf is pretty funny, Big_Jim and Jamougha probably have the best advice, although 2paul2 is about as solid as it gets for his SSNL advice. I am sure he is playing higher now though, so he is probably giving good MSNL advice too.

Goals:
Beat 3/6nl for the rest of the year, make 25k+ per month.

EDIT: Forgot to add that I was brought to 2p2 by Jason Strasser and Sports Illustrated! Thanks Jason!

 1. GP or Mahatma?
2. Aba or GP?
3. Patrik Antonius vs. anyone else in the universe, is there anything that Antonius doesn't lose at (other than maybe a being ugly contest)?
4. Yvesaint or BalugaWhale?
5. SSNL or uNL?
6. MSNL or SSNL?
7. HSNL or MSNL?
8. BBV or OOT?
9. Donkaments, poker or not poker?
10. Get a university degree or online poker pro?
11. Coffee or Tea?
12. Coke or Pepsi?
13. Beatles or Rolling Stones?
14. Favourite SSNL poster?
15. Favourite 2p2 poster?
16. Favourite bands, movies, tv shows, books, etc.
17. Dikshit or Lee Jones?
18. Stars or FTP? 

1. not sure, haven't seen them that much, I like GP's name better
2. aba is tiiight
3. probably patrick antonius
4. balugawhale no doubt
5. SSNL
6. SSNL
7. SSNL
8. BBV for sure
9. not poker
10. both?
11. tea
12. coke
13. beatles
14. not sure, orange/AJ/Isura/4_2_it/jam/Emc/many others have all been instrumental
15. probably Big_Jim
16. very into Vonnegut, i like trashy pop music and stupid emo shtt, HELL YES 24 is so good, also Scrubs
17. [censored] Dikshit
18. FTP definitely because of unmentionable

 Alright, I have a more serious question. How many hands did you play to get from 25NL to 400NL. How has your game evolved from 25NL to 400NL?

Probably 80-100k.

I became significantly tighter and significantly more aggressive. I learned how to use the board effectively to pressure my opponents and get a ton of extra value.

 KK UTG, open 4BB, CO calls, BTN calls, blinds fold.
Flop Axx rainbow.
Bet or check? How many callers behind before you definitely check?
Edit: 100BB stacks. Stakes matter? 

Sakes dont really matter, players matter.

I probably would check the flop. If a passive player in the CO bet, I'd just fold. If CO checks, and aggressive BTN bets, I probably call with the plan to check/evaluate turn.

Also, i suppose at higher stakes players are more likely to reraise pf with a strong A.

 Why not just bet out? What other hands besides KK do you check/call check turn with? I find this line turns my hand face up against aggro opponents :/ I still do it occasionally though, especially against passive guys.... 

Betting out is a pure bluff. If I am called, I have to give up. However, if I am on the button and a pfr and another player check to me, I often bet ATC depending on the board. So, lets say we check, CO checks, aggro button bets with QJs, we call, CO folds. Turn is a J, we check, he usually checks behind, then we can bet the river and gain some value. Just an example, I think betting out is okay sometimes too. This isn't a situation that really strongly affects the level of your play imo.

 In that 2 months where you went from 25 NL to 400 NL, what were the the things that finally clicked in your head to get you there, in terms of fundamentals? 

1) learning pot control
2) learning when to 2nd barrel
3) reading villains and taking advantage of what I know they have (i.e. vs. a donk villain, if you have 44 and the flop is AA4, and you bet the flop and he calls, I usually just open push any turn cause they're not folding)
4) learning to have a range for a turn c/r
5) Not cbetting into multiple opponents (this helped my game/winrate a ton)
6)value betting the river
7) learning how to induce bluffs (this one is simple at low limits--i.e. c/c when an obvious flush draw busts on the river--and complicated at higher limits--using bet sizes to manipulate what your villain is thinking)

thats all I can think of right now, those are in no particular order

 Thanks, BW, and could you expand a little on number 4 , please? What kind of range did you find to be effective for your game? 

Once upon a time, I would only c/r the turn all in with a set, straight or some other kind of monster (occassionally a really strong overpair depending on the board)
In fact, at low limits this is probably best, because your villains are extremely likely to call when you use stackadonk if they have anything good at all.
However, when you get to 200nl, the TAGs all recognize stackadonk (cause they used it to get to 200nl), so I started c/r the turn with Pair+FD, pair+SD, SFD, NFD, along with the other monster hands I used to. It adds balance to my game and puts other players in a difficult spot for their stack.

 What style of player gave you the most fits at the micro levels and what did you do to combat them? 

TAGs did then and TAGs do now. Playing tight and aggressive is the best strategy to win at poker in my opinion. However, at microNL, I rarely found myself at a table with more than 1, maybe 2 TAGs. At 400nl, I am lucky to find myself with 1, maybe 2 donks.
Figuring how best to play at each limit is crucial, because I could take the knowledge I have and probably kill 25nl or 50nl badly if I ever needed to. I can do that because once upon a time, I had to learn that game... now I am just better at hand reading and using the board.

 What has been your top month in $ and your worst in the last 6 months and at what levels?
Thanks for doing this too. 

plus 10k at 1/2, although so far this month I am already plus 10k at 1/2 and 2/4 so hopefully this will get me over the hump into 3/6.

I dropped about 10k in 3 weeks once also.

 Have you ever folded KK pf?
Have you ever wanted to fold KK pf but still called/pushed because SSNL'ers say you should never fold? 

Nope and not really. I have come closer to folding a set cause I was sure the guy had AA than folding KK pf. However, people have tighter ranges pf the lower you go, where nobody squeezes and few people even reraise. Still, KK is too good. I raised with KK the other day, and another guy 3bet, and then an unknown pushed. I called, other guy folded, guy pushing had Q4o. I just try not to be results oriented and remember how many times I've had KK vs AA, cause when I look through my DB i find out that its never anything not statistically likely.

 Here are a few:
1) Name what you think are the biggest mistakes by µNL and SSNL players (List all you can think of, preferably in order)
2) Name what you think are the most OVERRATED qualities in µNL and SSNL.
3) If you could teach a mediocre player one thing (and you wanted to) for him to get better and move up, what would it be? (Just one!)
4) When moving up, did you have any trouble handling the increasing amount of munies at stake? How did you handle it? Did you have more pressure playing in the beginning?
5) A player has been stuck at a certain limit for an extended period of time (Say, one year on say... NL50 or NL100). What do you think is the most likely cause of this?
6) How do you think poker will do in the future? Will the NL600 games get so tough it won't be profitable anymore or do you think the poker boom will continue despite the legistation?
7) What are your long term goals with poker - are you going to try to move up to 300/600 games and such or make a decent money, finish studies and start a fulltime job?
8) Now that you're rich, what do you do with say... $10k a month? I figured that 2k goes to living, 5k for buying your family presents and it still leaves 3k extra! And you make even more! 

Damn these are a lot of questions. ok here goes:
1) in order:
-cbetting into too many players
-bluffing
-paying off with medium strength hands (this is a handreading problem)
-not value betting the river
-being afraid to raise with draws

2) overrated qualities:
-playing loose OOP. This is absolutely the most common mistake made at uNL and SSNL. Probably the most common mistake in all of poker.
-raising with air
-slowplaying/trapping
-making big laydowns (this is a personal feeling of mine)

3)
two things I am going to say, I know its cheating:
-manage your bankroll as your top priority
-play tight and raise.

4)I definitely felt more pressure at first. My first all-in at 50nl scared the hell out of me, haha. My first all-in in a 4k pot scared me less I think. Once you have a full bankroll and no longer view it as money, it doesnt really matter what limit you are playing.

5)poor bankroll management, not taking chances, serious leaks in play. You can't move up until you try--i spent less than 10k hands at 100nl, ran well, had like 18 buyins for 1/2, so gave it a shot. Just analyze your play and think about the game, and post a lot. Remember: its not what you think but how you think.

6)I haven't played a ton of 3/6, but I think it probably isn't that much harder than 2/4. I think 5/10 and above may not be worth it (as per Gildwulf's post), but if you practice good game selection, an array of 2/4, 3/6, 5/10, and 10/20 can be extremely profitable.

7) I plan on trying to make 250k in poker, starting my own company, and retiring before I am 30. If I ever need cash, could always just go to vegas no?

8)haha I use it to travel, buy sweet electronics things, take care of my family, and plan for my future and my business' future

whew

 1. Age, occupation?
2. Toughest level while moving from 25 to 400?
3. Stats over the last 3 months? 

1. 19, poker player
2. 400nl while running bad on party, brutal swings
3. haha it is funny, I was once 28/24, now I am playing 19/16... does that answer your question?

[ QUOTE ]

I became significantly tighter and significantly more aggressive. I learned how to use the board effectively to pressure my opponents and get a ton of extra value.

[/ QUOTE ]
Can you elaborate here?
Also, how do you get in so many hands and still do school stuff/other stuff? Just playing whenever you have free time or some other magic formula you could share? How many tables you playing these days?

Okay, i'll answer the second part first. I have a class that ends at 6:00pm. I put on my poker mix or whatever, and I play from about 6 until either A) i'm up a lot and my tables fall apart, B) I am even/slightly up after being down, C) I have to be somewhere. I am playing 8 tables, though I just ordered a flatscreen monitor for my laptop, so I will try playing 10.

Now, onto the actual content stuff:
I realized that I was raising a lot of hands UTG (hands like ATo, KJo, 98s, even like JTs) that have seriously a TINY amount of value if played perfectly. Those hands have a ton of value in position, but OOP they just really suck. They put you in a lot of positions that you dont need to be in. So, I just started folding. Now, I feel really comfortable OOP cause I have cards most of the time, and I am still killing in position. I even tightened up a lot on my blind stealing, as 400nl resteal like crazy. so thats part one, becoming tighter.

The other part, about aggressiveness, is less easy to describe. In some ways, I became less aggressive (i.e. spewing with cbets in multiway pots). However, I learned a lot of things about people's hands. OOP, if I cbet a pot, am called, and the turn is an A/K/scare card, I just go ahead and bet again. It works more times than not. In position, if somebody c/c an inconspicuous flop, they will c/f the turn. So I really learned when to 2nd barrel. Then, my pf game improved a ton. I am 3betting constantly vs. people who have wide ranges, and calling frequently vs. those with tight range. For example, lets take two hands in which I have 8[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img]9[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] OTB. TAG UTG raises, folds to me, I call. Same situation: Folds to a TAG in the CO who open raises, I 3bet. It's very difficult to play against me in a big pot OOP, and so I put them in a lot of tough positions. Now, lets say he calls the 3bet, and the flop is A[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]7[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]5[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img]. If he bets, I can call, minraise, do all sorts of things.

One thing I am working on now is increasing my range for a flop raise. I feel like a lot of people are folding to my flop raises, as they often indicate a big hand. I am going to start floating less with draws and start raising more I think.

Anyways, if theres anything more specific you want, ask or PM me.

 Even at $25NL and $50NL????....cause I feel I fold to many cbets when in position with 1/2 callers on flop to a check raise. Any advice towards getting your cbets checkraised, Vs. Lag and Tag.
Im 17/9/2.8 on $25 FR 

not sure I understand your question, but I am usually not cbetting vs 2 opponents. I don't play FR, but i'd imagine that cbetting in multiway pots is even worse in FR than in 6max.

 Man, sorry you had to elaborate on all that, but I was mainly interested in what you meant by "I learned how to use the board effectively to pressure my opponents and get a ton of extra value." Although I guess you did kinda touch on that and the other stuff you said is real solid advice (like folding hands like ATo, JTs etc. UTG--such good advice, I think a lot of people try to have LAG stats so they just play more hands period, not play more hands in position and other favorable spots). 

Its all good, just remember that your opponent likely has weak holdings, and anytime betting convinces him he is beat, it is a good thing (if you have nothing). Players call flop bets iwth a lot of bad hands just to see what you're going to do.

 Hi Whale

Tks for doing this. let me say congratulations on your success since your analysis of a downswing episode -you've certainly boomeranged back. It's good to see you back posting again after your summer break too.

Some good questions so far . I've got a few...

[ QUOTE ]
3) reading villains and taking advantage of what I know they have (i.e. vs. a donk villain, if you have 44 and the flop is AA4, and you bet the flop and he calls, I usually just open push any turn cause they're not folding)

[/ QUOTE ]
Any more examples, particularly vs OKish players do you find they have more defined ranges?

[ QUOTE ]
not sure I understand your question, but I am usually not cbetting vs 2 opponents.
5) Not cbetting into multiple opponents (this helped my game/winrate a ton)

[/ QUOTE ]
Interesting. I cbet vs 2 opponents sometimes but I suspect too much as it sound like you v. rarely do this- when do you consider/factors it appropriate to cbet 3way?(NL50/Nl100) if stakes relevant.
Sometimes I check,it's checked through then I 'Cbet' turn and am often called is this spewy since PPs are likely to call?
Do you play AJo KQo OOP UTG and reraise Ak/AQo in blinds vs EP raiser?
Almost last question. I asked Pokey in the well about value betting the river, so I'll be interested in your views too.
This situation below I think I may be mising value.
Say for example(contrived)
100bb stacks
Villan PFR UTG 20/10/2 TAGGY player
Hero calls with SC on BTN.
Villan cbets 2tone flop (assume he holds an overpair/2pair), Hero calls.
he checks the turn, I bet 2/3pot and have hit my str8 on the turn. He calls.
River completes the frush (Hero doesn't hold). Villan checks.
Now can I bet my str8 for value given there's a flush on the board. Would worse hands call i.e an overpair/2pair? 

Another example: You have AA, you raise, are called. Flop is Q22. You bet, and are called. Turn is a K. Because KQ is SUCH a huge part of his range, I am likely to c/r the turn AI or just start potting the turn and river (or often overbet pushing the river). Part of that is hand rading though, and knowing that he has KQ.

Cbetting vs multiple opponents without any cards at low stakes is just as spewy as it is in MSNL, probably more so.

I raise AJo and KQo UTG. They are good enough easily imo. I usually am reraising AKo at all times. AQo I often flat call if an UTG raises and one person calls, just because I know if I raise and am called, I am destroyed. I often reraise too in a variety of situations.

You should've raised your straight on the flop if you think he has an overpair and is likely to get it in, especially on a drawy board. As played, yes value bet the river, especially at uNL because people have a very very hard time folding anything down here.

 Hey man, thanks for the thread.
Do you ever limp in EP?
When do you call PF? (since you're 19/16 I'm curious... you say that you call otb with hands like 98 when there's a pfr...)
Also, do you ever check really big hands vs two players OOP after you raise pf? 

I never limp in EP.
As for calling raises pf, read what I wrote before more carefully. I treat an UTG raise very different from an open raise in the CO. I am likely to call with 98s because UTG raiser likely has a hand, while I am likely to reraise a CO raiser because he likely doesn't.

Lastly, it depends on the board and the players. Usually not, because at 2/4 everyone is really into making moves, i'd rather have it be that their moves put lots of money in the pot.

 This thread is amazing, thanks for the effort BW its much appreciated.

I don't think anyone has touched on playing from the blinds yet. I'd be interested to know if you deviate from the "play as tight as possible from the blinds" advice usually given. Note here I am not talking about blind vs blind as that is a little different. Example:
25 or 50NL, You are in the SB with KQs. All your opponents suck and are running stats of like 40/10. Its a family pot and is limped to you (this is honestly standard, I see this all the time). Limp along, or raise it up big? I have found that often raising will take the pot, but sometimes I'll get like two callers and end up playing a raised pot OOP against more than one opponent - bad.
Whats better - to raise and risk that, or to play the hand multiway OOP in a limped family pot? I haven't played enough hands to decide which is more EV...
I guess this seems like a basic question (i.e. don't raise, moran) but I'd like to see if you can shed any light on your blind play in general.
Cheers! 

You just have to play smart from the blinds, and that usually means tight. If everyone limps around and I have KQs or AJo, I am just going to complete in the SB because I don't really want to put in a lot of money pf OOP with those cards. AQo is about the worst hand that I like to raise with from the blinds. A lot of players hemmorhage(sp?) money from the blinds by making three crucial mistakes:
1) they raise with marginal holdings
2) they complete with trash holdings
3) they call raises with speculative hands when their opponents are not likely to have a big hand.

#3 is the most important IMO, although #1 is important too. If the button open raises and you have 22, you are not calling for set value, because the vast majority of the time he does not have a hand when you hit a set. I reraise a lot here at higher limits when players are afraid of me and are likely to fold to a cbet.

 Do you ever make non-standard raises.
i.e. minraise to get a tight sb out with a really weak hand vs a really bad bb (say you hold something like t6o in the co and you want to play anything in position vs a certain player).
i.e. 3 limpers and you raise to 3bb otb with 98s. 

The brief answer is no. My raises follow the 3.5xbb+1 rule. My reraises occassionally vary pf depending on whether I want the villain to think I am squeezing, 3betting light, I have a monster, etc.

 How do u deal with shortstackers?
Do u cbet them less? Any special strategy against them? 

If they are super passive and still fold to cbets all the time, I don't really change my strategy except that I will call their all-ins pretty light depending on the board and my holding.
If they are aggressive, I stay out of their way with speculative and drawing hands and try to play only high cards and pairs.

 Thanks for your time and input. Both are appreciated!!
2 quick questions for you:
1. You mentioned BR mgmt and moving up and down as a big part of your improvement. I'm wondering if this also includes having a bigger role than the normal 20-30 buyins for your current level, and/or not taking a shot until you reach a certain BR level?
2. (add on to Hitnrun's ?) With the tighter style, are you sticking to the normal 4BB + 1 per limper, or are you raising more or less in certain situations, like the example you used with 8[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] 9[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] vs. button steal above?
Thanks again! 

1) I took shots at 18+ buyins in the past, but I really prefer just beating a game until you have 25+ buyins for the limit above, and then just moving up completely and seeing how it goes. There are a lot of ways to manage a roll successfully, but for me safer is better. (but not grossly safe like 50+ buyins, ew)

2) I don't know what you mean by "vs button steal", but no, I will raise generally 3.5xbb+1 as i said before. Sometimes, if there are a lot of limpers or something, I may either A) limp behind or B) raise like 1bb less than the rule or something like so that I don't create an absolutely massive pot. Usually I just stick with the rule though.

 I've recently started to pay more attention to villains' reactions on cbets (fold, call, and raise cbets).

Now, if villain folds 50% or more, it's straight-forward.
But how do you handle these types of villains (OOP and in position):
a) raises cbets often (30%, 50%, or even 70%)
b) calls cbets very often (50%+)

Are there any general strategies against these guys or does this depend a lot on other reads? I seem to make my biggest mistakes in HU situations against these types. 

haha, well first of all, you can destroy those strategies by picking up cards.

Lets talk real quick about both of those types of guys:
The guy who raises a lot: does he continue on the turn a lot? So often he probably doesnt have a great hand? is he a thinking player or a calling station? If he bets on the turn and isn't a station, I am likely to have a really big range for turn c/rai.

The guy who calls a lot: Second barrel when the board is right for it, c/c when I think he's floating and I've got an average hand, c/r when I think he's floating and I've got a big hand/big draw.

Your questions are very player dependent, just remember that aggression wins in the end, but you can manipulate your opponents aggression into giving you money through your own carefully chosen bets and raises.

 Thanks for the replies.
Just another question.
Myself, kazana RedCashion, Matrix and probably others are making movements to NL100 so I ask this on behalf of them and probably many others.
FT NL50 seems snugglesoft in comparison(is that the FT doomswitch I hear) to NL100 where we all seem to have hit a bad run of variance (I get that impression).
Coinicdence or are there certain changes required for SSNL?
(FWIW I've only played 7k hands net +3buyins after a 6buyin swing and lost my confidence so went back to NL50 to recover it)
Any advice or should we just play more hands and get through it? 

The games really are not that much different imo. Slightly more aggressive players, slightly more thinking players. It wasn't until 200nl that I really had to rehaul my game to deal with all the pretty bad TAG's that play poorly postflop.

My advice is to drop down whenever you feel its a good idea, and focus on playing tight and THINKING about what you are doing. It isn't that hard to kill these games once you have developed a solid game from 25nl and 50nl.

my opinion

 At 25NL I often times run into a player that will call my raises oop and donk into me on EVERY single flop. Since I often only have over cards, or worse, how do you suggest I play against these guys. 

If he is minbetting, I ignore it and raise however much I was going to bet or slightly more.

If he is potting, I usually only proceed with a hand, but I am more inclined to semibluff with draws, overcards+GS and stuff.

If he is like 1/2 potting, I vary some bluff raises in here and there depending on the board.

 another question:
How do u determine your betsizes? When heads up, u always pot when cbeting? 

Usually a little more than 3/4 pot on cbets.

I don't really vary my bet sizes much in most situations. Sometimes I will to confuse my opponents.

 On your way up what winrate did you maintain at each level in terms of PTBB/100 hands?
You talked about 3-betting preflop in position. Do you often do it from the BB or SB against a likely blind steal (open raise from CO or BTN)? If so, what range of hands will you make this move with against (A) a 20/11 TAG, (B) a 36/24 LAG. 

I beat 25nl and 50nl for like 6ptbb playing a pretty loose janky game, then 100nl for 7-8ptbb, then some swings with 200nl and 400nl, but I am currently running good and beating 400nl for 9ptbb.

Yes, I often resteal from the blinds. No, I am not going to give you a solid range because most of my opponents are going to read this. I have a very wide range, but needless to say, I try to adjust my range most appropriately to the villain, how frustrated he is with my pf aggressiveness, and how likely it is that he folds.

 SnG player here that is slowly making the move to cash games.
From Canada, still play at Party. Before D Day, had a nice BR, since then cashed out and rebuilding.
Have played mostly 50NL with some 100NL in the past.
Now have a $1500 BR.
What would be your strategy for me to move up limits the most efficient way possible in terms of tables played and buy in level?
Long term goal is to beat the highest buy in that I can. 

I made a post about this. Check the SSNL master sticky.

To briefly summarize, beat the game for 20k hands. If it feels like you are killing it, move up (you'll have the money to), and repeat until the game is A) making you a lot of money, and B) moving up may not be profitable without some serious improvements.

 How do you handle multiple bad beats in one session? Is there any point in which you quit or do you stay if the game is good? 

When I am in the right frame of mind and the money is not a factor in my thinking, I just keep playing until i am up (if I have time)

If I find myself getting overly emotionally attached to the money, I stop.

 BW, I spew like a moran. Often when I have no hand at all. Should I move up to where they respect my raises, or just learn to play the game?
Seriously, though, I don't know why I want to win every pot, but I do. How do you beat that within yourself? 

Definitely don't move up. People at higher limits don't "respect your raises", they just know how to trick you into making moves when they have hands.

I went through that for a little bit, but just remember that poker is a game of patience and aggression, not just blind aggression. Picking your spots is absolutely crucial. In short, stop playing loose and you'll find yourselves with cards more. Spew is a greater problem for those in tough situations a lot than it is for those who are refining their skills on similar tough choices over and over again imo. Loose is good for excellent players, tight is good for everyone who wants to win consistently imo.

I never used sticky notes, but i don't see how they could hurt.

 1. What do you feel is the tool/exersise that has helped you grow as a good player the fastest? Ex. Books, 2p2, tutor.
2. What books have you read, and which of those has prepared you for NL the most.
3. You said your 19. In High School/College what were your grades and what subject(s) did you seem to excel in. What games/sports did you seem to win at throughout your life.
4. What approach do you take towards NL. Is it more of a mathematical approach or relying more of reads and strategy.
Thanks for your time. 

1) 2p2. no doubt. I went from a losing player at 25nl to a winning player at 400nl thanks to 2p2.

2) Eh, I mean I read SSHE (limit), TOP, Super System, and NLHET&P, and i didn't think they helped me all that much. the SSNL master sticky >>>>>>>>>> anything else. Seriously, just read all of it. All of it.

3) Highschool I got really good grades in all subject, college I get very average grades because I'm not really motivated. I'll get a degree in government or something. As for sports/games, I was a 3sport athlete beginning of HS, 2 sports my junior and senior year. I played college football last year but got tired of it and dropped it. So I am very competitive and I want to win, the challenge is appealing to me.

4) Its not like theres a mathematical approach and a feel approach. The math of this game, at least for what you guys need to be concerned with, is easy. Pot odds, implied odds, whatever. The key to doing math in poker, though, is you have to have an idea of what your opponent has. I only know that my NFD is only 30-something-ish % against a set, so if villain is likely to have a set, I need to play accordingly. However, my NFD may be a huge favorite over another draw, so my calc's change considerable.

The point is, hand reading is most important. The math is just figuring out how much he has, how much you have, how much is in the pot, and then how much to bet. All of those things depend on what cards he has and what cards you have.

 What would help a player improve the most in micro / small stakes?
Put them in order of your preferance:
- Reading books
- Posting hands / being involved in discussion at 2p2
- Lurking on 2p2, read all the old digest posts and archives
- Putting in some crazy amount of hands. 

I'll rephrase these as a I see fit.
from most important to least
#1: Finding either threads either A) started by strong posters/players or B) in which strong posters/players are actively involved, and diving in with question and ideas. It's not what you think, in poker, its how you think. Thats the most important thing. So responding and discussing is the best way to learn by far.

#2: Read the master sticky and everything in it. So vital.

#3: Play a lot, and bring a hand or two from each session to the forums. You will find that a lot of the little stuff you are doing, especially pf, is just wrong. Pf is easy to correct cause it doesnt depend on community cards.

#4: Books never did much for me, but they can't hurt. I only really understood what the books were getting at once I had figured it out via 2p2 and on my own.