OT: Goals and motivation in poker

[youcanhaveitall]

I dont really know if this post belongs here as it applies to both cash games, sngs and mtts. Please move it if it fits better somewhere else.

I am a winning player, and when I play my A-game and fully focus I really get into the zone and can play great poker for hours and hours.
However I have one major leak that causes me to not give a censcored and start playing sloppy and badly.

I need motivation and challenges to stay focused!
Some examples could be:

- move up from the 22$ turbos to the 55$ in 3 months
- play 20k hands at nl200 with PBB 5
- Read all material about Stud H/L and play 100k hands

Lately my game has been slacking badly, and I am playing my b- or c-game for the most.
So what I want to hear from you are:

- suggestions to new tasks I could begin on.
- What do YOU do to stay motivated

Looking forwards to hear from you.

Regards, holla4yourdolla

[willw9]

Take a break, regain that poker voracity come back to you.

Enjoy the game, get robustoo.

[costanza_g]

I would think money would be a good motivating factor...if the money doesnt mean much to you....then move up.

Also, lol, did you censor yourself?

[GrandMelon]

Lol he censored himself and spelled it wrong.

[pokerchap]

it is really simple actually take a break. that is all it is. If you are addicted like me it will suck but even a day or two works.

[carnivalhobo]

winrate goals are lame, i think hands/hours/$won are better goals to set. Other goals could include posting x hands/month, doing session review, making a poohbah style post.


Personally i feel like a slacker lately, and will be shooting for 40k hands at a minimum next month.

[caguma]

Taking a break works for me.

I can't set goals for # of hands played, I try to work off bonuses, I find that keeps me more into the game than just playing for hours straight.

[the machine]

i had a little less then break even in january up about 8 buyins then i dropped off 10 buyins halfway through the month and finished up even after rakeback.


i havent played a hand online since jan 31st. and i feel great about it. breaks are the best things for your game and i cant wait to start back up

[pokerchap]

setting goals for # of hands playing is really dumb. It can lead to bad play because you wind up playing when you don't want to in order to achieve your goal.

[redCashion]

I don't think it's that dumb to have goals for hands played. I think pushing through uninspired play to meet those goals is what's dumb, but there's nothing wrong with having a number you're trying to hit.