Planning Your Personal Development - Part III

Reading this column may not be fun, but it could be very useful. Most columns don't require much work, but this one asks some searching questions that you may not want to answer. While that reluctance is understandable, don't yield to it. Thoroughly answering these questions can improve both your game and your future.



Whenever possible, all of your goals should use the SMART structure: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-based. This structure was discussed in Part II of this series, which can be found at CardPlayer.com.



Your Ultimate Objective
Your most important planning decision is setting an ultimate objective, because it determines your overall direction, and every step you take should move you toward it. Where do you want to go in poker? There are at least four main objectives:



1. To enjoy playing without caring much about improving your results.



2. To continue as a recreational player, but improve your results.



3. To become or continue as a grind-it-out pro or semipro, but with better results.



4. To become a top player.



If No. 1 is your objective, don't bother to complete this questionnaire; you don't need plans just to have fun. The more ambitious your objective is, the more important planning becomes.

What is your ultimate objective?


Why have you set this objective?


Your ultimate objective provides the overall direction for your plans, but it is too far in the future to guide your day-to-day decisions. Annual goals will help you move toward that ultimate objective.



Your Results

Improving your results is the most important and visible step toward your ultimate objective. Unless you steadily improve your results, you probably won't reach an ambitious long-term objective. Since you can't improve them without developing your knowledge, skills, and so on, results indirectly measure your progress toward the other goals.



What results should you try to get in the next year?


Why have you chosen these results?


How will you get these results?


Your Knowledge

Winning poker demands many types of knowledge, such as theory, odds, and strategy. If you don't acquire sufficient knowledge, you probably won't improve your results.



What new knowledge will you need to get those results?


Why do you need this knowledge more than some other kinds?


How will you acquire this knowledge?


Your Skills

Skills are essentially your ability to apply knowledge. You may know people who could ace an exam on poker theory, but can't apply that knowledge while playing. Knowledge can be developed passively by reading, listening, and observing, but you need practice and feedback to develop skills such as hand-reading and bluffing.



What skills should you improve to get those results?



Why are these skills more important than others?


How will you develop these skills?


Your Traits

Relatively little has been written about personal traits, but they can have an immense impact on your results. If you lack patience, discipline, attention to detail, and so on, you probably can't get the full benefit of your knowledge and skills.



What personal traits should you improve to get those results?


Why are these traits more important than others?


How will you develop these traits?


Your Situation
Hardly anything has been written about situational factors (except your bankroll), but they can have a huge impact on your development. For example, if you want to turn pro but have to work very long hours and are married to someone who detests poker, you have a huge liability.



What situational factors should you change?


Why have you chosen to change these factors rather than others?


How will you change them?


Final Questions



Check all your answers. Do they satisfy the SMART formula?


How can you make them more specific, measurable, achievable, and so on?


Do they all fit together and reinforce each other so that you're moving toward your ultimate objective?


How could you improve the way they fit together?

The Next Steps

We all lack objectivity about ourselves. To get a clearer picture of yourself, ask someone you trust to answer these questions about you. Then, compare your answers. You may be shocked, but that second opinion can provide a much better foundation for planning than you can create on your own.



After deciding where you want to go, you are ready to evaluate the assets that will help you to get there and the liabilities that will hold you back. My next column will suggest a procedure for this evaluation.

Dr. Schoonmaker ([email protected]) coaches only on psychology issues, such as controlling impulses, coping with losing streaks, going on tilt, and planning your poker career.