2023 goals and resolutions

Setting goals and resolutions are my way of gauging how my year went. It is also to keep myself  accountable to my pledges and commitments. But if I've learned anything last year, it was like the old Yiddish saying "Mann Tracht, Un Gott Lacht", man plans and God laughs. We think we control our future but the truth is we don't even know what will happen the next second. I will still set my resolutions but am welcoming all the surprises this year has in store for me with open arms. 

I told Mr. Mandela I was planning to win
 a trophy in SA.... he laughed...
.....Well, I did finish 2nd

I took a long hiatus from tournament poker partly because of COVID but also I was focusing on cash games. However the main reason was I wasn't making enough money from tournaments for it to make sense. But due to the lack of a proper poker scene here, in 2022 I had no choice but to travel for poker. Often I would pick tournament locations and dates because usually cash games are the best during those times. I dabbled in a few of them last year and felt that I had a breakthrough in my game. In the past I felt I had hit a wall, and even after studying I couldn't seem to progress. In 2022 I managed to turn a healthy profit from my tourney results and had a new arsenal of weapons I never had before. 

So the first goal of the year is to 1) play as many tournaments as possible. In two days I will be traveling to my 21st country for poker and hopefully by the end of 2023 I will have played in 25 different countries. In 2022 I managed to cash about $50k (June - Dec) and came close to winning trophies a few times. So this year my goal is to 2) hit $150k in cashes and to win at least 2 tourneys. 

I want to travel, see the world. When we leave this earth, we can only take with us the relationships and memories that we've made. Thankfully I am currently in a position to do so. So far I have made plans till April 2023 that I will be 3) traveling to a different country every month. I hope I can do that for the entire year. 

Turbulence is part of life

In the past years I have worked on my discipline and I feel I have come a long way. But I am still keeping it as another goal of mine. 4) Degen-free, disciplined year for 2023. I know I am far from being the best poker player, the richest, the most generous, the most creative, but if there is a category I have a possibility of leading, that is the happiest poker player. I have a positive outlook on life in the first place. Not putting too much emphasis on monetary wealth helps. But I have a wonderful partner in life that I never dreamed possible. I have a career that allows me to spend time with the people I love, doing the things I love, living my life to the fullest. So for 2023 I want to 5) be happy and thankful always

A bullish 2023 would help

In the past I have given 10% of my winnings to charity. But this year I want to commit to doing more than giving money. I want to care more for the people around me, be kind, be a good example, be an inspiration, be a shoulder to cry on, be a listening ear, be a mentor, give good advice, be a positive influence. I may not be able to change the world, but I can change someone's world. 6) Give my time

Me acknowledging a security guard at the tourney. Probably
no one even spoke to him the whole series.

Join me in my journey this year and see how it works out. Follow me on Instagram if you haven't yet for my journey in pictures and videos cause I know not everyone likes to read. Click HERE to read my review of 2022 if you haven't yet. Happy New Year everyone! If you would like to contact me you can email me at happyriverpoker@gmail.com