Finding the time to do what we enjoy in life isn’t always as easy as it seems. This is especially true if you’re in a profession that requires serious dedication and practice – professional poker players are a prime example. In order to achieve success at the highest levels, the pros put in a serious amount of time to continually improve their game. In some instances, it might even appear that poker is the only thing in life and that everything else takes a backseat when it comes to time at the table.
While it might be for a few, this isn’t the case for Karina Jett. For her, being able to enjoy life as a professional poker player is a matter of balance. As a poker pro, wife of Full Tilt Poker pro Chip Jett, and a mother, happiness is a matter of keeping everything in perspective. Here’s what she had to say about priorities, poker and managing her time:
Even if you are not a professional poker player, the game can take up a lot of your time. Poker players need to be able to balance their poker time with their home life.
A lot of people ask me about balancing time with family and playing poker when their spouse doesn’t have any interest in the game. People have to understand their spouse’s interests and hobbies and should try to be supportive, even if that is a matter of simply trying to understand the concept of the game. In some cases, because they don’t know the strategies involved in playing poker, they are worried that their spouse is “just gambling.” When they take time to learn the game, there is a better understanding of the skill involved in playing poker. It comes down to being supportive of whatever your spouse’s interests are.
There is a time commitment involved in playing poker and reconciling that time with family needs comes down to balance. You need to learn to spread your time equitably, leaving time for friends, family and other hobbies.
For me, the priority is my kids. They’re the first thing on my mind when I schedule anything. My husband and I try to put them first and our careers second. We balance family and career as well as we can. If a scheduling conflict arises, Chip will get priority over me. I will step back and take care of the kids. I don’t have a problem with that because, since I’ve had children, they have been the priority and my career has come second.
It wasn’t a difficult change at all. If I’ve had a bad session playing poker and I go home and see my kids, it puts things in perspective on how I see life and what’s most important. If you have a bad day at work and come home to smiling kids who are happy to see you, it’s the most rewarding experience. The bad beats don’t matter any more.
You want to be able to enjoy your time at the poker tables. You can only really do that when you know you are maintaining a good balance between playing time and family time.
