What's up folks? How's life?

So, here is my analysis and predictions for the WSOP final table coming up on Sunday.

I think Matt Gianneti is the best bet to win and good odds on betfair at 8.0 or so (odds are based purely on stack size but in reality he should be 4.0 or so)... he also won WPT Malta during the 3 month break, for €300k). Like O'Dea he never shows the worst hand when all in. Even in flips. He's a live cash grinder living in Vegas, 25/50+. Great professional attitude overall. Not overwhelmed at all, focused though not scared or nervous, knows he is v capable, knows if cards break well then he has vg shot to win. Not concerned at all about cashing big, doesn't have any financial pressure. Basically any competent cash game player of highish stakes has massive advantage over regular tourney guys as structure is excellent, so it plays a lot like a cash game, especially when have other capable players at the table (as opposed to tourney shove-fest donks).

O'Dea obv excellent. Makes absolutely zero mistakes, plays all hands so well, ultra pot controlled (his best strength). Composure is superb, everyone very very scared of him... not of his aggression, but knowing he never making a mistake... giving impression that if they play him that he will already have the best hand. He so totally relaxed.. didn't bother showing up for post FT interviews or any media rubbish... just slept in (so that had to make video about him from previous footage, lol... didn't play any poker for two months, ran a marathon in Donegal in Aug, played some tennis, didn't watch any of the WSOP online, didn't buy anything big, said he and Donnacha didn't talk any strategy at all or anything like that, lol). Think he'll be unlucky to finish outside of top three. Reckon he and Matt will be HU (Or else Matt and USCPhildo). He made a final table of WSOP Europe Omaha side event in Cannes last month too but busted in ninth or eighth. (small amount of entrants too). Big problem is he has one of worst positions at the table, to the right of Ben Lamb who is excellent (to start with at least). Also, whole bunch of Irish going over to support him... always ultra rowdy and horribly drunken (e.g. When Marty Smyth won Omaha 10k bracelet 2 years ago, and he's now basically busto)... feel like that will be a bad thing, distracting / embarrassing etc as new WSOP FT is set up as a stage with surrounding stadium of supporters etc. Obv hoping he wins though as he nice guy and Irish. Love to see him win, will be cheering for him.

Ben Lamb is having incredible year (won player of the WSOP this year with ~4 finals tables and two bracelets) and generally very good, but has bad position (apart from on Eoghan). Lives in Vegas, hangs with ZeeJustin etc... def awesome player and knows exactly what to do all the time... in the run up to FT he played amazing... bluffs against players who were bluffable / scared... checking back second nuts against good players trapping him, and excellent value bets etc. (pretty good example here against the leader at the time who was playing really crazy and was total donk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQGaagsNXP4)

Lamb is tiny bit wild though... feel like he will make a three barrel bluff (with outs along the way) that might get called. (Probably by good internet player like USCPhildo or Matt). As a note, he got fairly lucky against Matt earlier, rivering gold after Matt was trapping him perfectly (see hand below, Matt had Ace Nine), but to his credit getting big value when he did hit river (and may not have bet again if he missed). To Matt's credit he thought about folding for a long long time. And after the hand Matt had not much left but played perfect again afterwards and made final table with decent stack. Awesome play on the final table bubble, didn't freak out at all having lost huge pot.

Lamb has big live tells though (pretty obv when full of shit), which could cause him problems if others review the videos effectively.

With the blinds at $150,000-$300,000, the action began with Lamb opening $675,000 from the cutoff. Giannetti called from the big blind and the flop came down Ah9h2d. Giannetti checked his option and Lamb c-bet $700,000. The turn brought a 7d and Giannetti checked once again. This time, Lamb checked behind him and both players saw a 2h on the river. Giannetti checked again and Lamb slid 4 million into the pot. After more then 10 agonizing minutes in the tank, Giannetti found a call and looked dejected as his flopped top two pair were crushed on the river by Lamb’s 2 3 off.

Phil Collins is USCPhildo from online, vg player, makes basically zero mistakes though finds himself forced to gamble sometimes when makes a play that doesn't work properly, e.g. reraising King Jack and needing to call a pot bet shove against something like Ace Ten. Could easily make it to HU. Def money means a lot to him though. Especially as US players can't play online anymore. He's won 2 mil+ online in total (winnings, not profit), but just 200k or so live prior to wsop FT (where they've all already locked up 790k).

Basih (or something like that) is an old guy, pretty wack, runs a card room in Panama or somewhere like that. Generally poor player, in comparison to others. Everyone hoping to get HU against him, lol.

Anton, Ukranian guy, not vg either, just rode a decent stack from far out. Also, he only has 25% share of his action so the money is super important to him... i.e. will be kinda scared money, trying to inch up the spots.

Sam Holden (not related to Tony Holden), English guy, conservative kind of guy, plays a short stack fairly well but apart from that has little chance I think. He also only has ~20% of his action. He in last place right now. Lot of support from good English players though so could get great advice and get into a good position... with people expecting him to gamble or play poorly but actually he playing decently / tighter than expected.

Staszko is Czech I think, and the leader, but basically rode a big stack. Expect him to try force action, wield big stack... which is a mistake. Everyone else who did that at recent wsop ft's busted early, like 5th. Getting sandbagged and then check raised etc... suddenly not leader and freaks out.

Pius, german guy... know nothing about him... probably good for him... quiet... and german, lol. V tough table though so can't see him doing so well.

Crazy nine person prediction:

1) Matt

2) O'Dea

3) Phil

4) Lamb

5) Anton

6) Holden

7) Staszko

8) Badih

9) Pius

What do you think? Who do you think will win?

Can't wait to watch this live!

Go Ireland!

P.S. JPeterson, where are all the hot chick drunken biker stories? We're missing your trip reports and pics! :)

Wow, it's been a long time since my last post. I'd been posting on my own personal website and forgetting to cross post.

So, how's the PokerCurious crew doing? Hope life and poker is treating you all well!

Without further ado, here are my most recent ramblings.

The meaning of company

Today I got talking with my friends / colleagues about creating the perfect business. I should say though, as a disclaimer, that I really like my current job and company. It's the first place I've worked where I actually enjoy hanging out with my colleagues, during work out also socially. My bosses are really great too, always open to new ideas and taking risks. As such the company is growing rapidly. 

Maybe it is the different cultures between Brasil and Ireland but I'm told it is very common for people working here in Brasil to become close friends with their co-workers. In my experience working in Ireland I never saw this. Sure, I saw occassional friendships being built but in general there always seemed to be a very distinct spearation between work and play within the companies I worked for in Ireland. I.e. You may have friends in work but basically you would never hang out with them outside of work, except maybe for a pint after work on Friday.

Here I find my colleagues always hanging out together many weekday evenings and over the weekend. Lot's of parties, barbeques and activities. It really creates a much better environment within the workplace too. I never see any arguing or bitching between the staff. Everyone seems happy with the general atmosphere. In Ireland I would always take my birthday off work, here I look forward to arriving to the office as I know it will be a fun day. 

A funny and contrasting memory this reminds me of is when I used to work for one company in the IFSC. I would walk to work in runners and then put my work shoes on when I arrived and my runners in my bag. After work I'd throw on the runners again and literally sprint home, as fast as possible. At the time I knew I wasn't enjoying my job but thought that the run home was just a bit of exercise for the evening. That was until one friend (from outside work of course, lol) pointed out that I was literally sprinting away from the office to get as far away as quickly as possible. It was a lightbulb moment and I realised he was totally right! What a horrible way to live, lol. So, thanks Luach for awakening me haha.

So anyway, today we got talking as we walked back from lunch in the 28'C sunshine and I said aloud how great it would be to work for a company that had a swimming pool in it's complex or on it's roof and also offered free chuscaria (bbq) for lunch, lol. I'd never have any problem going back to the office after a lunch like that! My colleagues suggested adding other pleasures such as on demand massages at your desks, free Starbucks and other flexibilities such as choosing your own starting hours or options to work from home on certain days.

Within the ever evolving corporate environments throughout the world we are always seeing changes and greater flexibility for staff as well as many added perks. E.g. Google developers are allowed to take one day per week to work on any project of their choosing. All Google stage also get a certain amount of days per year where they can just call in and say they don't feel like working that day, no questions asked. Awesome! Other businesses offer free or discounted beer in the caferias at lunchtime on Friday's. And I read recently of one company demanding that their staff work from home at least one day per week.

I think as the world evolves, businesses grow and people become more aware of what it is that motivates and rewards them in life that innovative businesses will adapt to embrace these requirements as much as possible. Maslow's heirarchy of needs is constantly changing in my opinion.

Certainly for me I would say that I would accept a much lower salary for a super awesome working environment. And within that environment my productivity would be hugely increased too. Perhaps businesses that are open to change and are forward looking will see that by giving employees more in terms of flexibility and environment that their staff will actually return with increased productivity and passion for their jobs. And as such the company will grow much more rapidly. So overall, the initial expense of offering so called crazy things such as an office swimming pool, or free chuscaria will be far outweighed by the increased output from it's fully satisfied staff.

 I feel like many of the current 'perks' available such as discounted gym membership or subsidised canteen lunches are much more cynical. That they exist both as a benefit for staff but also as tax savings schemes for companies. That the companies only offer these perks to save themselves money and in an effort to increase output from staff. As opposed to things that are in place to actually improve the lives of staff, for the betterment of all.

On that note, Corporation GloboRoss has now been formed, within my mind at least. If I ever run a company and have staff to manage I can guarantee now that I will never scrimp on micro things trying to save a few bucks here and there. Instead I will reward all employees hugely. No crappy salaries, every employee will own a share of the company, will avail of flexible working hours / conditions. I will be a super open minded and welcoming boss, one who is able to understand that each employee has different needs, and do my best to accommodate them as much as possible. All staff should be working in an environment where they are encouraged to offer solutions to problems that not just affect the business but affect the employees lives. Working life should never be just about making the owner rich above all else. We can achieve much better things and greater 'life wealth' when we work together with equal regard and empathy for all employees.

One nice thing I am reminded of when writing this is that I once introduced my boss as 'this is my boss' and he interrupted to say "come on Ross, I am your friend and colleague before I am your boss". It was said 100% genuinely and it really helped open my mind and made me thing on / recognise the value of such a good relationship between boss and staff.

Your work-life should support your home-life instead of the two being separate of each other. Why ever need to spend 8+ hours per day in an environement where you don't want to be? 

Let's all make a tweek to capitalism and recognise that the whole point of it is to be able to create better lives for ourselves. It is not just a case of being the strongest of 'the strongest survive' but is about helping and improving the lives of our fellow man / woman along the way too. In almost all situations we are reliant on other people we work with too (staff / bosses), so let's work together to build greatness within all aspects of our lifes 24/7. Keeping good company will create a great company, for all.

Ross.

Question: What kind of things would make you appreciate your work more and increase your productivity? Equally for those of you are are self employed what things would you like to do / have in order to generate more output?

(Obv a few hot chicks washing down jpeterson's harvestor no doubt would increase his output ;) )

Wow, once again a long hiatus from the blogosphere! I need Zimba's mind to create good content on a daily basis! I think he is on the same drug as Charlie Sheen. He must be, to be able to crank out such poetic content on the regular. But the Zimba drug is not for you. You can't handle it. Try it and your face will melt off and your kids will weep over your exploded body. Lol.

I'm still in Brazil, enjoying life and all it has to offer. For a while I was jumping in the pool every night after work. So nice after spending time on a hot crammed bus, to go home, quick shower, then dive in the pool! 

Funny sidenote... when I was working in Ireland a few years ago I used to live within walking distance from the office. I'd often wear a pair of jogging runners as I went to work and then wear dress shoes in the office. After work, I'd pop on the jogging shoes again and literally sprint home. I'd convinced myself it was simply to stay in shape, do at least a little exercise each day.

I've often been a big proponent of the work to live rule, rather than the live to work one. At the time of the story above I wasn't really enjoying my job much and spent a lot of time thinking about how it was a waste of life and time. My friend pointed out that the sprinting from work was really a metaphor for escaping the boredom, monotony and pointlessness of that particular job. And of course, he was right. 

On that note it's a good time to borrow one of Poker Curious's Quotes of the Day: "The brain is a wonderful organ; it starts working the moment you get up in the morning, and does not stop until you get to the office." (Robert Frost)

So, if you are following then perhaps you are thinking that the daily swim has a similar cathartic effect. But actually it's different. In this case I actually enjoy my job. Have a great working environment and really nice colleagues who it is a pleasure to work with. Literally polar opposite to the other place. The pool is something I look forward to as a reward, rather than an escape. Something I treasure each day. Remembering how lucky I am to even have a pool at my disposal.

The whole process is revitalising. I lie in the pool, hold on to one end with my toes and just float, looking up to the peaceful sky. Often even falling asleep, only to sink and wake up instantly lol. Super relaxing though as the pool is on the roof, 16th floor, so away from almost all noises of the city. Especially if you lean your head back far enough to submerge your ears! Also, sidenote, I discovered that when you lie out in the water, holding on to nothing, flat on your back that each time you breath in you rise from the water, and each time you breath out you sink in it. Obviously this is so, due to the laws of physics, but not something I had contemplated before. So, I guess should I ever be in a shipwreck in the middle of the ocean, I'll have an edge on my compatriots. An edge, always thinking of the edge. Lol. (You're welcome too for the free tip on how to survive longer than most ;) )

The pool is a great way to relax and also a great place for contemplation of all of life's questions that I'm sure cross all minds at some stage in life. What do I want from life? What do I treasure in life? What is important? What's the meaning etc. The a hot chick walks by in a bikini and the answer to all those questions is staring you in the face. Lol, just joking. Kind of ;)

So, aside from the pool, what else is up? Hmmm. Been playing a lot of tennis and improving a lot. Tempted to take lessons again and get back the killer edge I had in my early teens. Though maybe I wasn't really that good then and I'm just blinded by the praise from my parents, like all kids. lol. I read a book on tennis techniques though last week and it vaulted my game ahead. Instantly improving top spin forehand, serve, placing, strategy... everything. Now need to reread it again and practice more. Tennis is usually on Sunday, around noon, with a few friends. Followed by, or sometimes during the game, with beers. All followed up with delicious plates such as salami with cheese, and a few games of pool (Brazilian rules... smaller pockets, no white ball etc).

On top of tennis I've been going to yoga roughly once per week. I find after a long day at work I often don't feel like going, even though it's only five mins walk from my apt. But, every time I force myself to go I'm always thankful afterwards. Such great stretching, physically and mentally. Particularly I enjoy the mental part and seem to have a different expereience each time. Some times it feels like the top of my head is opening and shooting rays of light into the universe. Other times it is as though putting on physical armour all over body, melting into your body and feeling super strong afterwards! It's fantastic!

If I could live at a beach, swim in the ocean, play tennis and do yoga every day I'd be pretty darn content!

On top of all of that, I went fishing a couple of weekends ago, to a fish farm, but great fun nonetheless. Catching the biggest fish I'd ever caught, so that was a treat! 6am - 6pm. Awesome! Caught a real few big ones. Reminded me of JPeterson, not sure why, lol. Jk, jk, jk, ;)

http://pokercurious.com/pictures/rossg/2119/

http://pokercurious.com/pictures/rossg/2117/

I've also started writing a novel. 14,000 words into it so far. Not sure how long it will be on completion. Maybe 30,000. So I guess not a huge novel by any means, but longer than a short story. I don't mind though. It's a good story and that's all that matters. Some of my favourite books are very small. In fact, my favourite of all time being The Old Man and The Sea by Hemingway, which is pretty short, but totally brilliant. The story I'm writing is a tale that I hope leaves the reader in a state of refreshment afterwards. As though they can feel a cool breeze on thier face as the beauty of live and nature revolves around them and courses through their bodies and minds. Something inbetween sublimity and nirvana. Naturally induce elation perhaps? The feeling of feeling alive.

It's peppered with little lessons too, for living a better life, more in touch with the present, releasing the past and the future. Living instead of existing. And to borrow and extend on a famous phrase..."The man who reads too much has no time to think". And the man who thinks to much has no time to live.

I think the best lessons in life, or at least the answers to the questions of life, often differ from person to person. So, sharing a way to view things can be more valuable than teaching specific rules or answers. Just like poker! A great quote recently from a now world famous classical guitarist, Miloš Karadaglić, sums it up perfectly, "I came to the academy as a naïve child, and I had these ideas about music and how I wanted to sound, but I needed somebody to steer it. Michael was incredible because he never stopped me from expressing myself the way I wanted to, but he always helped me express myself better.".

What else.... I've been reading a lot of books this year, with a goal to read 52 or more by years end. The best I've read so far this year were, in no particular order, for they are all superb:

The Unbearable Lightness of Being - Milan Kundera 

The River of Doubt - Candice Millard (Absolutely fantastic book about Theodore Roosevelt discovering new part of the Amazon)

The Outsider - Albert Camus 

Metamorphosis - Franz Kafka 

Kurt Vonnegut - Slaughterhouse Five

Read a bunch of others, but those are the best. Especially River of Doubt. Never read such amazing descriptions that actually bring a forest (the Amazon) to life as a living, breathing thing. Variance: The author is hot too. Beat: She's married. lol.

This weekend is the beginning of Carnival here in Brazil, basically a nationwide party for five days! I'm off to Cabo Frio on the Rio de Janeiro coast to relax and have some fun. Can't wait!

I think that's all for now! I'll try to blog more often and share some fun stories!

JPeterson, just for you I'll try take a few good pics in Cabo Frio and spread the word of my hog riding, up and coming poker star, badass who will take them for a ride one day, if they are lucky!

;)

http://pokercurious.com/pictures/rossg/2116/

http://pokercurious.com/pictures/rossg/2115/ 

On a final note, for all European readers (as I'm sure all Americans have already seen it), check out Charlie Sheen's interview here. Easily one of the greatest ever interviews of all time!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/41825237#41825237

So, I'll say goodby until next time.

Tchau,

Ross.

P.S. Charlie isn't the only one who is / has been winning ;) Other's of us have spent time with models and porn stars too. Lol. Ahhhhh, memories ;)

http://pokercurious.com/pictures/rossg/2120/

http://pokercurious.com/pictures/rossg/2121/

WINNING!

Every now and then everyone is presented with an opportunity, something they have dreamed of, imagined, prayed for etc.... and for many people they don't recognise the opportunity was staring them in the face until it is too late and door has closed!

I can say I've had it happen at least twice this year and realised the missed opportunity hours later.

Tune in to your true self, know what you are looking for and most of all be ready to grab it with both arms when it appears as it may only be available for a few moments. So you better be ready!

As they saying goes: Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity. 

Don't let the life you want pass you by. Take action and live the life of your dreams! Live, don't just exist! Feel and embody inspiration and passion, today, now!

Readers note: I just realised I wrote the above piece more for me than for my readers haha. Oh well ;)

On another note, I had a yoga session last night. Each time I go it is a little bit different. Yesterday during the meditation / relaxation part I was finding it hard to stop my mind from racing (being anxious about somethings, overthinking others etc) and as such found it difficult to block everything out, focus on nothing but peace etc. Naturally that annoyed me, as I'd been looking forward to putting on a new layer of mental armour haha. Though the more I think about it the more I realise it is not a process of putting on armour but a process of removing layers of stress or tension and finding natural peace and place... 

Then boom, I'd worked my thoughts from my toes to the top of my head and it hit me, that peace of mind feeling. It was like someone surgically removed the top of my head and my brain was exposed, with beaming golden lights shooting from it to the sky hahahahah, seriously! It was great!

Then I popped the top of my head back on and returned to 'reality', feeling good again. Actually I was already feeling good but then felt even better.

The meditation that day also gave me an idea for a new short story I'm planning... something I'd been thinking on for a while.

Aside from all of the above I've also been thinking of life and existence in general and back to my days studying Descartes in college (you know him, he coined the famous phrase 'Cogito Ergo Sum' or 'I think therefore I am'). (another side note, I was taking a Portuguese class on Tuesday and to explain some grammar my teacher quoted Descartes. He then asked me to create a sentence in same format... I came up with "I eat sweets, therefore I am fat" hahaha)

The reason I was thinking of Descartes recently is because I've been using mind control to create things I want in my life and it's been hugely effective recently. So, the more I think about it the more it makes sense that the world only exists in your own head. (As a sidenote, that would mean I created PokerCurious, I created all of you, and I am writing to myself at the moment, expecting you, my creations, to read it and provide insights / feedback to feed my understanding of being in this world, my world.... I could go on and on, but you get the general gist by now I'm sure ;) )

It's a really interesting subject.... though....

maybe I'm just crazy!

:)

Ross.

This may be the beginning of some profound insight and free advice for the online poker industry... here are some initial thoughts...

1) Thin slices do not equal fat profits.

New and existing poker operators... focus your businesses on new markets and new players. Do not base your strategy solely around stealing / winning players from other existing sites. Especially if those players play on the same network your room is on! Think of long term growth, build loyalty with new players, attract disgruntled players from other sites, focus on new territories or demographics and build your niche there... it will serve your business better in the long run. 

All too often we see a new poker room launch on one of the variety of poker networks and offer zero difference to their competitors. They just work at underhanded techniques to steal sharks, rather than having a solid plan to build business from the ground up.

You can't compete with Pokerstars or Full Tilt anyway so just choose to be different. Embrace it. Create a cool brand and target a new market demographic.

Think of it in terms of baking a new pie, a bigger pie, instead of cutting thinner and thinner slices of the existing pie. Before you know it everyone will be going hungry.

Thin slices do not equal fat profits.

2) Royalty = Loyalty

Treat your customers like loyalty. Go above and beyond to tailor your offering to what they want and need. Give the personal touch, show them you care. Help them to grow and they will reward you for your exceptional customer service. Treat them like crap with auto responders, days waiting for email replies with unsatisfactory answers and bad service and you will have noone to blame but yourself when they choose to move their business elsewhere... or worse still, choose to quit playing altogether! This applies to all players be them 1-day-per month players to 24/7 grinders. Everyone wants the royal treatment. The key thing to remember is that the royal treatment is often just something small to show them you care, even something as simple as a personal email asking about their experience and offering to help in any way you can. Personalise your business, even if it is a giant corporation.

Treat your customers like royalty and they will reward you with loyalty.

3) Small operators - Differentiate or die, because you are not getting bought out!

Oftentimes you will see a market dominated by one big business with a handful of much smaller similar businesses trying to gain market share. However, as a small operator you should be careful that you are not driving business to your competitor and just fueling the beast that will destroy you!

Think of it this way. There is one huge sportsbetting company (let's take Betfair for this example, as they dominate the betting exchange industry with ~85%+ market share, in Europe at least). They offer exceptional cutting edge product, good customer service and access to every market and bet type a sportsbetter could want to bet on. They are the best.

Then we have another betting exchange. It has a plan to compete with the beast and believe it can differentiate itself and become a force. However, it offers less impressive software, less bet types etc. But, this is the key point, they also don't offer anything different. Essentially they are just a lesser version of the bigger business.

Now, the smaller business goes out, advertises heavily, runs agents and affiliate programs etc, generally creating some hype around their product. They attract customers that are new to the whole betting exchange business, attract attention from industry publications etc. They begin to grow. In an effort to grow further they try to educate their users, build more loyalty. But, this plan often backfires. 

As the user becomes a more savy bettor and more in tune with industry offerings they naturally find out about other betting exchanges and other offers. Before you know it they have realised that they are spending their time on an inferior site and could have more success, better odds, better bonuses, better software reliability etc etc with the bigger site, so they move all their business over to this bigger site.

The smaller company has now spent a relatively large amount of money on a customer that showed no loyalty and jumped ship. They have inadvertently driven a high value user to their biggest competitor, growing their competitors profits and shrinking their own!

What a disaster right? Could it have been avoided? Probably.

The fist mistake is to offer an inferior product. The second mistake is to have no redeemable differentiations... i.e. they simply mimicked a successful business but did nothing to set themselves apart, no new product offerings, no new loyalty scheme (which suck in general anyway)... nothing new at all.

A better approach would be for them to focus on one specific market, e.g. horse racing and try to grow from there. Focus all their energy and talent on developing a superior product in one very specific niche. At least then they can build loyalty from those niche bettors and then expand from there. Offer something different like better odds, superior VIP service (to all users... ALL users should be considered and treated like VIP's, according to the net revenue they have individually generated for your business, but still treated like royalty).

A further extension of this whole topic is that many new start ups think they will enter a market with an identical product offering (usually of a lower quality), focus their marketing on one specific region or demographic and then sell the business and the users to the dominant market leader. However, that market leader doesn't and never will need to buy you! Your service and product is inferior, your users will realise that the more involved with your business they get and eventually will move to the market leader by their own accord.

It actually benefits the market leader to keep you in the industry running an inferior product. Short term you may hold a small % of the market but really you are just an affiliate to the larger player. The revenues you earn from your smaller business can essentially be considered affiliate revenue being paid by the larger market leader! And best of all, if you have 15% of the market share (and for arguements sake we'll say 15% of market profits) it is actually costing the market leader less to allow you stay in business then it would for them to pay you as an outright affiliate... as affiliate rates start from 20% and only go up.

What can the smaller business do to compete? Differentiate. Differentiate or die (or be stagnant). 

Those are my first 3 industry insights :) More to come in the next few days.

What do you think? Agree / Disagree with my points?

I've recently taken up yoga and am loving it!

I had always wanted to try it but just recently found a good opportunity... a yoga school just around the corner from my apartment and I've been going a few times a week so far.

It's a really great combination of stretching, destressing and meditation. Not only that but it inadvertantly teaches you inner and outer balance, self control, mental and physical control, how to push yourself further each time, awesome breathing techniques and much more. Beneficial to your life in so many areas, at least to mine anyway.

The breathing techniques alone are really great and I've been applying them in all different situations recently, be it sitting at my desk in work or lying in bed trying to go to sleep. It's amazing how just focusing on your breathing, controlling it's pace and depth and focusing on nothing but that can deliver you an awesome natural high... similar to the effects of your first hit of the day (if you smoke strong marijuana, the feeling about 20 mins after you smoke... where your heart stops racing and your mind mellows out, lol), or to even to the effects on your brain after having sex! It's an awesome natural high, at least for me. LOL, seriously. Makes me want to learn more about tantra too haha. It feels awesome! My favourite thing in the world is that natural high feeling (can definitely be achieved with smoking too, tho obviously less naturally :) ) I get this feeling from amazing sunsets or sunrises (or even super wintery days in Ireland), incredible art (e.g. Van Gough museum in Amsterdam - sober) and now it's great to find a way to induce that feeling anywhere, any time, pretty much!

On a side note, I was chatting with my cousin recently on the subject of tantric sex lol and I was wondering, once you become a tantra expert does that mean no more quickies? Lol. E.g. Honey, I can't believe you ended like that, it's only be 4 hours so far, don't you have any stamina or self control? Lol. Or is hyper speed tantric sex possible too? Lol.

The yoga class begins with some breathing techniques, relaxing, opening your lungs and working on your abs too. It then moves into about 25 mins of various combinations of stretching and balancing. Each week I can get a little further. One American friend here asked me if I have seen the Will Ferrel skit on Saturday Night Live of him 'doing yoga' and achieving his goal after 3 years hahaha. Don't worry, I don't have the same goals! ;) (Check out the skit by going here: http://www.123video.nl/playvideos.asp?MovieID=139315 (cut and paste it as link is not clickable))

The final 10 minutes or so is spent with the room all darkened and focusing on meditation, becoming aware of each part of your body while focusing on breathing too. You feel every muscle and limb in isolation and as I described it to a friend recently it felt like I was putting on armour, like Iron Man or something and that with the combination of the meditative music and speech that armour then became my body. Like an armour of positivity and strength. Lol, seriously! Like a big forcefield of positivity that attracts and sends out positive vibes while deflecting anything negative. 

You then 'wake up' refreshed, revitalised and feeling incredible. I can't recommend it enough. 

If I had my way I would just do yoga and play tennis pretty much 24/7 lol.

I've also been using techniques from The Secret a lot too, in particular the Ask, Believe, Receive ones. Every time I do this it works great! Every time it doesn't work it's due to self doubt, i.e. not believeing. You have to ask and truly believe... blast any sense of negative possibility or anxiety from your thoughts... there are no probablys, only definites!

Try it out :) I'm not nuts, I promise :)

Anyway, there are my random musings for today lol, hope you enjoyed and hope to bring positivity to you all too :)

And no, I'm not baked while writing or thinking all of this, hahahaha.

What's new with you? 

Nirvana for all,

Ross.

I don't have any pics from my yoga classes yet. So in the meantime, check out the pics in My Photos.

Profiling, Assumptions, reads and tells... outside of the poker world...

I thought this was a funny realisation about myself and about sales agents...

It is my gf's birthday this weekend and I've been thinking of various gifts that might be nice. On my way home from work yesterday I dropped into Tiffanies to see if there was anything nice there. I'm not a huge fan of expensive jewellery just because it has a name on it like Tiffany and Co, but sometimes you see something really nice... so what the hey...

Anyway, in I go and check out the first case of jewellery... I see the sales agent approaching me, a middle aged guy, smartly dressed, definitely knows his stuff. I wonder what he thinks of me as a potential client... I am wearing a Nike sports / athletic zip up jumper, jeans, runners and a have a backpack on... I guess I could represent anything really. Also, as I'm foreign I tend to be approached more vigourously as the general tendancy is to think foreigners have more money (in truth that is not the case, in this case lol). 

So, he tells me a little about what's what, what collections are where, where the gold is, where the diamonds are etc. Not a hard sell, actually much more accommodating than usual. Nothing I hate more than being pestered by staff when you tell them you are there just to take a look. Nevertheless he did follow me around somewhat discreetly, in case I had any questions or wanted to check out a piece in more detail.

As I was about 75% way around the store, (I was genuinely just looking that day, intending to return on the weekend if saw something I wanted to buy), I started to think like a poker player... I know what I have, I think I know what he has, does he know what I have, what are we both representing, what are our respective ranges lol.

I figured in his eyes I was probably a potential customer with a range of say $500 (barely buys you a paper bag) - $5000 (maybe a nice necklace or earings, definitely no diamonds) to spend, depending on his sales ability, his power to smoothly persuade me to towards a more expensive piece. In reality my range for the type of piece I had in mind was $300 - $1000. I wasn't looking for the huge wow factor, just a nice pair of earings or something like that to accompany a couple of other smaller things.

I wondered that as I moved through the store did his read on me change... I imagine so, actually he seemed pretty adept and through his own body language I read that he knew I was buying nothing today, that I a) wasn't particularly excited by any one piece and b) considered some things totally overpriced. Being the professional he is though he still offered assistance and help whenever needed. 

My own read on him improved too... by his actions and non invasive, non aggressive approach I grew to like him more and I knew he understood what I had in mind and had categorised me correctly.

As I was looking at the final counter I realised my own body language even more lol... I was looking with head down, never acknowledging that he was following me around the store ready to take pieces from the casings to show in more detail, never making eye contact and the biggest tell of all... I had my hands firmly inside my pockets the entire time (around 15 - 20 mins) in the store lolllll... I couldn't help but laugh at myself, what a dead giveaway, pretty much saying "hey I'm totally uncomfortable here, I'm not buying anything, I'm not buying anything, I'm not buying anything" hahahaha. Then I left the store while he was busy with another customer.

It left me thinking too if he had a different strategy for different customers, if he puts them in a category the moment they walk in the door and then adjusts his strategy depending on the next few minutes encounter with the customer. I imagine so. While he may have seemed unassuming I am thinking he read me like a book and played me perfectly lol... knowing exactly how mch push and pull to use, knowing that if he is effective and has read me right that I will return one day and will most likely seek him out. You know what, he's right! In poker terms he just gained a lot of +EV... it may have ended breakeven for him regarding me as a customer for that particular day but he made the right plays and he will see the results in the long run.

Random story but funny to think of poker parrallels to real world situations.

I still laugh every time I think about Zimba telling his wife she is too results orientated after she ordered something that would usually be good in a restaurant and it turned out bad in that particular instance (or something like that).

Roll on the weekend, hope everyone has a good one and hope I find inspiration for an awesome birthday present!

Ross.

What's up folks? How's the summer?

It's winter here in Sao Paulo but that still equates to the same temperatures as summer in Ireland so it's perfect for me still ;) While the locals are putting on their coats and complaining about the cold I am rolling around in my shorts and shades lol. Lol @ gringoes.

Anyway, it was my birthday last week and I turned the ripe ole age of 28. Still feeling young as can be though ;)

I decided to have a birthday party with a bunch of friends and naturally I chose the Irish Bar as the location ;) Not only was it the perfect spot to celebrate an Irish birthday but also a great excuse to introduce Guinness to many Brazilian friends for the first time.

We kicked off the night with everyone drinking a few. My girlfriend spilt some salt or something on her top early in the night... but I said don't worry honey, by the end of the night we'll have people hammered covered in guinness, getting sick, random hook ups and probably much worse hahaha. Oh how accurately I saw the future at that moment lol...

6 hours later my prophecy came through, to full effect... thankfully I was only in the 'hammered' and the 'probably much worse' categories hahahaha.

Good times with good friends ;)

Cheers,

Ross.

Fun weekend here in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Friday night we went for dinner and few drinks... always good ;) Saturday we chilled out mostly and then went for dinner and drinks in an American / Irish bar. I was pleasantly surprised to see Guinness available on tab so of course felt obliged to help my country and repatriate some monies to them haha. The barman claimed to pull the best Guinness in Sao Paulo too lol. He asked if I wanted a pint or half pint... naturally I went the whole nine yards, laughing with my gf that I would be shot if I took the half pint.

A few mins later I was watching my pint settle with the good ole white cream moving to the top. of course it doesn't taste the same as back home, actually it never does once it leaves Ireland... something to do with the transportation and way it is stored I guess. Nevertheless it is never the physical taste of the guiness when away from home that hits the palet but the flooding of memories and nostalgia for the motherland that brings the sweet taste to your lips hahaha. A nice warm up to the meal that would follow.

Sitting down we ordered various dishes, wings, burgers etc. I asked for a cold bottle of heineken to go with it to which the waiter responed "oh hey how about our new Brooklyn Beer or New York Beer"... I said fine, lemme try the Brooklyn one. A few mins later I realised I'd been professionally hustled and tricked into buying a beer for twice the price... one I didn't even want...how the hell did that happen lol! I then remembered that Guinness is also super expensive in Brazil. Checking the menu again later to verify, I realised I'd spent close to $20 for two drinks lol. Oh well, thems are the breaks! Good night overall, good craic and nice to be in a traditional pub setting once again ;)

On Sunday we hit up the aquarium here in Sao Paulo... really cool. It was surprisingly larger than expected and had a great variety of animals... all sorts of fish, piranhas, snakes, sharks, crocodiles, seals, walrus, even monkeys, bats, cavemen and dinosaurs! Lot's of fun!

Naturally the parting shot is of the Guinness symbol brought to life in the acquarium, the toucan ;) which coincidentally is Brazil's national bird.

How was your weekend?

Ross

What up folks? Looks like I haven't blogged for a while! Guess I got caught up with the world cup.

Also, this weekend I was at the beach for a few days as it was bank holiday here in Brazil.

Super enjoyable, nice weather, awesome barbeques two nights running, tons of beers, swimming in the surf, catching a tan on the beach and just generally having a good time all round!

Once again I've re-realised the importance of switching off. The place I was staying is a little remote so there is no internet there... thankfully! I often find myself checking emails tons of times each day, checking on my laptop, checking via my phone etc. It's not a good way to live! (imo). This weekend I was able to fully unplug, as there was no way for me to check emails anyway! ;)

Further to that I had a few great conversations on the purpose of life, happiness, enjoyment and other topics. Very refreshing and helped me find my focus once again! I have a couple of new missions now for the coming weeks / months ;) Nothing too drastic, just a few important changes for the better.

Actually I would love to move to a quiet beach and live full time! Maybe I'll be able to do that in 2011 at some stage. To top it all off I watched Avatar again last night with my gf lol... a movie with a theme about fully engagning with the earth and nature around you lol.

Hmmm, what else... one day we took a trip to another nearby beach town... famous as having the best surf in Sao Paulo state.... they hold tryouts for the ASP tour there and also a couple of events I believe... all the best have riden the waves, e.g. Kelly Slater etc. Pretty cool. Of course that reignited my intention to learn to surf too lol.

Well anyway, I am back in Sao Paulo now but with a feeling of refreshment and revitalisation, albeit a little worn out too ;)

Very much looking forward to the next beach break too ;) Maybe in a couple of weeks time.

Meaning of this blog? Take some time for yourself, unplug from work, unplug from other stressful distractions and enjoy the live your living ;) Live in the moment, for the moment.

Quote of the day: Even belief in God is a poor substitue for the living reality of God manifesting every moment of your life. - Eckart Tolle - A New Earth.