Everything I Know About Life I Learned From Playing Pool

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In a previous chapter of my life, I played pool competitively for about 9 years. I took lessons, I practiced, I played in tournaments. It was the hardest thing I ever had to learn. Although I never got good enough to play professionally, I did enjoy the successes of working hard and improving over the years. What I did take away from it, however, was using what I learned from playing pool and applying it to real life. No matter what the topic is…from career advancement to competitive sports to just life in general…everything I know about life I learned from pool.

1. It takes time and practice to get good at something. Really good. – Professional pool players, as a general rule, play pool about 40 hours a week. It sounds like a job because it IS a job. They earn an income via tournament winnings and landing endorsement deals. If you want to get good at ANYTHING, you must commit a lot of time and effort no matter what that anything is and no matter what your natural aptitude is.
2. The “best man” doesn’t always win. – It’s rather easy to show up at a tournament and point out the best player in the field. Is that the person who’s going to win? Not necessarily. That person could wind up having a bad day while a lesser player is experiencing a phenomenal day. It happens all the time. Same with real life. Never feel discouraged if you’re up against someone who you feel is superior to you in some way. You will always find someone who’s better than you at something. Today, however, could be YOUR phenomenal day.
3. Attitude is everything. – My pool instructor asked me one day during my lesson, “If two people of the same ability play a match, who will win?” Being new to the game and not having a clue, I just shrugged my shoulders. He said, “The one coming in with the better attitude.” A few years and a couple hundred tournaments later, I understood. Entering any endeavor with a positive attitude will yield a higher possibility of favorable results.
4. A killer instinct is crucial to success. – This does NOT, in any way, mean treating people poorly or going to any length to succeed, even if it means throwing people under the bus. This is all about the fire that burns inside of YOU. Success is not synonymous with winning. Success is about constant self-improvement, which can lead in to winning.
5. Focus on the task at hand and think of nothing else. – Another thing my instructor drilled into my head was, “When you’re down shooting, the ONLY thing you should be thinking about is making the ball. If you’re thinking about your next shot, you’ll miss. If you’re thinking about how hungry you are, you’ll miss. Make all your decisions about your present and future shots before you lean over the table. If you find yourself thinking about anything else other than making the ball, stand back up and regroup.” There is no such thing as multi-tasking.
6. It’s not over until it’s over. – In pool, a truer statement has never been spoken. I remember playing in this big tournament in California and I was in a match, down 4-0. The first person to win seven games wins the match so a 4-0 deficit was pretty serious. Not only did I come back to tie it up, I ended up winning the match in a 7-6 nail biter. That day, I got it right. I didn’t dwell on the fact that I lost the first four games. I didn’t let the immediate past affect my attitude about the present. I didn’t have the mentality that the match was already lost, being down by so many games. No, the match wasn’t over until someone won seven games. And four games isn’t seven games, right? There’s ALWAYS a chance. Don’t give up.
7. Don’t stay in your comfort zone and learn to adapt quickly. – One of the biggest mistakes a person can make who’s attempting to be successful at pool is to play on the same table all of the time. Sure, you’ll get good playing on THAT table, but what happens if you go to another venue? Pool tables are like snowflakes. Some are more level than others. Some have cloth that is more worn out, or runs faster or slower. The action of the rails varies depending on the age and elasticity of the rubber. Making a habit of playing on different tables enables you to learn how to adjust quickly to variables and play your best game. Life is the same. The only constant is change. The faster you adapt to those changes, the faster you can resume your trip down the road to success.
8. Winning builds confidence. Losing builds character. – When I started playing pool, I was obviously not very good. When I played in my first tournament, my instructor warned me that I probably wouldn’t win a match, even if I was playing someone who I was clearly better than. He was right. Part of the reason was due to having no experience with competitive play. The other part was lack of confidence. I had no reason TO be confident yet. From that point forward, each win was not only a testament of my hard work, but also the growing faith in myself to succeed. Before playing pool, I can honestly say that I was a sore loser. Once I started entering tournaments, I was given a lesson (over and over again) in humility. But, instead of dwelling on the fact that I lost, my instructor trained me to think about the loss as a learning experience. Did I lose because I made too many mistakes? Did I lose because I didn’t capitalize on the mistakes that my opponent made? Did I lose because I wasn’t focused? Did I lose because I didn’t enter the match in the right frame of mind? So instead of being upset about a loss, I started being reflective and using the loss as a lesson in what I should or shouldn’t do next time. From that point forward, I stopped becoming a sore loser about ANYTHING, not just pool.
   

It might sound silly, but I can honestly say that playing pool competitively has developed me as an employee, a spouse, a daughter, a friend, and as a human being in general. It also helps me win a few bets at the local tavern, but that’s a whole other story.