Dear Financial Samurai,
It's me again, linking to the correct post this time: How To Overcome Financial Despair For Good. Several of you mentioned I had linked to the life insurance post instead. So now you have definitive proof that I'm writing these newsletters and not AI. Then again, AI makes mistakes too.
I got home from a poker game at 1:45 am Saturday morning with my macho softball buddies. They play with a lot of testosterone and an intense amount of smack talking. I was too tired to check everything one last time before sending out the newsletter at 4:15 am. Don't worry, I didn't stay up until then. I scheduled it instead.
It's funny because I played poker with a group of fellow kindergarten dad friends from my school until 12:30 am the morning before. They are all much more polite, never swear, and tend to lean toward the super nerd side of the spectrum. It's literally the jocks-versus-nerds dynamic from high school playing out here, and I enjoy both types.
From a wealth perspective, what I can firmly say is that the poker nerd group is far wealthier than the poker jock group. If I had to guess, adjusting for age, the magnitude is at least 5X.
Therefore, my conclusion is that if you want to be wealthy, it's far better to be a nerd obsessed with your work than a jock obsessed with your on-base percentage. If you can be both, great. But if not, choose brain over brawn.
And for the men out there who think they can't get a date as a nerd, don't worry. The nerd group all found someone, by definition, since they're all dads.
New post: A Net Worth And Income Guide To Playing The Right Poker Stakes
The Bad Beat
Given we're on the topic of financial despair and poker, let me leave you with a hand that left me disappointed at the jock game. I had pocket tens and raised the big blind from $2 to $21. Three guys called, to my surprise, but the flop came 10, 8, 2 with two hearts. Sweet! Top set.
I bet $40, one guy raised all in for another $168, and I called while the other two folded. The turn brought the king of hearts, and the river the five of hearts. The guy turned over the seven of hearts and the four of clubs for a runner-runner flush. Ugh. But that's poker.
To get ahead, I guess sometimes you just have to call a $21 pre-flop raise with only 7-4 offsuit. How much risk are you willing to take in life before you're left destitute? Hopefully not as much as my softball opponent, who ended up down $465 for the evening! Oh, and if you're curious, I ended up a measly $38.
To your financial freedom,
Sam
If you want to read my posts ad-free for the first three hours after publishing, sign up for my email list. You'll get every post the moment it goes out. If someone forwarded you this newsletter, you can subscribe here. My goal is to help you achieve financial freedom sooner rather than later.
PS: It's funny, but after going to bed around 2:45 am, I hoped to sleep in until 8:30 am before taking my boy to a birthday party and hike from 10 am to 3:30 pm. But of course, my son came into my room wanting to snuggle at 6:20 am. I wouldn't have it any other way. It did remind me of my post on suffering now to enjoy life later, though. If you can build the endurance to grind for 15 to 18 hours a day, withstanding future long stretches and consistently showing up gets easier.