Far Too Long Of An Answer To A Straight Forward Question
This is a very difficult question to answer, and would require a book or ten to really delve into it deeply. It is my opinion that humans are ultimately social beings, and one's place in a social setting is based on many factors which can be complex and even at odds with one another. We like and want to spend time with people who have like-minded pursuits and skills similar to ours, and in this way, it is our similarities that aid in social cohesion. On the other hand, we are competitive by nature(some more than others), and contests and play are often used in order to figure out one's place in the hierarchy of your particular tribe. On top of all of this, humans are inquisitive and enjoy problem-solving and learning in varied disciplines which aids in social cohesion by our individual differences combining to make the group as a whole better off through division of labor according to competency.
So, I've attempted to establish that we want to fit in with people through similarities, yet we try to set ourselves apart from people through competition and differentiation of core competencies. Both are good, for the society as a whole and both are intrinsically hard-wired into our system as a result of much natural selection. Pool is something that can do quite well in both areas of pursuit. It is a forum for competition on the highest level, and an area where one's improvements will set them apart from their opponents which fosters the latter motivation. At the same time, we have placed ourselves within a community within our greater society of like-minded pool players, of whom which we want to fit in.
It takes very little improvement to fit in with the unwashed masses of the pool community, however, it requires a consistent level of improvement to set one's self apart with in-game skills alone. In order to fit in, we need to have a general love for the game, similarly to others like you. This love can manifest itself in many ways, but there is an etiquette about how you handle yourself that one must adhere to, or risk becoming an outcast. There are socially lubricative times where fellowship and camaraderie are far more important than skill improvement and competitive drive in where you stand in the group. In this way, we give and take from the pool community our personalities and time and share in the revelry and disbelief of the balls in their sometimes maddening paths to end up in the pockets. Fitting in necessitates, being first and foremost a friend to your fellow comarade and enjoying the setting and game itself. This provides much of the why I play pool, and one can garner quite a bit of respect in the pool community by how you handle yourself, and how you treat your fellow pool player. That type of respect only goes so far.
However, the other side of the coin, is differentiation. Respect in this vane comes from what kinds of skills and knowledge do you bring to the community. It comes from who you have beaten and what tournaments in which you have won or placed. It comes from what sets you apart from others. You can repair cues, or tables, or make cases, or many other periphery associated activities within the pool playing community, and earn respect through that sort of differentiation. You can pass knowledge along to others by being an instructor or a mentor for players looking to improve... And last but not least, you can improve your game and put your hat into the ring and battle it out, with respect and accomplishment being on the line even more importantly than the dollars in play. It is this last reason why we want to improve for its social implications. We want respect for pool-playing ability, on top of the other things we bring to the table. We want respect for the trajectory of our games. We want the accolades and acknowledgement from our friends and foes for what sets our games apart from others and for what we have accomplished. We want to succeed and be valuable members of this society. Improving your game, contributing in various way other than play, and being a good steward/ambassador for the game will all make your time in the pool community very rewarding and being social beings, these are core and important motivations for where to put effort into our lives in general.
All of this blathering, doesn't address the last aspect of why one should improve. For whatever reason, pool is fun for us. It allows us to engage our mind, escape our workaday lives, and it is complex enough to spend a lifetime pursuing improvement, and simple enough that a few kids who have never played can spend a good time with one another at the table. Every hour spent improving your game does allow a deeper enjoyment of nuances of the game and a greater knowledge and skill-level which in and of itself carries with it a sense of accomplishment. It also increases the likelihood of verifiable success, also known as winning. However, it also comes with increased expectations that we place on ourselves, which can be a source of frustration and disappointment that can actually rob a player from a lot of the pleasures and fun to be had in the game. Working so much towards improvement and allowing the competitive juices to cloud one's social judgement to the point where you aren't balanced in your pool life, can backfire dramatically.
Improvement in pool is relatively slow and comes in fits and starts and plateaus and valleys. There are imperceptible and marginal increases in a skill here or there that add up to quite large increases in one's game in the long run. We benefit from improvement in so many ways, all documented above, but this is a cautionary tale... because it is only one part of our pool journeys, and that part may or may not be what is most important to your particular situation. That is an individual question, that only you can answer for yourself. I enjoy the game, love the people in the scene, and I am thankful for what it has brought me. Improving is very important at times to me, and enjoying my time at the table and in the community is very important at other times. I want to steadily improve over time until I peak, and then hope to enjoy what I've acquired through the process when my skills begin to fade. I don't want it to feel like work, but nothing worth working for is easy, so balance is the key for me. Improvement and what it takes to make a noticeable jump is very difficult and more difficult as you move further up the ladder or down the learning curve. How much you want to put into it, will greatly decide what you get out of the game. Hopefully in the end it will result in a hell of a lot of great stories and great friends and great times.
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