Best in the world? Or just in your town...

Michael Andros said:
When I was 18 or 19, my best friend at the time and I were driving around, getting our attitudes herbally reconditioned and at some point, I said "I want to be the best player in the world." He gave me a look and said "You're out of your f'ing mind." And I replied "Maybe... but you can bet on this, anyone who ever GOT to be best in the world, thought they were going to be pretty early on..."

Now... as everyone knows ( or should ), merely thinking or believing you're going to be the best in the world in no way means you will be. But I firmly believe, in order to become the best in the world, you have to believe you will be. I don't think anyone ever got to be the best by accident. And part of what it takes to become the best, besides the endless hours put in and many other other things as well, is to firmly believe you're going to be. Or that you are. That said, there are infinitely long lines of people who will be glad to tell you "You're out of your f'ing mind..." They're the ones who will all too readily say "You'll be lucky to be the best in this town." And, sadly enough, I think the larger percentage of people believe that when they hear it.

So whaddaya think? Is believing you'll be the best really mean you're "out of your f'ing mind."? Or is that one of the needed steps in actually becoming the best...
Click to expand...

You will never get there if you dont even try ;) There is a nice saying covering this:

First they ignore you.
Then they laugh at you.
Then they respect you.
Then they fear you.

So work your a55 off so they fear you ;)
 
I remember seeing a documentary about a French skier/snowboarder, it might have been Xavier de Le Rue. He was explaining how they were 3 friends riding the mountain together and he was the worst of the 3. He believed his friends had the talent to go further than him. But he put in the work and got to the top, while they didn't. I think the most solid fondation is to work to improve and be better than yourself, not someone else. If you are comparing yourself with someone else you can easily set yourself up for failure, because what the other person does and the results they get it's someting you can't control.

Julian
 
Korsakoff said:
Okay, six bourbon’s in now. Long past ”waxing poetically”. Wife is good, so the last couple are just being selfish, which is not bad on occasion.

Long time ago, a Mentor told me, “You got to figure out the answers to two questions in life, ‘Who are you?’ and ‘‘What do you want?’”.

Sounds easy, until you think about it.

So, if the answers are, “I’m a pool player.”, and “I want to be the best in the world.”, then you should definitely go for it. Unfortunately, from my perspective, that pursuit lacks a clear path as there is a real lack of clarity there, as discussed in another current thread.

There are “Road Players”, “Tournament Players”, and for many, a bit of both. Same as Poker Players being “Cash Players’ vs “Tournament Players,”

My comment here relates to the difficulty of keeping reality in perspective. How long does the “what do I want’ - “be the best player in the world” hold up in the face of reality?

To me, the endgame here is happiness. The more your understanding of “Who am I” meshes with “What do I want”, the happier you are.

And who doesn’t like a happy person?

Gawd, that’s awful. No future bourbon infused postings - promise.
Click to expand...

Post all you want on Bourbon.
Just dont do online shopping.
I did that once and it did not turn out well.
I ordered how many?
Too late to cancel?
Call the kids its an early Xmas.
 
Korsakoff said:
Okay, six bourbon’s in now. Long past ”waxing poetically”. Wife is good, so the last couple are just being selfish, which is not bad on occasion.

Long time ago, a Mentor told me, “You got to figure out the answers to two questions in life, ‘Who are you?’ and ‘‘What do you want?’”.

Sounds easy, until you think about it.

So, if the answers are, “I’m a pool player.”, and “I want to be the best in the world.”, then you should definitely go for it. Unfortunately, from my perspective, that pursuit lacks a clear path as there is a real lack of clarity there, as discussed in another current thread.

There are “Road Players”, “Tournament Players”, and for many, a bit of both. Same as Poker Players being “Cash Players’ vs “Tournament Players,”

My comment here relates to the difficulty of keeping reality in perspective. How long does the “what do I want’ - “be the best player in the world” hold up in the face of reality?

To me, the endgame here is happiness. The more your understanding of “Who am I” meshes with “What do I want”, the happier you are.

And who doesn’t like a happy person?

Gawd, that’s awful. No future bourbon infused postings - promise.
Click to expand...

I was 18 when I had that short conversation with my friend. Ten years later I got married, got a "real" job, pool was out the window and mortgage payments became the "new" reality. 32 years later I retired, entirely intent on returning to the Land of the Gold Crowns for 10 to 12 hour daily visits... infinite practice. Multiple racks from the snap like the Good Old Days. Self Satisfaction. TOP-O-THE-WOILD-MA!!!

But wait. My back says, "Ummmmmm... hold yer horses, there Hoss. I don't wanna." I said "Please?" Back said "NO! You get an hour a day at most. And you're gonna SUFFER for it! Now say thank you and shut up about it."

Life is a funny thing... I suppose I'm grateful for the hour or so a day. But I do wish my back was more understanding, the selfish basta*d. C'est la vie.
 
marek said:
You will never get there if you dont even try ;) There is a nice saying covering this:

First they ignore you.
Then they laugh at you.
Then they respect you.
Then they fear you.

So work your a55 off so they fear you ;)
Click to expand...

I like that.
 
It’s a hell of a lofty target.

I am happy to say that I was arguably the best player in my home county for a year or two. I’ll take that.


Freddie <~~~ small pond
 
Cornerman said:
It’s a hell of a lofty target.

I am happy to say that I was arguably the best player in my home county for a year or two. I’ll take that.


Freddie <~~~ small pond
Click to expand...


Shoot for the stars, even if you're a small fish in a big pond!. But be careful of the "free meal". It might have a hook in it. :grin: :wink: :grin:
 
Michael Andros said:
I was 18 when I had that short conversation with my friend. Ten years later I got married, got a "real" job, pool was out the window and mortgage payments became the "new" reality. 32 years later I retired, entirely intent on returning to the Land of the Gold Crowns for 10 to 12 hour daily visits... infinite practice. Multiple racks from the snap like the Good Old Days. Self Satisfaction. TOP-O-THE-WOILD-MA!!!

But wait. My back says, "Ummmmmm... hold yer horses, there Hoss. I don't wanna." I said "Please?" Back said "NO! You get an hour a day at most. And you're gonna SUFFER for it! Now say thank you and shut up about it."

Life is a funny thing... I suppose I'm grateful for the hour or so a day. But I do wish my back was more understanding, the selfish basta*d. C'est la vie.
Click to expand...

Father time...he changes many plans. I too often complain about the results (medical stuff) of having made 74 trips around the sun. Then I realize that many of my peers weren't as fortunate.
 
Michael Andros said:
When I was 18 or 19, my best friend at the time and I were driving around, getting our attitudes herbally reconditioned and at some point, I said "I want to be the best player in the world." He gave me a look and said "You're out of your f'ing mind." And I replied "Maybe... but you can bet on this, anyone who ever GOT to be best in the world, thought they were going to be pretty early on..."

Now... as everyone knows ( or should ), merely thinking or believing you're going to be the best in the world in no way means you will be. But I firmly believe, in order to become the best in the world, you have to believe you will be. I don't think anyone ever got to be the best by accident. And part of what it takes to become the best, besides the endless hours put in and many other other things as well, is to firmly believe you're going to be. Or that you are. That said, there are infinitely long lines of people who will be glad to tell you "You're out of your f'ing mind..." They're the ones who will all too readily say "You'll be lucky to be the best in this town." And, sadly enough, I think the larger percentage of people believe that when they hear it.

So whaddaya think? Is believing you'll be the best really mean you're "out of your f'ing mind."? Or is that one of the needed steps in actually becoming the best...
Click to expand...

You have to start with a dream....

MLK had one.....maybe someday we’ll all get there!!

Td
 
You have to believe in yourself. I KNOW I’ll never be as good as say SVB but deep down I don’t like admitting that because of my intense desire to be good. I don’t want to think I can only reach a certain point because I’m the type who would probably not take it seriously if I knew I was limited. I believe this mindset has molded me into the player I am ( still need work lol) but I also recognize I’m a little crazy/obsessed but I’m ok with that lol
 
There’s a reason it’s hard to be the best at anything. 99% of people don’t realize how much it sucks and when they do learn this lesson they stop trying.

There are so many sacrifices you have to make in every other aspect of your life to be the best at anything that it’s hard to fathom.

We all want to be at the top but it’s incredibly lonely up there and just not worth it.
 
Michael Andros said:
So whaddaya think? Is believing you'll be the best really mean you're "out of your f'ing mind."? Or is that one of the needed steps in actually becoming the best...
Click to expand...

I have been and always will be The Best In My House. A legend in my own mind.
 
Last edited:
Michael Andros said:
When I was 18 or 19, my best friend at the time and I were driving around, getting our attitudes herbally reconditioned and at some point, I said "I want to be the best player in the world." He gave me a look and said "You're out of your f'ing mind." And I replied "Maybe... but you can bet on this, anyone who ever GOT to be best in the world, thought they were going to be pretty early on..."

Now... as everyone knows ( or should ), merely thinking or believing you're going to be the best in the world in no way means you will be. But I firmly believe, in order to become the best in the world, you have to believe you will be. I don't think anyone ever got to be the best by accident. And part of what it takes to become the best, besides the endless hours put in and many other other things as well, is to firmly believe you're going to be. Or that you are. That said, there are infinitely long lines of people who will be glad to tell you "You're out of your f'ing mind..." They're the ones who will all too readily say "You'll be lucky to be the best in this town." And, sadly enough, I think the larger percentage of people believe that when they hear it.

So whaddaya think? Is believing you'll be the best really mean you're "out of your f'ing mind."? Or is that one of the needed steps in actually becoming the best...
Click to expand...
If i could be the best in whatever dive bar we were in i knew that i'd probably get the $$$$. Good enough for me. ;)
 
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