Grading on a Curve

Back in my university days I was always happy when I learned that a particular professor graded on a curve. For those not familiar with this concept, grading on a curve resembles a bell shaped curve. It lowers the bar such that there are less students that fail, less students that excel and the vast majority fall in the middle. What it meant to me back all those many years ago was that I stood a good chance of passing! That admission gives you an insight into Tom “TIME” Leonard as a student. The process of grading on a curve either acknowledges that the test material is too difficult or that the group being tested is perceived as mired in mediocrity.

Life can be viewed or graded in a similar manner. Life’s “material”, made up of all the trials and tribulations one faces, is incredibly difficult and that is why your successes are actually graded on a curve. Confused? Don’t be – let’s see how your various successes in life follow a curve, almost like a boomerang.

• At age 4, success is… not peeing in your pants.
• At age 12, success is… having friends.
• At age 16, success is… having a driver’s license.
• At age 20, success is… having sex.
• At age 35, success is… having money.
• At age 50, success is… still having money.
• At age 60, success is… having sex.
• At age 70, success is… having a driver’s license.
• At age 75, success is… having friends.
• At age 80, success is… not peeing in your pants.

It would seem that what goes around, comes around. Along the road of life many of us embrace the wonderful game of poker. From our first introduction to poker, to the degree in which each of us embrace it, including all of the good and bad beats, our poker career could and should be graded on a curve. Over a long and full life our poker playing curve might look something like this:

• At age 10… grappling to understand the multitude of rules and intricacies of poker.
• At age 20… finding enough like minded friends to start a home game.
• At age 30… vowing not to take drugs while playing.
• At age 40… dealing with your wife’s objections when you go out to play.
• At age 50… deciding whether you are playing poker for fun or profit.
• At age 60… dealing with your wife constantly urging you to go out and play.
• At age 70… vowing to take your drugs at the right time.
• At age 80… finding enough friends with active pulses to start a home game.
• At age 90… grappling to understand the multitude of rules and intricacies of poker.

Again, whether it be life in general or, specifically, how your relationship with poker changes over a lifetime, what goes around comes around. Grading on a curve is somewhat analogous to lowering one’s expectations. If your expectations are lowered a notch or two, life can seem so much more fulfilling. Personally, I’m right in the middle category of deciding whether I should be playing for fun or profit. I’ve decided that those two choices need not be mutually exclusive. So I’m having fun while I make a profit. Study all the poker lessons here at Pokerology.com and you will be too!