I read an interesting article earlier today on pokernews.com. The article was focused on why German players do so well in tournaments and how they're crushing the games that they choose to play in. When I first started to read this, I was thinking that it was going to say that they eat healthy, exercise, study the game relentlessly, be disciplined and all of the above to conquer the game, which I'm pretty sure they do already, but what stood out the most to me was poker pro Philipp Gruissem. Other than being a monster at the poker table, he does something really cool with his winnings and says that it's his main key to his success. He donates 10% of his yearly winnings to a charity of his choosing. As I read that, it hit me. Besides being an elite pro, his goal is so strong and so positive, no wonder why he does so well on the felt. He's driven to play for a purpose other than his own means. After reading this, it really struck a chord with me. I'm familiar with Barry Greenstein as well and earlier on in his career he did that kind of stuff all the time, actually I think he still does, but I was younger when I became familiar with him and didn't take that into huge consideration. I knew it was a good thing what he was doing, but it didn't strike me like it does today. Maybe maturity is a factor with that.

I wanted to post this not to brag about donating to charity, but rather to possibly influence others to do this as well for your own personal good. Like Philipp, I will donate 10% of my yearly poker winnings, (both live and online) to a charity of my own choosing. Obviously, the 10% is going to be a lot smaller than Philipp's, but anything really is better than nothing. 

I had a decent year last year and with my winnings, I pretty much invested all in myself, which I'm not saying is wrong but sometimes giving back is better than receiving. I think this will motivate me to work a helluva lot harder at my game and other than just wanting to profit all for myself, the goal is try to help out others in true need. 

In general, life always grants us options and if we choose more of the right ones rather than the wrong ones, it will come back to us in a positive way, much like poker.