How I went from multitabling mess to focused grinding (and doubled my ROI doing less)

[Manjerica1]

Back when I started playing poker around 2017, I thought I was killing it.
Six SNGs at once, dual monitor setup, music blasting, checking phone notifications like I was a Wall Street trader. Felt like I was grinding hard.

Technically, I was.
I had some study under my belt — ranges, ICM, spots — but I wasn’t really present at the tables.
I wasn’t paying attention to key stuff like player tendencies, table dynamics, who’s loose, who’s nitty, who’s on tilt.
Multitabling felt productive, but it was just busy work dressed up as volume.

Sometimes I’d even be watching Netflix or reading forums while playing. I told myself I was being “efficient.” Truth is, I was just scattered.

Then I came across some content from Benjamin Rolle (bencb) — you probably know him from Raise Your Edge. He said something that stuck:

> "Most players don’t need to study more. They just need to apply what they already know... with full focus."



That hit hard.

I slowly started cutting distractions:
• Phone on airplane mode
• No background noise
• One tab open: my tables
• Full attention on every hand, every player

At first, it felt boring. But then I realized something crazy: I was winning more, while “working” less.

Still playing six tables, but the quality of my decisions went way up.
I no longer need to play 30-40 tourneys in a day just to chase EV. Fewer games, more clarity, better winrate.

I also play for a poker team here in brazil, and I see a lot of guys burning out trying to 12-table every day, chasing volume like it's the only path.
Heavy stress, low ROI, and eventually, frustration kicks in.

When I joined the team, we were 15 players.
Now? Only three of us are still in the game full-time.
That’s not a coincidence.

If I hadn’t realized early that my biggest leak was divided attention, I probably wouldn’t be here either.


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Anyone else made the switch from quantity to quality? Or still stuck in the “must-grind-40-MTTs-a-day” mindset? Curious to hear how y’all balance volume vs focus.

 

[Gipsystripsy]

First of all, congrats on your success!
But as I understood it, you only mentioned one approach – going from quantity to quality, right? I think it's important to define your goals in poker first.

For example, if your goal is just to win the most money possible, then yeah – playing 40 MTTs a day might eventually lead to a big score. Even if you play badly, you might bink something sooner or later just from volume.
But for me, what matters more is the joy of the game. Otherwise, you might end up burned out, just like your friends. Poker is a long-term game, and I believe it's important to find your own pace – that’s just my opinion.

Personally, I focus more on building a stable bankroll so I don’t have to risk all my money or free time on this game. Otherwise, it brings a lot of stress and instability into my life – unless I’m rich, which I’m not. 😅
So yeah, I think it starts with the bankroll, and then it’s about time and long-term goals. It’s kind of like running a marathon or training your legs for it – if you train 24/7 and push too hard, you’ll get injured or just burn out.
To win the marathon, you also need to rest. That balance is the key, in my opinion.

And about the poker pros like Fedor Holz – I remember he reviewed a lot of hands and always stayed connected with other players to keep improving his game.
So I really think learning and studying is still essential. If not from books, then by analyzing your own hands. If you stop doing that, you’ll stop developing and maybe even think you’re already perfect – which is a dangerous mindset.

It all comes back to this:
Do you want to be a pro, or just play for fun?
If you want to go pro, then you HAVE to keep analyzing – which means reading, watching, studying hands... whatever it takes to keep improving.
So yeah, I hope I got your question right.
In short:
I personally play for fun. I have a stable income, and I only play when I have the time. Also, I only use money I won from freerolls – and then I stick to using 5% of that. I try to avoid emotional swings this way, because poker is still a money game, and there’s always the risk of addiction.