Every month we will be highlighting a community member that shows what it is to be part of Team Pokercode! We are more than a coaching site; we are a community, so there is more value to both give and gain than outside of our poker lessons & poker coaching.
January's Community Member of the month is Miguel, in the words of Hannes Neurauter, Community Manager:
“Miguel has been a long-term member and always has been active and driven to help Pokercode to improve. With the launch of Discord, we made Miguel a Moderator. Thanks to his development skills, he is also helping us develop Bots for our Discord, whilst being the number 1 poster in our community in Discord!”
Pokercode: First off, congratulations, Hannes has put you forward for our community Member of the month for January! We're going to be having interviews with all of our Community Members of the month as, for us, the community is what stands Pokercode apart from the other "Poker Coaching/Poker Training Sites."
So first off, how long have you been playing poker and what led to you joining Pokercode?
Miguel: In 2005, I started playing freerolls. After finding WPT episodes in the Travel and Living channel. Gus Hansen was the boss at that time. 2007 I began to play for money. Mainly on a Latin American site that offered incredible value satellites for some fantastic live events. As you can imagine, games were soft, and I participated in many of those events. As my game improved, I started to play on Pokerstars as a recreational when my job allowed, and I'd usually play some MTTs.
I joined Pokercode mainly because of Fedor. I signed up in presales; I expected to learn a lot by joining Pokercode, which happened.
Pokercode: It's fantastic that you've been here from day one, man. It gives you a unique perspective! In your opinion, how have things at Pokercode developed from the first content that was released to now?
Miguel: At first, my view of Pokercode was just a course. (I think even the view of the founders believed that was the initial vision) Then about February 2020, I started participating in the community, which is the most vital part of Pokercode. The content and the coaches are still a significant and essential part, but the community is what stands Pokercode apart.
Pokercode: Yeah, I think the community has been mentioned to me by everyone I've spoken to, including members, coaches and staff. It's great that this has almost organically become such an integral part of Pokercode.
What would you say is your favourite part of being in the community? Hannes mentioned you're now a mod in Discord. How did that come about?
Miguel: I think it came organically. I spend a lot of time in the community (first Slack and now Discord), and the tasks as moderator are not much more than I was doing already, only that now it is "official".
Hannes asked Jeremy and me to help on those tasks, especially when he is not online, as we are in different time zones.
Pokercode: Nice! How have you found it so far? Has it helped your training at all/does it naturally make you engage more on the content side?
Miguel: I don't know if it answers the question, but I have some examples that come to mind. Sometimes, I feel uncomfortable when someone asks something but gets no answers. At the same time, I don't always feel I have enough knowledge to answer that question well. So, I researched the topic and learned it as a by-product. As they say; You know more when you have to explain it to someone else.
For example, someone needs feedback about their stats. I don't feel I am the best person to give feedback as I have issues with my stats myself, but I can go to the range-viewer and infer what the stats should look like, so in parallel, I'm learning opening, defending, and 3-betting ranges myself.
When someone asks about Poker math, Math fascinates me, and I think I have a lot to share (when I'm able to simplify it and express it in English). I learn a lot about poker concepts by working out and explaining the underlying math as best as possible.
Pokercode: I understand what you mean, man. It's fantastic that the community has you to keep the conversation flowing and drive things forward, not just in your pursuits but in how you want to help others!
At Pokercode, we're fortunate to have you, just a final question/2 questions, and I'll let you enjoy your evening. What are your poker goals, either short or long term, and how could Pokercode and the community help you achieve them?
Miguel: If you asked me a couple of years ago, my poker goals would have been very ambitious, But now, I think I'm more realistic. I want to challenge myself and see where my ceiling is in poker. At the same time, poker is not the only passion and challenge I want to pursue for the rest of my life. I see poker as an opportunity to have a location, time, and hopefully financial freedom, and an excuse to travel.
How can the Pokercode community help me achieve it, it already has, and by continuing in it being what it is, it will continue to do so.
Pokercode: Cheers, Miguel, that's perfect! Thank you for taking the time to chat with me this evening, have a great weekend!
Miguel: Cheers! Same to you!
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