Odds of Hanging On
It all comes down to your money-management skills. When you won that big tournament, did you put most of it aside so you'd still be able to afford bread and milk when the inevitable slide reared its ugly head? Or did you blow it on all the slot machines and roulette wheels—which are basically just reverse ATMs designed to take your cash instead of giving it to you—that are littered throughout the casino?
There's money to be made in poker, but unfortunately, it's a bit of a gamble attempting to excel at it, and the line between career and addiction is terribly thin. As long as you can keep a clear head, stick to your budget, and invest your money wisely, you just might be able to keep yourself out of a cubicle—and a bread line—for the foreseeable future.