I wanted to put some thought into this reply. This is exactly me, less than 5 years AP.

So here's my advice to the newbie just starting.

1. Have a bankroll. When I started, my bankroll was my ATM card. I'd pull out 1K, and put it and the winnings back when I was finished. I thought this was a replinishable bankroll. And I won. I think most card counters had some good variance starting out, otherwise we would have tucked tail and ran. But I won. Almost always. And when I lost, it wasn't a lot.

Then the unthinkable happened. I lost my entire "bankroll". So I hit the ATM, took out another $500. And lost. Then due to bank restrictions, I had to wait until the next day to withdraw more, so I was finished for the day.

Did I learn? No, but I did have the bank remove the withdraw restriction...lol. It had to happen a second time before I decided not to sit at a table until I had saved $3K as a bankroll. (An arbitrary number, it was more than I ever lost so I figured it was good.)

2. Play within your bankroll. With $3K, I thought I was good betting quarters. It worked, at double deck. (My rookie good variance was still going strong). You can't spread correctly on $25 6D with only $3K, so I only played DD or I red chipped it.

3. If you are playing red chips or with a limited bankroll, you cannot afford cover. You cannot afford to play -EV rounds, so get used to wonging and /or white rabbiting. You also cannot afford to tip, so all the more reason to not camp a table.

4. When you win, keep your hands off the bankroll. It all goes back / gets reinvested. At first, I covered expenses out of the home account, just to grow my bankroll. Pros do the opposite--they cover expenses AND pay their bills from their bankroll. But when you have a big win, there is no celebration dinner.

5. Don't play rated. I was databased at a property spreading 1-3 green, rated. I thought because of my polite spread and excellent cover, it would never happen to me. Wrong. I burned my name for inconsequential stakes. If you absolutely can't live without a host fawning over you, pick one chain to play rated. Then don't play BJ there. Do anything else. Use that place as your base and then play BJ unrated elsewhere. Notice all the pros who will tell you NOT to play rated, and there's only one lone poster who advocates for it. Listen to the group consensus.

6. Network. I was fortunate to partner with some excellent people who taught me the nuances of the game, and of casino comportment. Without them, I wouldn't have made it out of the gate.

7. You are going to lose. You are going to lose so many hands in a row you're going to think the casino is cheating, the ASM is rigged, and God personally hates you. It is part of the game. You have to have the stomach to push out that fifth max bet, even though you lost the four before it. You have to have the humility to drop your ramp when you've been crushed. Ironically, after I got serious and really started practicing and growing a true bankroll (in other words, I was following my own advice) I had my worst loosing stretch to date. I thought I'd never hit 10K. I'd get close, then get hammered. I learned during this time period I did not have the internal fortitude to do this full time. For me, the perfect balance is a full time job and part time AP. Find your own work / life balance.

8. Practice. Use whatever count your want, but do it flawlessly. Count down a deck before you play. If you get to a casino but the conditions are bad, don't play. Get back in your car, drive to a coffee shop, and practice for a few hours. Then go back and check. Which leads into

9. Don't play shitty games. I don't care if you drove 6 hours to get there. If it's a crappy game, leave it be. Now, you can beat a crappy game with a huge spread, but if you're just starting you probably aren't bankrolled to take it on. Know what games you can play, and which ones you need to leave for someone else.

10. And last, don't tell the world what you're doing. At first it is a rush to beat a casino. It's even a bigger rush to spot another counter. Leave it alone. Don't try to meet them. Don't show off at the table. If you join a table and realize another's counter is already there, leave. Play it tight.

Hope this list helps someone. These are really the top 10 mistakes I made starting out. I'm sure there are more, but it's a good starting point for a newbie.