If winning a game of poker is a toss-up between a calm poker player and an agitated one, then most people would bet on the calm one. Obviously, the ability to remain calm, especially under pressure, means you're more likely to make the right choices and stay rational.
When the chips are down, both literally and figuratively, then you can see those who have the superpower of keeping all their emotions in check. Of course, you can't learn this at college. But you might be able to find the path to calmness yourself via meditation and yoga. having said that, there are certain policies you can follow that'll make your life at the games table a better and more relaxed venture.
Calm Poker Player: Start Eliminating Your Emotions from the Game
In many self-help books, there's a means of thinking to help the individual change. Though it's called many things by different authors, the idea remains the same. "Act as if" means "fake it till you make it". The thinking behind these ideas is that it's easier to act out a different way of thinking than to think out a different way of acting. By this means, you should be able to consciously pretend to be calm until the behavior becomes natural to you. In the same way that an actor, who makes a living playing a certain type of personality will eventually start to move from simply mimicking those traits, to having them become incorporated into their actual everyday behavior. So, once you've mastered the art of being a calm poker player, then take yourself off to the casino and practice some more.
Check Your Karma
Keep in mind that we are not just discussing negative emotions here. If you are having a winning streak, it's also possible for those positive emotions to start to cloud your judgment. So, it matters little as to whether you're happy or sad, you should just be calm. Maintaining a steady blood pressure through total indifference to the gameplay or outcomes. You might be the type of person that gets happy when your opponent loses his chips or you might get mad at the dealer for dealing such crap cards. But here's the thing, keep your karma in check. Negative emotions only lead to an increase in those same emotions. Best avoid going there at all.
Take your time, poker is the game of patience
Calm Poker Player: Stop Taking Yourself So Seriously
If you've ever attended an AA meeting, then there's always a reference to "Rule 64". This states, "don't take yourself too seriously!".Now you probably play poker for any number of reasons. Maybe for fun, for the competition or for the money. Or a combination of any or all of these perfectly valid reasons. But you can't have fun if your head is stuck up your a**! You're not a robot or some automated gambling machine, like a slot. So feel free to let yourself have a good time. This will in turn help you to relax. Also, you want to try and maintain a good atmosphere around the games table. If one player is super uptight, then that energy will spill over and start to affect all the other players. No one wants to play with that sort of ambiance hanging over them.
Maybe you missed parental hugs when you were a kid. Or your dad left to "buy some milk" and never returned. Whatever the case, as an adult, can you please just get over it. You don't have to prove anything to anyone. So stop this obsession with winning. There you go....throwing a hissy fit if things don't go your way. It's uncomfortable to be around and also very unhealthy for the player suffering. Learn that it's the journey that counts, not the destination. To that end, learn to relax and enjoy the flow of the game. It doesn't matter who wins or loses, just that you were able to pass a pleasant time with some like-minded people. This is the way of the calm poker player.
Calm Poker Player: Temper, Temper
In card table games there's an expression: "going full tilt". This harks back to the days of pinball machines. Now sometimes the steel ball would just drop in between the flippers and be lost. Yeah, it was super frustrating. So some players would try and physically tilt the machine by lifting one side in order for the ball to make contact with one of the flippers and thus remain in play. Today the term is used to describe someone who's dealing with loss in a manner of frustration and anger. They have lost all control with regards to decorum. All their emotions are boiling on the surface. That little vain on their forehead looks like it will pop!
Avoid Full Tilt
There's a school of thought in the gambling community that says you're better off losing some money when you go on full tilt. The reason is that your brain will then cause an association between tilt and losing. This'll enforce a positive confirmation bias ie full tilt = money wasted. if it were the other way around, with a full-tilt being associated with winning, then you would delight in behaving badly in the hope of scoring a win. Again, not a healthy scenario. But if you can evolve enough self-control to ensure that you never go full tilt, then that's by far the best for everyone around the gaming table including yourself.
What a hand!
Calm Poker Player: Hurt To Win
We're all nice people in our "normal" day to day lives. yet we have to remember that in order to play poker well, there's a certain amount of deception involved. Or you could actually call it lying. And with those lies, you hope to take someone's hard-earned cash from them. maybe you find yourself at the games table and you're playing with a naive and foolish player. What's the right thing to do in this situation? Do you advise him of his basic mistakes? Or refuse to accept his pathetic bets? Or simply get up and move to another table?
It's Not Your fault He's a Loser
Being a nice guy is all good and dandy, up to a point. But here we're talking about competitive games, with prizes at stake. You have every right to take advantage of another player, who has either failed to do his homework or bitten off more than he can chew. He will learn a lesson when you take all his bankroll. Remember that you didn't force him to play. You're not responsible for any of his actions. And if it wasn't you giving him a sound spanking, then it would have been someone else. So don't go getting yourself all emotional over another player's choices. As we said before, remain indifferent to all that's happening around you, even if that includes a player losing their shirt to you.
Calm Poker Player: Practice Makes Perfect
The more exposure to a certain situation, the easier it will become to handle as you'll be more familiar with what's going on. You'll be less anxious and more relaxed. And so it goes with poker. You'll have some real stinkers dealt with you. Other times all will seem lost as you see a big pot slipping away from you. But the more you have experienced this, the more you'll recognize that this is just a passing moment. Yeah, we know that sounds kinda Zen, but that attitude is probably your greatest strength. Going through a run of bad beats...don't worry. You've been here before, many times. And you got over it. Having this foresight will certainly alleviate any possible stress. Being a calm poker player will help you see these negative situations for what they really are: a means of making you a better player in the long run. So, breathe in and breathe out, slowly letting all the stress go and practice more at the online poker sites in the US.
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