I have the all-too-common problem of being happy when I win and upset when lose a match. This problem has always been there for me, but this year due to substantial downswings that I've never experienced in my 14 years playing profressionally, it has become much worse.It isn't the money per se...I am serious regardless of stakes and want to win, even if only for play money. I'm currently playing $5.25s with 1000+ (yes, THOUSAND) buyins while I learn HU SNGs.I understand I'm not being rational thinking in this manner, but it's not as simple as telling myself to change my way of thinking. How can you convince yourself to change your thinking when you already understand it's the wrong way of thinking, but you cannot change?Ha, almost a Catch 22.Does anyone have any practical advice about this? This is definitely my biggest poker leak (well, maybe not knowing how the Hell to play this game comes close!). If I could get rid of this leak, I would enjoy playing so much more and I would also be able to focus better and not be so worried about making decisions.How do I tackle this problem? Yes, I know...disassociate myself from thoughts about the money or winning and just make the best possible decision every time. hahaha...how do I DO that?
tilt control is like been jealous, you know you shouldnt but you are! still didnt find the solution, just practice I guess.
Hmmm...that doesn't help me much...I don't get jealous! haha.
you don't get jaelous? i'm jaelous :( ohh $?&! xD
Maybe set low expectations and see it as an investment. Example: "I'm going to play 1000 games to improve my poker and if I lose $100 over that time it is a pretty cheap investment". Or: instead of looking at each game, break it down into 100 game lots. Or: look at your holdemmanger luck adjusted winnings instead.
Well, what I'm saying is that the money itself doesn't mean as much to me as winning. I mean, of course the money means something to me, but I guess at this point, I would have the same reaction to losing ten $2s in a row as losing ten $30s. Does that make sense?I don't believe looking at adjusted EV is a good solution, either. It's still too easy to focus on very short-term results.And I am fully prepared to invest $x while I'm learning.I'm extremely happy with my progress I've made over the last two months, but when it comes right down to a specific match, if I don't feel confident in that match (even if I win), I am left with at least a mild uneasiness.
Being comfortable with the amount of hard work that you put in to the game and seeing results and improvements is a huge step in the right direction I'd say.Not only will you be winning more (losing less) but you'll understand more why you lost, you'll see your edges much more clearly and if you can see your edge it's a lot easier to remain even headed when facing negative variance.
Well, what I'm saying is that the money itself doesn't mean as much to me as winning. I mean, of course the money means something to me, but I guess at this point, I would have the same reaction to losing ten $2s in a row as losing ten $30s. Does that make sense? Sometimes i'm not piss to lose a 100$ game but when I play with friends 2$ game and lost im piss, yeah that make sense!
LOL, yes, that's what I'm talking about! haha.Sometimes I'm pissed when I lose a full-table freeroll tournament hand. Nevermind that six people are allin preflop!
Tilt is like any other weak point in your game - you need to work on it for it to get better. Tilt control for me started with making a list of everything that was a precursor or indicator of tilt. For me these include:Cursing at my computertyping things in chatexpecting villian to hit their 3-5 outermoving up stakesshoving when I know its not the best playcalling when I know I'm beatplaying too fastfeeling flush in the faceplaying a "default" gameetc.For me there are two basic forms of tilt:1 - Making mental mistakes that end with you losing a match and blaming the poor play of your opponent (when really you are the one making the errors) - we'll call this "deflecting" and can be fixed by study.2 - Running bad or running into coolers and getting heated because you aren't running at your expected ROI. I call this "why me" tilt and here you need to reflect on your basic understanding of variance. It also helps to ask yourself a simple question after these kinds of matches. "Did I play badly"?Make a complete list of all the indicators of tilt for you. Post it somewhere where you can see it while playing. Realize that whenever you tilt you are burning money, lowering your ROI or letting a bad opponent get the best of you. If you are more conscious of when tilt begins you can stop it immediately. My practice is to take a few deep breaths after the hand when I notice one of my tilt indicators and then remind myself what my goals are - i.e. "I want to play each hand to the best of my ability". If I am still tilting at the end of the match I force myself to take a break. Also at the end of every match (win or lose) I ask myself one question - "given the information I had on my opponent did I play well?" If the answer is "no" then I review the session and find the places where I made mental mistakes. All of the work I put into my game makes me tilt proof.For me it comes down to being honest with myself. If you aren't honest with yourself you will continue to tilt. If you keep losing in the end game then its time to put in some work on that aspect of your game. If you keep building leads only to give them away you need to figure out why. In my mind 3-barrel bluffing a calling station indicates tilt. You have noticed enough to see your opponent is a station but you didn't make the correct mental adjustments.Repeat after me "I cannot control the outcome of a game - I can only control the decisions I make and how I react to my results". MW
Really good post. I find myself recognizing all these precursors as well and can identify when I'm tilting and like an alcoholic - recognition is the first step.Usually I can play a lot without tilting, even through losing sessions, but every once in a while it seems from the get go that it's goning to be a bad one.So how to deal with it. In game, I try to listen to music and remove all other distractions while I play.Secondly I try to set different goals for my play, to take away the compulsion to win - such as how I can best adjust to my opponent - finding and exploiting leaks. I know this seems obvious to most and is an essential art of poker, but to soley focus on this helps eliviate any expectation of winning and disaccociate myself with results. Poker regains it's "fun factor" and I find myself playing longer and even smile when I get hero called with 3rd pair.You can also set volume goals - so if you have a break even session, you can be happy you met your goal for the day, week , whatever.Third - I think out of game factors can have a huge impact on how you play. Going to the gym, hanging out with friends, hikes, whatever you like to do. I also like to have a "reward" for myself, something to look forward to after I finish a session. It could be watching a movie, going for a beer, or cashing out some $ to buy something after you hit reach a landmark.And if all else fails, a drink or two can help, just as long as I don't wake up with no money surrounded by empties and a serious hangover.
Wow such a great post, and i can literally recognize all the precursors for tilt you listed and I probably have a dozen more. It think this can help me solve some of my issues.seems like you have put some time in to working on this area!
Just got this Off of Hokies challange thread on 2+2 (great thread check it out). http://jaredtendlerpoker.com/wp-content/uploads/7-Types-of-Tilt.pdf - Thanks for sharing Hokie! Just out of curiosity, which ones apply most to you?For me it's:1)Mistake tilt2)desperation tilt3) Hate losing tilt4) Run bad tilt (probalby cause I havent run that bad yet)5) injustice tilt6) Revenge tilt7)entitlemant tilt