This was the first time he had seriously confronted what he was doing, and the force of that awareness came very abruptly- with a surging of his pulse and a frantic pounding in his head. He was about to gamble his life on that table, and the insanity of that risk filled him with a kind of awe.
– Paul Auster, The Music Of Chance
It’s been said that a person cannot think and feel at the same time. But since poker is a game of logic and feel how on Earth can we accommodate both of these functions simultaneously? Well, the fact is we don’t; they are fast sequential. Thus, in order to play effective poker we need our minds and bodies to operate in a synergistic cybernetic loop. So what the hell does that mean? Simply put, it means that we must be focused in our minds, stable in our state and cognisant of the relationship between the two. Even more simply expressed, we must be self-aware at all times and on guard for times when one or other of the major components is off balance. In order to be able to know this we must first know what the ideal state of being is. Some exercises will follow later, but begin now to recall a time where you had your ultimate poker experience. Perhaps it was a great tournament win, a memorable winning hand, or perhaps a great comeback. Maybe you just found a way to finally beat someone who “had your number.” Hold that in your mind as we continue to explore.
It should be intuitively obvious to all who read this that you need to be in the correct frame of mind to play poker. But what may not be so obvious to some is precisely what that frame is. In addition, some people will not play their best poker in a particular state while others will play best when they have a devil may care attitude. Know thyself, but be under no illusions as to what constitutes a “useful” poker state. I have heard and read people say they play their best poker angry. I have heard others say they play their best poker when they play like it means nothing when it means everything. Personally, I would subscribe to the second statement long before I entertained the first. The reason is simple and linked to the idea of a cybernetic loop. Anger can be a strong emotional state and inhibits logical brain processes. It naturally dovetails that anger leads to “tilt”, since “tilt” is the action of making decisions based on hope and carelessness rather than logic. This is why you most often see people playing the very next hand all in after taking a bad beat, and it’s no coincidence that many good players bust out of tournaments under just these circumstances after having played a patient and tight waiting game for hours prior. “Steaming” is one form of tilt that many have experienced, but there are others. If you have ever found yourself “unable to pull the trigger” then you are also “tilting.” If you spend any time thinking about past hands and”what ifs and maybes”you are “tilting.” If you are paranoid that people are trying to bully and bluff you constantly you are “tilting.” There are many other examples, but at least one common theme. Any time your state governs your behaviours and decisions in an unuseful manner at a poker table you are “tilting.”
So then we cannot necessarily offer a solution for what not to do, but what to do instead might be kind of valuable. What should we look to replace anger, frustration, call reluctance, regret, paranoia or any other unuseful poker state with? At the risk of upsetting the realists and pragmatists out there I will need a metaphor to help me with my answer. If you’ve ever sat by a lake on a calm, crisp, still and misty morning and skimmed stones then you can remember a state close to what I am recommending, at least as a baseline. Now with that scene held firmly in your mind, seeing clearly across the still and shimmering lake, hearing the bird’s dawn chorus, feeling the cold mist drifting across your face and smelling and tasting the crisp morning air, notice if you will, how the scene changes as you drop a stone into the still, crystal clear lake. The ripples advance across the glass, ever diminishing as time passes but under the surface permanent change has taken place because a fish lying in wait at the bottom of the water is startled by the stone and allows the dragonfly on the surface to escape. Like sliding doors you are curious as to what the implications of that irreversible change will be. You are now conscious of every ripple and minute change in the surrounding environment and the careful and tenuous balance pervading around you. As flaky and strange as that may seem, THAT IS THE BASELINE. From there we can build your ideal playing state.
If you began to think about your predominant playing style, what would it be? If you were able to capture that style in a metaphor, be it an animal, or some other iconic representation what would that representation engender in you? What state would you find yourself in if you imagined yourself as that object, animate or otherwise? Personally, I like the idea of an owl perched on a limb above that lake surveying the surroundings and taking in the peripheral nuances I detect. I am unflappable, barely twitching to anything but the strongest of stimulus. I feel as much as I see. I listen intently to everything. I spend no time thinking about interpretations until I have enough information to form conclusive opinions. I see my prey on the ground far below me and I wait for exactly the perfect moment to strike. I float down silently and in one fell swoop I seize my prey in my vice-like talons and take it back to my branch to feed. I have few natural enemies and as long as I maintain my full awareness there is little danger about me.
Now I recognise that this exercise may not suit some readers. In fact, I am quite certain about it. What I do know, however, is that as much as we try to deny it, each and every one of us will have an iconic representation to assist us with accessing useful contextual states. I am merely suggesting that we use these icons in a specific and worthwhile context, vis a vis, poker. For those of you that are struggling for an icon, perhaps you may care to think about your favourite character from a book or movie, and if that doesn’t work for you then think about the very opposite of the thing you don’t like most and use that instead. As they say in the classics “whatever floats your boat.” This is about the result, not how we get there. In the dark depths of our own minds who else is going to know or care? Not convinced? Ok, then wiseguy or gal: if icons didn’t matter why did you choose your current avatar or nickname on your chosen poker site? Was that a random event? If it was random, how did you know what not to choose? Say and believe what you like. You are not fooling me, only you.
This article is all about state and preparation. There is not a great sports personality existing today that doesn’t have a routine to prepare for an important upcoming event. As a poker player, why should you be any different? If you have spent any time winning at poker you will know that your playing state is vital to your success. If you disagree then you are in the minority. Of that I am certain. And so, the next time you consider you are in a state ready to tackle the tables allow me to make a suggestion or two, if I may. Firstly, get yourself a cup of your chosen beverage (NOT ALCOHOL!) and spend a moment or two to choose and become the personification of something iconic and palpably you. Then gaze out upon the felt that is the lake and cast a chip, the stone of your poker universe and see what ripples, what feedback you get. Adjust gently and in accordance with that feedback and morph to the resultant information so that you are barely discernable from the surroundings until the moment you are ready to strike. Then strike swiftly and powerfully and leave none in any doubt that you are not to be trifled with. And one more thing before I go and visit the felt. If, as an owl you find your feathers getting ruffled, remember to take a flight of fancy rather than perch on that branch waiting for a hunter to pick you off. Fly somewhere else where the water is clearer and you can see your prey beneath the surface and find a new branch on which to spot.
May luck not be the reason you win or lose. Let it only be a companion along for the ride.
Crazy Snake is a professional sports handicapper and amateur poker player. He has made a profit year after year through his knowledge of Aussie Rules Football, NFL, tennis, and golf. He is a senior writer for PokerPlasm.com.
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