Any creative art requires a philosophy. The game of poker, with all its complexities, is an art form. If you are a droid, all you need is an on-off switch to get you going. If you are not, you will need certain human qualities to motivate you to achieve your purpose and that which you love. Obviously, few of us would consider ourselves philosophers. But that isn’t required – what is required is a creative imagination and powers of perception.
You can learn to force yourself to do whatever it is you dislike and improve exponentially by tapping into the imagination and perception within you. For instance, compare developing your skills of communication with taking a cold shower, an unpleasant shock to the system at best. But that feeling can be ameliorated over time and after a few months of cold showers once or twice or week, you may begin to look forward to them. They have certain advantages, like waking you up and making you feel so good when you get out.
Learning any new skill is applicable to the cold shower story. Most of us like the challenge of learning something new even though there is some stress involved.
So with the analogy of the cold shower in mind, take the plunge and dive into those areas of poker that you would really rather not venture into.
The philosophy lessons ends here, and now you might consider several more general and practical tips. Hiring a professional to train you privately is one of the best ways to acquire experience and learn about your weaknesses. A private coach will also teach you to keep an effective track of your mistakes in order to learn from them.
If the idea of a professional coach is too pricey for you, try making the acquaintance of poker playing buddies. The honest debates between even run-of-the-mill players can greatly improve strategy and perception. Poker forums are another good place to learn. Some exceptional poker players post to these and you can gain some valuable insights from them sharing their experiences.
Jot down notes whether playing online or offline. You can review these later and don’t have to depend on memory alone, which given the complexity of the game will probably fail you in the end. The notes will aid you in formulating a self concept of how you are playing the game and why you made the moves you did. This is applicable as well to your opponents. The goal of this recordkeeping and critical review is to progress to the point where you can ask crucial questions before you make a move.
Ask yourself the following questions during the game: What do you expect your opponent’s reaction to be? Did he react in a manner consistent with your perceptions of him in that situation? Did he bet or raise as expected? What cards do you want him to think you are holding in your hand? Under what circumstance do you want him to call or raise?
If you continuously ask yourself questions like these, while cumbersome and difficult at first, they will become second nature. After a while, this questioning process will become a welcome challenge and this is when you become a genuine player of the game of poker.
The author of this article plays online poker and gets Rakeback at PKR Poker where they offer the highest PKR Rakeback.
