i believe i discovered how to avoid tilting online

[paulcouto]

i think its fair to say that most people feel a bit nervous before playing poker. i'm usually very nervous before playing online as opposed to live play.

the reason i'm so nervous for online play is that i'm always afraid of going on tilt......where as live play, my tilt factor is very slim.

i noticed my last few sessions online to be very nerve racking but i havent tilted. i am now starting to think that being very nervous about going on tilt is a good thing.

i think tilt is something that sneaks up on u and once its there, u have no control. u cant even turn off the computer till u get even or broke.

i would say that before u start an online session, do some self analysis. am i nervous? am i afraid of going on tilt today? i believe those r good things if u feel that way before a session. acknowledge to yurself over and over about how dangerous tilt is to yur bankroll. it is yur biggest threat. be constantly afraid of tilt. be very very afraid. when it looks like it is going to sneak up on u, turn computer off and run away before it grips u and then u have no more control till u get even or broke.

when yur not nervous and alert for tilt, thats when it sneaks up on u and grabs u and then theres nothing u can do.

today, i am not really as nervous as i was for the last few days, so right now, i will not play. i will only play when i am terrified to play. THATS THE BEST TIME TO PLAY.

[paulcouto]

and by the way, i dont have a big tilting problem online but i have tilted online more than live play. i am just trying to figure out the mystery of tilt. i have pondered it for years. i dont think its something that can be controlled but it is definately something that can be avoided. u just have to find the signs. kind of like earthquake forcasting perhaps.

all i know is that if u go play online and yur not the least bit nervous........unless yur just an ice cold individual, u r asking for trouble.

i believe yur chances of avoiding tilt is 95% if u r on the constant look out for it. however, once tilt grips u, i believe u only have about a 20% chance at the very most of wiggling out of its grip. its probably closer to 10%

[soko]

I can appreciate what you are trying to say here. I can also say from my experience it's not the best thing to do to think you've discovered the grand theory of something just because you noticed one technique that worked well for you.

It's my personal belief that tilt is a natural part of the game and is unavoidable and part of becoming a good poker player is still being able to play good poker while on tilt.

[Beermantm]

You avoid tilting by understanding the game and the environment you're playing in. It has nothing to do with being scared or being alert to tilting. You alone are responsible for the outcome of your play......... at least in the long run.

One thing that can tilt anyone about online play is that the economy of online games is ever changing in real time and with fresh money coming in the game with players dropping in and out you have to pay extra close attention to the stack sizes surrounding you before making your choices on playing a certain way. It's not uncommon to have hours of work undone by one unlucky hand against a stack size that has grown as big as yours even if the player is inferior and is winning by making mistakes. Tilt is simply a product of lack of discipline or a misunderstanding of how the game works.

[holyfield5]

like the above poster i know sometimes it seems like you had some great epiphany but i dont agree. You may think you have controlled your tilt but maybe just running good. Tilt surfaces mostly when you arent running so well. also some people like myself dont tilt or get nervous and we arent ice cold individuals. You just have to approach to game the right way and be accountable. When i was grindin micros i use to tilt and i KNEW i had to conquer that before i moved up so i did. Make the decisions you know you should and know what thoughts are the ones that get you into trouble and tilting. Its all about self control, some people have more of it than others but you can go from being a tilter to being solid if you really put the effort to control yourself.

[paulcouto]

[ QUOTE ]
I can appreciate what you are trying to say here. I can also say from my experience it's not the best thing to do to think you've discovered the grand theory of something just because you noticed one technique that worked well for you.

It's my personal belief that tilt is a natural part of the game and is unavoidable and part of becoming a good poker player is still being able to play good poker while on tilt.

[/ QUOTE ]

i agree with u.

but on the other hand, we all have nothing but time. the games r always there. we can play any time we feel like. why battle tilt? espeacially when yur dealing with a force that can over ride control and logical reasoning.

personally, i'd rather avoid tilt than try to master it.

and when i speak of tilt, i speak of full blown tilt.

slight tilt is ok if for quick short bursts. it could help u to win a big pot or start playing more aggressive wich we all know is an important aspect of the game.

i would much rather play with slight aggressive tilt rather than play passive.

but ultimately, i agree with u. ultimately its better to master tilt.........easier said than done. but avoiding tilt i believe can be mastered easier.

[paulcouto]

thanks for the imput people.

agreed, understanding of the game and making the right decisions that u know r the right ones is probably the foundation of not going on tilt.

but tilt can encompass so many different things. what about someone who knows the game but deep down inside, they r not happy unless they lose? how does one know if they r a loser on the inside?

i used to ignore any articles or subject on tilt. if u dont know what it is, then how can u tilt. its kind of a tao type thing. i dont really have a problem with tilt. i couldnt have survived for 3 years without working if i did.

but it is something that grabs me every once in a while and i wrote this post to acknowledge to myself that i do have a slight problem. maybe no more than the average winning player but still, i would like to eliminate it 100%.

maybe writing about it helps me. maybe i'm wasting my time too........maybe its an unavoidable thing and i'll just have to be content with keeping it to a minimum like i have over the years.

does anyone think i'm wasting my time?

[Beermantm]

[ QUOTE ]
thanks for the imput people.

agreed, understanding of the game and making the right decisions that u know r the right ones is probably the foundation of not going on tilt.

but tilt can encompass so many different things. what about someone who knows the game but deep down inside, they r not happy unless they lose? how does one know if they r a loser on the inside?

i used to ignore any articles or subject on tilt. if u dont know what it is, then how can u tilt. its kind of a tao type thing. i dont really have a problem with tilt. i couldnt have survived for 3 years without working if i did.

but it is something that grabs me every once in a while and i wrote this post to acknowledge to myself that i do have a slight problem. maybe no more than the average winning player but still, i would like to eliminate it 100%.

maybe writing about it helps me. maybe i'm wasting my time too........maybe its an unavoidable thing and i'll just have to be content with keeping it to a minimum like i have over the years.

does anyone think i'm wasting my time?

[/ QUOTE ]

Self exploration is never a waste of time. You are going to do what you have to do control tilt for yourself but the more time you spend at the poker table the more you realize tilt does nothing but hurt you. Refocusing on your game after a beat is the key to being as profitable as possible. Remember even the beats are part of your profit if your in with the best of it anyway. Also being emotionally attached to the money is another thing that can tilt people. It's a nice feeling when your winning and winning big but when your losing big it's an emotional drag. This is the feeling of people playing in the moment and is a lot of what draws people to playing poker. (Money won is twice as sweet as money earned) Taking a more business approach to the game gets you thinking about the overall percentage your trying to win. You expect the ups and the downs but you try to limit the downs as much as possible by making the right moves. When the right move still loses and even when you maybe expected a fold but get a donk call that sucks out you still have to take comfort in the fact that you did the right thing.

There is bankroll management that fits into the equation and that is pretty undisputed. I myself think there is a stack management equation also. Although I catch heat when I get into it in these forums and I understand the debate I feel playing big hands certain ways against stacks that are 3 times the buy in should be considered carefully. If you have a chance of blowing three or four buy ins in one hand after hours of play nothing can set off a bad run like that. I think you shouldn't push smaller edges in these situations and most of the time you should see a flop instead of getting all your money in pre-flop even with pocket Aces. I know it doesn't sound like it makes much sense at first but I tend to think I have just as much of an opportunity to take someones whole stack if I play the hand out while still giving myself an opportunity to get away from a strong hand if I feel that I was out flopped. I guess it's a personal preference but if I'm up against only one buy in game on.

These tend to be the things that I see setting most people off on tilt. Dumb plays, losing when you were supposed to win, and killing off about 3 hours work in one or two hands. So I guess there are certain steps I take to avoid bad situations that would make me want to tilt but possibly at a cost of a bit of profit. I guess after so many hands I've become quite numb to the beats and even if someone pisses me off and I call the moron a monkey I definitely do not allow it to take over my game.

[paulcouto]

personally, beats never set me off. if i tilt, its usually on passive tables i think i can run over. bad beats dont tilt me one bit. beats over and over and over also bring me down a bit and maybe makes me play a little unsure but never puts me on tilt.

the last time i went on tilt online was a few months ago. that time, i think i was just trying to punish myself. go figure.

[demon102]

Interesting post, I read very early that as soon as u feel tilt coming just stop playing and that is what I try to do. One thing that ur post made me think about though is when all of a sudden ur smashed in the head with bad luck over multiple tables and bam ur on tilt, at that point its rough to just quit playing.