The Mental Game of Poker: Staying Focused and Handling Variance

[ednaroza]

Hey guys!
Let's discuss the psychological aspects of poker, such as maintaining focus, dealing with tilt, and managing the ups and downs of variance to improve overall performance.
What are your experiences with these things and how do you deal with them?

 

[zer0c00l23]

Lately it has worked a bit for me in the concentration part: meditating 10 minutes before the tournament that I like starts (inhaling deeply, exhaling through my mouth, slowly little by little) so it released tension and anxiety.
Against a bad streak, rest and oblivion, and I think that happens to even the best.
I am managing the variance on a daily basis, since every day there are different types of players (aggressive and passive) but I never try to lose focus, when you see and feel that you are losing a lot of consecutive hands in a game, let some bets pass if you have AA or AKs in the top positions if they go all-in, so you'll see how the game goes, remember that playing at tables of 6 -7 players is not the same as 8-9 or 10 players. Stay calm my friend.
Good luck in the game.

 

[Sopt]

Going into the game with the money you are prepared to lose helps your mindset a lot, be it focus, tilt, ect.
It's way easier to walk away from a bad beat that way, forget about it and focus on next hand/tournament.

Of course, no one can completely escape the emotions that come with variance, but it's good to remember that at the end of the day it's just a game and almost every game needs a lot of people losing to have a few winners. It's up to you to enjoy the road and focus on one day becoming a winner yourself.