If there is one thing I ask of poker players near and far, it is this....Please Don't Be Results Oriented! This common fallacy among poker players can be subtle enough that they don't even realize it, but I can assure you, is very detrimental to their game.
So often in poker, our success, is measured by "money won"....and that can cause us to lose sight of the real objective.....which is to play each hand as optimally as possible. To make the best decision we can make based on the information we have, and not focus on the immediate result of that decision.
The concept seems simple on the surface, but it is not as easy to accept or apply, and it is especially difficult not to be Results Oriented when you are losing. I know, because I struggled with accepting it too. In fact, for the longest time I did not even realize I was being results oriented, until a good friend pointed it out to me, and how it was hindering my growth and influencing me to make bad decisions regarding poker hands and bankroll management. But when I really started to think about it, I realized the strenth of the concept, and I felt I needed to share it with you.
Since my mental energy has been directly focused on decisions and my thought process behind each hand, it has been much easier to accept unwanted results...and this concept alone has without a doubt elevated my game. The less I focus on results and the more I focus on playing each hand as optimally as I can... the better poker I will play...the more balanced my emotional state will be... It is all correlated...if you are focusing on results...then you are more prone to go on tilt...because you are fixated on numbers...and how much you are up or down...then not meeting those preset expectations usually flares up inside us..causing players to push harder...or to jump limits...
It seems silly to focus so much energy towards something you cannot even control. You cannot control the result of a hand...only what you decide to do during it. If you flop a set into an opponent's overpair after he min-raises your big blind, when you are both 50bb deep on the final table bubble, and if his 2 outer still hits on the river, it doesn't mean you did anything wrong. You made the right decision...you cannot control how the remaining cards would be dealt. But yet, you will always see threads in forums, or messages in your aim box, where players butcher hands and justify poor decisions or berate good decisions based on the immediate result of the hand.
Please do not do this or feed into it.
Just as we grow and learn in life...its the same in poker...we start as toddlers, learning the values of hands... learning simple concepts...onward into our teen years...invincible feelings abound... ego and pride overriding and blinding... with time... maturity settles in.. and we are forced to ground ourselves...and if we don't realize it on our own.. a downswing, cold streak, bad run, etc will do the trick.... we are forced to dig deep and overcome times that almost break us... and yet we come out stronger.. adults now...equipped with steadfastness and humility...softer words and gestures...some poker players may never progress from the "invincible" stage...they will fall victim to downswings whenever poker throws its curveball... they will strike out... same as people do in life...when life seems next to impossible to deal with...they shrivel up and waste away... This game is not for the weak hearted or shallow minded... Anyone can win money at poker in the short term...but the longevity of their success... the consistency of results...the progressive upward climb only accompanies those who view poker as one long session....and who are constantly obsessed on playing optimally vs being obsessed on winning an X amount.
Poker is one long session... the session starts when you play your first hand ever... and ends years later when you play your last hand... It is like Life...from our first breath to our last...the decisions we make in between is what defines us... not one day.... or one moment... it is an all encompassing journey... Best of luck on your journey (and in Ftops) xox
